WARD 6 BROOKLYN

Longtime journalist, 60 Minutes alum, writing stories from my corner of Brooklyn--Cobble Hill, Carroll Gardens and Red Hook, once known as WARD 6.

Articles

ICE

Post #19: My local celebrity big-ish reveal, birds as therapy, a former Nat Geo photog. shares his favorites, NYC should be more like Bogota? BK n'hoods rank high for air pollution

Jan 31, 2026

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16 min read

Post #19: My local celebrity big-ish reveal, birds as therapy, a former Nat Geo photog. shares his favorites, NYC should be more like Bogota? BK n'hoods rank high for air pollution

R.E.M is not A Tribe Called Quest and other adventures as a young journalist

Julie Holstein

photography

Post #18: A new pickleball club on Van Brunt; Elon Musk Leaves Red Hook; help stop another Ryder Cup chopper invasion!

Jan 24, 2026

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14 min read

Post #18: A new pickleball club on Van Brunt; Elon Musk Leaves Red Hook; help stop another Ryder Cup chopper invasion!

Remember that gawd-awful Ryder Cup weekend when hundreds of helicopters flew non-stop above our Brooklyn neighborhoods because people paid $1200 for a 12-minute flight to the Long Island golf tournament?

Julie Holstein

Artists

Sanitation trucks as roving works of art.

Jan 18, 2026

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16 min read

Sanitation trucks as roving works of art.

Ward 6: #17 ALL THOSE NEW DISPENSARIES, EXPLAINED

Julie Holstein

News

Jan 11, 2026

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7 min read

HNY! WELCOME TO WARD 6 IN 2026

"It will still be Montero - same name, same everything. Karaoke and all..."

Julie Holstein

JOBS

"Around here after 4pm, it all turns into bedlam” (DOT survey)

Dec 21, 2025

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14 min read

"Around here after 4pm, it all turns into bedlam” (DOT survey)

WARD 6 #15: MAYOR-ELECT MAMDANI HAS A JOB FOR YOU; DID YOU SAY CROISSANT? THE CITY CLAIMS HELICOPTERS ONLY FLY OVER WATER AND A BIG WIN FOR TRANSPARENCY

Julie Holstein

Brooklyn Marine Terminal

Another tipster told me Madewell will move into the space, which I immediately responded with an eyeroll and a groan. “It’s better than a bank,” she aptly said—yes, but tough, tough news.

Dec 13, 2025

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17 min read

Another tipster told me Madewell will move into the space, which I immediately responded with an eyeroll and a groan. “It’s better than a bank,” she aptly said—yes, but tough, tough news.

In this week's post #14: Two big scoops; a warning after the closure of a Brooklyn private school for two days; a packed CB6 meeting about you know what (hint: 2-wheels), a Gen X guide for the holidays and a world with less trucks.

Julie Holstein

Brooklyn Marine Terminal

IN THIS WEEK'S POST#13: WHAT YOUR NEIGHBORS TOLD THE MAYOR'S OFFICE ABOUT ITS WATERFRONT PLAN; SAUNA COMEDY; A LOCAL MOM TAKES ACTION; SOULCYCLE FOUNDER DISCOVERS CHILL

Dec 6, 2025

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15 min read

IN THIS WEEK'S POST#13: WHAT YOUR NEIGHBORS TOLD THE MAYOR'S OFFICE ABOUT ITS WATERFRONT PLAN; SAUNA COMEDY; A LOCAL MOM TAKES ACTION; SOULCYCLE FOUNDER DISCOVERS CHILL

“Residents and container cranes [at the proposed BMT] do not mix, except where these cranes are painted fancy colors and frozen like dinosaurs on display.” (Cong. Nydia Velazquez)

Julie Holstein

IN THIS WEEK'S POST #12 (gulp): COME ONE, COME ALL TO SUPPORT YOUR NEIGHBORS OR EXPRESS YOURSELF!

Dec 1, 2025

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5 min read

IN THIS WEEK'S POST #12 (gulp): COME ONE, COME ALL TO SUPPORT YOUR NEIGHBORS OR EXPRESS YOURSELF!

