A New Bar for Fulton?

Recently, a reader tipped me off to a potential bar opening on Fulton next to Brooklyn Cares Vet: Hi! I think there might be a new bar going in around 946 or 948 Fulton St at Cambridge Place (next to the Brooklyn Cares vet clinic). It's under construction, but the door was open the other day and I saw what looked like a big long plywood counter going in. Do you know anything about it?

I walked past last week and only saw what looked like construction - but no one was around to ask.  Have the scoop?  This could be pretty cool, and a good way to link western Fulton (home to Olivino wine shop and bar and the new Just Taste It) with the eastern end (Outpost).  Maybe they'll even be open when the post office is.  I know I usually feel like a stiff drink after leaving that place.

Unsavory Campaign Tactics

Here at CHB, we usually leave the political reporting to other sites.  However, we received a compelling email in the inbox that seemed worthy of discussion: I'm a Clinton Hill resident and I'm somewhat interested/involved in local politics. Today, I was enjoying some coffee along Fulton Street, and I didn't believe what I saw. Around 3:00pm, I saw around 10-12 young women carrying Delia Hunnly signs in front of Tish James' campaign office. None of these girls could have been over 16 years of age, and they were a loud, rude, gyrating crew. I didn't see from which direction they arrived, but they were walking back and forth maybe 2 blocks of Fulton (that included Tish's campaign office), so I couldn't imagine they were there for any other reason but to heckle Tish's campaign people.

It seems really disrespectful, unprofessional, and a bit sad that Delia has to resort to sending children to taunt her opponent [and they did taunt, I overheard them saying, "You should work for Dee! She pays gooood!" to the office, who as far as I could tell ignored the entire event]. Furthermore, this is really disrespectful to the neighbors and businesses to send these loud children into our community for this foolishness. Delia should be thoroughly embarrassed, because I am embarrassed for her. I am not a hard "Tish supporter", but this has made the choice for me. I have attached photos I took on my cell phone as proof, and I am sending this email to all the media I could find online or had already, because this kind of behavior needs to be exposed.

By the way, the word in the street is that there are constant "poster" problems with Delia's campaign persons (probably these children or ones like them) ripping down posters of Tish and the other opponent. As a resident, I can attest that the "support" as far as storefront visibility changes drastically on a daily basis.

Have any other readers seen anything like this?  What did you think?

(For the record, Lesterhead is a Tish supporter.)

No-bama?

Reader / photographer David Velez noticed that while the Obama deli awning was up yesterday morning, it had been taken down by the afternoon! What happened?  Did Obama's people find out about this and threaten a lawsuit?  Did the deli close already?

Gross Met Meat

Awhile back on CHB, we received several complaints about the state of fresh produce at the Met on Fulton Street (see here).  All's been quiet in the last 1.5 years until last week when I received a horror story about a meat purchase: After what happened at the Met on Fulton last weekend I felt obligated to send you a message as a warning to your other readers.  We all know how about the rotten produce and terrible service but they reached a new low last weekend.  I went to buy some chicken and as usual I bought the Murray's organic chicken.  It was 3 days before the use by date but when I brought it home it was completely spoiled.  It clearly had not been properly refrigerated.  There were also about 5 stickers on the back of the package which makes me think they knew it was spoiled and lowered the price accordingly, or perhaps they altered the sell by date and put it out there regardless.  Nothing would surprise me at that place.  The scariest part was when I brought it back nobody at the store was the slightest bit surprised.  Apparently it had happened before and they had done nothing about it.  They gave my money back but that's not really the point.  Bad produce is one thing but spoiled chicken is unsafe and unacceptable.

Anyone else have meat problems at the Met?  If many of you have, probably cause for alarm.  How prevalent is spoiled meat in the supermarket industry?

Trash Timing: There are Rules!

A reader recently emailed me about a nuisance I have long noticed but never realized was a fine-able action: placing trash on the curb too early in the day: I've just moved back to Clinton Hill, which has some of the most beautiful streets in the entire city. But they are less than lovely on the days before trash pickup. On pleasant summer afternoons and early evenings we have to walk past, and try not to look at, bags of trash put out on sidewalks much earlier than they need to be. The day before recycling pickup is the worst, since so much of the trash is in clear plastic bags, or in bundles, or just loose.

According to Sanitation regulations, it cannot be put out until 5 p.m. on the day before pickup, but that's still 4 hours before dark, spoiling the view for people coming home or going for a late-afternoon stroll.

