Councilman Gentile Announces Two Community Cleanups

By on May 9, 2013  Events
May 092013
 

The following is a press release from the office of City Councilman Vincent Gentile:

BAY RIDGE – Councilman Vincent J. Gentile is organizing a community-wide volunteer clean-up effort along with the local Community Boards to inspire awareness, appreciation and respect for our neighborhood and keeping it clean.

Join Councilman Gentile at two separate community events – one in Bay Ridge and one in Bensonhurst – as we all pitch in to give our neighborhoods a much deserved spring cleaning! Continue reading »

It’s Rubbish! Welsh Pub Longbow Refutes Discriminatory Hiring Charge

By on May 7, 2013  Business, Featured story
May 072013
 

Longbow-UK Union Jack

I would like to preface all of this by saying that I love Longbow. I had a blast there on the last two St. David’s Days. Took my dad there on his first night in New York in years. Their English ales – particularly Bombardier and Fuller’s London Pride – have ruined me for just about all other beer. And its the only pub I’ll pass on the burger and go straight for the fish and chips, which is saying quite a lot, because they have an amazing burger.

It is my favorite bar.

I’d like that on the record now, because what I’m going to say next is not going to be popular with other lovers of Longbow.

By now, you have probably heard that the 3rd Avenue Welsh pub has been slapped with a $2,500 fine by the NYC Commission on Human Rights for an unfair hiring practice – favoring British nationals over others. As reported by Andy Newman (NY Times) and Magee Hickey (WPIX), the violation stems from the wording of a Craigslist help-wanted ad for a bartender: Continue reading »

REALLY IMPORTANT REMINDER: No Overnight R-Trains This Week

By on May 6, 2013  Traffic & Transit
May 062013
 

Fastrack R-Train May 6 2013Reminder to everyone who planned on going out to happy hour with coworkers this week: the R-train will not run during overnight hours (10pm-5am), Monday through Thursday night/Friday morning.

Shuttle buses will replace trains between 36th and 95th Streets along 4th Avenue. Riders can transfer to/from the D-train at 36th Street.

N-train service between 36th Street and 8th Avenue is suspended during this time, and there is no shuttle between 59th Street and 8th Avenue. Riders can take the D-train to 62nd Street/New Utrecht Avenue to reach the segment of the N-train (8th Avenue to Coney Island) that will operate all night. The B9 and B4 buses (60th and 75th Streets, respectively) can also be used as alternatives.

The closure is caused by Fastrack, a relatively new maintenance program from the MTA where the agency completely suspends train service over a segment of a subway line in order to give workers uninterrupted access to tracks, signals, cables, lighting, third rail components and platform edges.

Councilman Gentile Announces Demolition Of Notorious 79th Street House

By on May 2, 2013  Featured story, Real Estate
May 022013
 
237 79th Street via Facebook

237 79th Street (via Facebook).

It looks like the notorious 79th Street raccoon house, built in a simpler time before air conditioner sleeves became architectural ornamentation, will soon be no more. Continue reading »

Burglar Makes Quick Work Of Three Ovington Avenue Apartments With Unlocked Windows

By on May 2, 2013  News
May 022013
 
Image source: S. Diddy via Flickr.

Image source: S. Diddy via Flickr.

We’ve said it time and time again.

Please folks, lock those windows when you go out, especially if they open up onto a fire escape!

In this week’s Brooklyn Paper, Will Bredderman brings us three more tales of woe, all of which may have been prevented with something as simple as a secured window. All three break-ins occurred April 24, on the same block of Ovington Avenue between Fifth Avenue and Sixth Avenue.

  • In the first incident, the victim left his apartment with one open window at around 8 a.m. When he returned at 3:20 p.m. his iPad, bankbook, cell phone, watch, and one piece of jewelery were gone.
  • Another tenant in the same building told police he went out at 4 p.m. After getting home at 4:10 a.m. the following morning, he discovered his iPad and $100 in cash missing. The complainant reported that his windows do not lock.
  • A resident of the building next door said she headed out at 7:50 a.m., neglecting to lock her fire escape window. She said she returned at 9:30 p.m. to find the window open and her valuables gone. The missing items include two “pricey” cameras and her iPhone Touch.

Jets Tap Xaverian Lineman Oday Aboushi In NFL Draft

By on May 2, 2013  Miscellaneous, Sports
May 022013
 

A Xaverian graduate was among the 254 football players selected in last weekend’s NFL draft. Oday Aboushi, a Bay Ridge native and Palestinian-American, was selected by the New York Jets in the fifth-round, and was the 141st player selected.

Aboushi is a graduate from the Xaverian High School Class of 2009, and played college football with the University of Virginia Cavaliers. At Xaverian, Aboushi earned second-team All-State honors as a football player, and was a member of the National Honor Society.

At Virginia, Aboushi played left tackle, considered the most important position on the offensive line, as it protects the blind side of right-handed quarterbacks. He played all four seasons with the Cavaliers, and was a starter in every game in his last two years. He was a first-team All-ACC selection his senior year at Virginia. Aboushi observed the Ramadan fast from sunrise to sunset during each of the four Cavaliers training camps he took part in.