According to a 311 operator, Sanitation will issue summonses for trash placed on sidewalks before 5 pm, but they obviously don't. I doubt if most people even know about the 5 pm rule (it used to be 8 pm during Daylight Saving time, and that should be reinstated). But the emphasis should be on consciousness raising and voluntary compliance in the interest of keeping the neighborhood beautiful.

I'm going to keep an eye out to see when the trash near me appears on the sidewalk.  What do you think?  Is 5pm too early?  I can see how having a later limit would be more difficult for large residential buildings (even though they create the biggest trash piles), but it would be nice to see (and smell) less leaky trash bags on a pleasant stroll.

CHB Photo Contest!

CHB will be relaunching soon, with a new design and logo! As part of our design, the new header will feature 10 rotating photos of the neighborhood taken by readers.

Interested in submitting a photo for the new site?  Header images will need to be cropped to 860 x 136 pixels, making it a bit more challenging.

Not sure what this means?  Just send us a favorite neighborhood photo and we'll take it from there.  Artsy and know about cropping?  Send us the cropped and original version for consideration. (The logo will appear on the left side of the header)

If your photo is selected, you will be featured on the Contributors page, with a brief bio and link to your original photo.

Contest deadline is MONDAY, AUGUST 3.  Please submit your name, contact info and location of the photo to clintonhillblog-at-gmail-dot-com.  While this site sometimes covers Fort Greene and Bed-Stuy, all header photo submissions must be from Clinton Hill proper (borders are Clinton Ave, Park Ave, Classon Ave, Atlantic Ave).

Example (not to scale) of how photos will be cropped:

Another New Flower Shop

Readers are reporting that there is a new flower shop in the former art gallery space on Vanderbilt just south of Myrtle.  Readers report that "They don't have a sign yet," and, "They had some nice stuff at much fairer prices than Rootstock & Quade. The clerk in there on Tues or Wed wasn't super-knowledgeable -- and they don't have nearly the depth of merchandise that RS&Q does -- but I think it's definitely worth checking out!" Has anyone been?  I'll get over there this week, but if you've been, leave a comment.

Pratt Access: Restricted?

From a reader: In the last few days I've see notices on the Pratt campus saying that access to campus by non faculty and students would be prohibited until further notice, due to ongoing construction.  I wonder if this is a temporary change or, as I've heard rumored, as the fist step in barring the general public from entering campus ground.

This struck me as worrisome, since I've been a visitor to the campus grounds for ten years now, and use it as a pleasant walk to Myrtle, as a convenient Bicycle cut-through, to use the Sovereign bank ATM back before there were other ATM locations in the neighborhood, and most recently, as a lush spot to take my 11-month-old daughter.

I wonder if it has anything to do with the Union Carpenters protesting at the Dekalb Ave gates, or if this is the first step towards a new access policy.

What has the all-knowing all-seeing neighborhood blog heard?

Sadly, the all-knowing all-see blog has not heard a peep, but I do deeply hope this is construction-related.  I can't imagine the school would want to restrict their well-loved sculpture garden from the neighborhood at large and I am a firm believer of campuses and their student and faculty communities being well-integrated into the neighborhoods they inhabit.  I can understand security concerns in the evening, but it would be a real shame to close the gates all day.

Has the campus always been accessible to the community?

Obama Comes to Clinton Hill

A few readers sent in photos of a new deli opening on Myrtle between Vanderbilt and Clinton named after the leader of our country:

I wonder how many places like this have opened up around the country (and world), and if Obama feels weird seeing them.  At least it'll be open 24 hours!  (More than I can say for most places in the neighborhood.)  No word on whether Hope will be available.

In related news, I shook President Clinton's hand last week at a conference where I was speaking.  I have long been a fan of Bill, and I was thrilled to have the experience.  However, I couldn't help but think that it would have been much cooler to shake Obama's hand.

Building Collapse on Myrtle?

I was just checking some email when I heard a slew of sirens scream past my building.  A few moments later, I received this email from a reader: We were just trying to walk to the laundromat, but couldn't because it appears that a building on the north side of Myrtle between Ryerson and Hall collapsed and there was rubble across the sidewalk.  Not sure if this was caused by an explosion or what, or if it was an accident or intentional, but a pretty crazy sight.  Hope no one was inside the building when it came down and that no one was hurt.

I may head out to check it out now.  If anyone has any info, please leave it in the comments!

PIG Spotted Near Adelphi Station

I haven't seen our neighborhood pig around lately, but reader Bailey spotted him recently on a walk near Adelphi Station on Fulton:

Have you seen the pig?  Here's some info we posted about him in the early days of CHB:

• CHB Meets PIG
• The Swine of the Hill

Sonnet the Dog Still Missing

From Pratt Area Community Council:

PLEASE CALL IF YOU HAVE SEEN HER!!!24/7!! 917 365 3023 or 347 591 9480

Clinton Hill Dentistry

Drs. Philip and Daniel Epstein have been serving the FG / CH community for 43 years at their dental office on DeKalb Avenue between Washington and Waverly, and now they've seemingly closed up shop.

I called the phone number listed online, and it seems to redirect to Charles Grannum, DDS, on St. James Place.  Maybe he took over the practice?

Extended Hours at Michael Allen

Despite a losing a few local businesses recently, others are expanding hours and services!  A reader reports that Desserts by Michael Allen, the cozy and delicious cafe and dessert space on Fulton, has extended their weekday hours until 10pm! Now we can satisfy that sweet tooth (and enjoy the WiFi) a little later into the evening.

Kitchen Nightmares: Filming NOW at Mohito on Washington

I love TV, but I have to admit I've never heard of this one before.  Per Wikipedia, "Kitchen Nightmares or Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares USA is an American reality television series on the Fox Broadcasting network, in which chef Gordon Ramsay helps failing restaurants." This very second, the show is filming at Mohito on Washington north of Park.

A CH reader reports that she "overheard the staff last night bitching about how Ramsay is changing Mojitos menu, cursing at the staff..."

I haven't heard anythink about them being in dire trouble, but have heard very mixed reviews.  My experiences have been mostly good.

Epoca: Closed?

This just in the ol' inbox: Hi Clinton Hill Blog! I think that Epoca Restaurant may have closed?  Am I losing my mind or (gulp) right?  Let me know if you have any info.

I passed by on Sunday afternoon during prime brunch time, only to find the gate down.  The website is also down, but I couldn't find anything online about the place closing down.

Anyone have info?

Call to Prayer Too Loud?

This email just in the inbox.  Anyone want to weigh in? Hi CHB,

I live on Washington btwn Atlantic and Fulton, and for a couple of months now, the first call to pray from the mosque on Fulton (btwn Washington and St. James) has been waking us up every morning. I stopped in to ask them VERY nicely if they would consider turning the loudspeakers down a few notches, and they told me, literally, to fuck off.  So I called 311 and Letitia James's office, to no avail.  I'd be curious to know if anyone else in the neighborhood is having this problem, and if there is anything we could do to fix it.  Thanks!

Another Casualty to the Economy?

Terrible news! I received a tip that the Atlantic Avenue space that housed Frank White has a For Rent sign in the window.  The tipster said that the place had been cleared out, except for the wallpaper.

I haven't had time to go look for myself or snap a pic, but I'm very saddened by this news.  The space was gorgeous and unique, and I had no idea they were having troubles.

Anyone have anything further??

Choice Atlantic Now Open!

Received the following report from a neighbor who lives near Atlantic: It was open [Sunday], albeit not at full capacity yet.  Inside the hours say 6am - 9pm, but outside it said something else, I think it was 8am - 7pm.  There was only one worker inside, who was transferred over from the Lafayette store for the day, so he didn't really know when they would be expanding to full hours.  Right now they have just pastries, coffee and bottled juices, but they'll be expanding to have burgers, breakfast sandwiches and omelettes, and prepackaged sandwiches. Oh, and the best part, no line!  There's no room for sitting down, but since its just a few blocks down Atlantic, I see it being a regular place to pick up some croissants for breakfast back at our place.

Another neighbor who stopped in reports:

It would be a great place to stop for someone on their way to the Franklin stop (from Crown Heights) or to pick up some bread or dessert if you are on this side of the neighborhood. It's a welcome addition to our family of great places for small bites (Outpost, Brown Betty & Michael Allen's). I think my neighbors and I might see if they can put a bench out front for quick bites with the dog (not that sitting out on Atlantic is very pleasant).

Here's a short blurb from the Times on the new Choice locale.

Choice Atlantic 999 Atlantic Ave (at Grand) (718) 636-8996

Teen Challenge House on the Market

Received a tip this morning about the mysterious mansion on Clinton between Lafayette and Greene - there's a huge for sale sign in the front!

Brownstoner is reporting that the building is listed at $5.5 million and comes with a carriage house on Vanderbilt.  (He also has some cool history on the building as well.)

So why is Teen Challenge selling this gorgeous place?  Where are they moving the female residents?