Aboushi graduated from Virginia with a degree in sociology. He now lives in Huguenot, Staten Island.

Source articles: Staten Island Advance/Jim Waggoner | Brooklyn Paper/Joseph Staszeski | Gang Green Nation/David Wyatt | Sixteen Minutes To Palestine/Sami Kishawi

Another Pedestrian Struck On 4th Avenue, Highlights Need For NYPD To Rethink Approach To Traffic Safety

By on May 1, 2013  Traffic & Transit
May 012013
 

An elderly woman was struck by an SUV while crossing 4th Avenue at 82nd Street last night. While speed doesn’t appear to have been a factor – highlighting the limitations in proposed speed enforcement cameras – the incident and the subsequent statement by the NYPD to local reporters highlights a blind spot in the police department’s perception of its mission.

The woman -  in her 70s or 80s, depending on reports, was in the crosswalk going across 4th Avenue when she was struck by a Cadillac Escalade made a right turn from the westbound 82nd Street to northbound 4th Avenue and collided with her.

The police department said that speed did not appear to be a factor, but that statement was met with skepticism. Maureen Landers, an activist who helped found BRAKES (Bay Ridge Advocates for Keeping Everyone Safe), told Helen Klein of the Home Reporter, “If the woman was in the crosswalk with the light, how is speed not a problem?” Continue reading »

Happening Here In Bay Ridge: Events Through May 14

By on May 1, 2013  Event Listing
May 012013
 
It's My Park Day is May 4, and there will be volunteer cleanup groups around Shore Road and Owl's Head Parks in the morning. (Photo source: Shore Road Parks Conservancy)

It’s My Park Day is May 4, and there will be volunteer cleanup groups around Shore Road and Owl’s Head Parks in the morning. (Photo source: Shore Road Parks Conservancy)

It’s the Bay Ridge Odyssey events newsletter – packed with two weeks of fun things to do in the neighborhood. You can have this sent to your inbox via e-mail to you every week by signing up here.

Know of an event you’d like to see listed here? We will list everything that comes to our attention, but the best way to let us know about your event is by e-mailing the details to info@bayridgeodyssey.com.

THEATER AND OPERA

  • Disney’s The Little Mermaid JR (Leif Ericson Day School, 1037 72nd St) – Disney’s The Little Mermaid JR presented by Leif Ericson Day School’s Drama Group. Doors open 30 mins. before the event start time. A family event – bring the kids with you to watch other kids [grades 5-8] perform, sing, dance & act! Tickets $10 per person, available at the door (718-748-9023 or ledsny.org for more info/reserved seating). May 4, 6pm and May 5, 2pm
  • “Swing Along Broadway” Regina Opera Company Concert (Our Lady Of Perpetual Help, 5902 6th Ave) – An afternoon of your favorite show tunes. Ed Russo, master of the keyboard, will be accompanying Regina Opera soloists. General Admission – $12, Teens – $5, Children – Free (reginaopera.org, info@reginaopera, 718-259-2772). May 5, 3pm.
  • Narrows Community Theater presents: 9 To 5 The Musical (St. Patrick’s Auditorium, 97th St and 4th Ave) – Narrows Community Theater, Inc. presents 9 TO 5: THE MUSICAL, with music and lyrics by Dolly Parton and book by Patricia Resnick. Based on the 1980 hit movie, it is the hilarious tale of three female co-workers who challenge the glass-ceiling women faced in the early 1970’s when the feminist movement first began to take hold. Tickets: $20 for adults, $15 for seniors, students under 21, and children. See our prior coverage for more. May 10, 11, 17, and 18 at 8pm, and May 12 and 19 at 2pm Continue reading »

Saturday: Empty Bowls Fundraiser For Local Food Pantries At 4th Ave Presbyterian

By on May 1, 2013  Events
May 012013
 

Empty BowlsAn Empty Bowls event will be held in Bay Ridge on May 4th from 1 to 5 pm at the Fourth Avenue Presbyterian Church (6753 4th Avenue).

The Empty Bowls project, as described by its national organizers, is an international grassroots effort to fight hunger. In exchange for a cash donation, guests are asked to keep a unique, handcrafted ceramic bowl created by local potters and other craftspeople as a reminder of all the empty bowls in the world. The money raised is donated to an organization working to end hunger and food insecurity.

In the case of the Bay Ridge event, all proceeds from the sale of bowls will benefit the Community Food Pantry at the Fourth Avenue Presbyterian Church and Ecumenical Neighborhood Lunch Program at Zion Lutheran Church, two local organizations helping the hungry of Bay Ridge and Sunset Park. Bowls will be on sale for $25.

In addition to the sale of the handcrafted bowls, there will be activities for children and refreshments. Music will be provided by local artists Zafer Tawil (oud), Valerie Gates and James Cleveland (Irish guitar & fiddle) and Secretly Famous featuring Kris Lauricella, Dave Doll and Charlie Marine.

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