TONIGHT! It's that time... Did you know Kane St. and Congress St. will be the entrance and exits for the proposed waterfront development with 20 new apartment towers?

Julie Holstein

IN THIS WEEK'S W6: WHAT HAPPENS WHEN A SEMI-TRUCK DRIVES IN C. HILL? A WEED SHOP OPENS ON COURT ST.; SHINY & SPARKLE IN RED HOOK

Nov 23, 2025

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20 min read

IN THIS WEEK'S W6: WHAT HAPPENS WHEN A SEMI-TRUCK DRIVES IN C. HILL? A WEED SHOP OPENS ON COURT ST.; SHINY & SPARKLE IN RED HOOK

It was, by far, the most spirited, at times testy, CHA meetings I’ve ever attended. Yes, it got loud; yes, people were talking over, under and all around one another, at one point; and yes, State Senator Andrew Gournardes had to defend himself, at times vigorously, but I personally found it invigorating and democratic.

Julie Holstein

HEAR WHAT OUR BAD-ARSE FEMALE ELECTEDS HAVE TO SAY ABOUT OUR BK WATERFRONT.

Nov 16, 2025

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6 min read

HEAR WHAT OUR BAD-ARSE FEMALE ELECTEDS HAVE TO SAY ABOUT OUR BK WATERFRONT.

IN THIS WEEK'S POST: DID WARD 6 SCOOP THE PAPER OF RECORD? RESTAURANT NEWS YOU NEED TO KNOW

Julie Holstein

Artists

WARD 6 #9: BOLO BOLO BAKE ME A CAKE!, 20+ BANDS FOR $60 BLOCKS FROM YOUR DOORSTEP (FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY), BK LOVES OUR MAYOR ELECT, EXCEPT...

Nov 8, 2025

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13 min read

WARD 6 #9: BOLO BOLO BAKE ME A CAKE!, 20+ BANDS FOR $60 BLOCKS FROM YOUR DOORSTEP (FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY), BK LOVES OUR MAYOR ELECT, EXCEPT...

“We lost a lot of our federal funding so we are relying much more on the support of our community this year! Any help makes such a difference to keep this cornerstone of the community going into the next year (Jalopy in Red Hook)"

Julie Holstein

IN THIS WEEK'S WARD 6 #8: Did you know that our council members are on the Ballot? VOTE!; Court St. Merchants’ Sue and EV Owners are out of Luck; Will Van Voorhees Park survive the waterfront redevelopment?

Nov 1, 2025

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17 min read

IN THIS WEEK'S WARD 6 #8: Did you know that our council members are on the Ballot? VOTE!; Court St. Merchants’ Sue and EV Owners are out of Luck; Will Van Voorhees Park survive the waterfront redevelopment?

“Not everyone hates the new Court Street, and not everyone who hates it, hates it in the same way. But very few...have no opinion at all” (CG subscriber, Mark Healy)."

Julie Holstein

WHAT DOES SPIKE LEE AND PS29 HAVE IN COMMON?

Oct 25, 2025

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14 min read

WHAT DOES SPIKE LEE AND PS29 HAVE IN COMMON?

“A community is not just made up of physical surroundings. It is made of people. And we feel there's gold here in terms of people.” Ramon Regueira, Columbia Street resident, 1981.

Julie Holstein

“I stay away from the well tended ones [planters]...I try to be very considerate! But also think folks need to be realistic.” Says Billie the dog's owner

Oct 18, 2025

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17 min read

“I stay away from the well tended ones [planters]...I try to be very considerate! But also think folks need to be realistic.” Says Billie the dog's owner

In this week’s Ward6: Cars! Bikes! Pedestrians! Can we All Get Along? Neighbors respond to "Help: My dog loves to Pee on Flowers," and Express Yourself this Weekend in Oodles of BK Ways

Julie Holstein

IS YEAR-ROUND DINING COMING BACK? NEIGHBORS PUSH FOR NEW CONFIGURATION OF COURT ST. BIKE LANE; HELP! MY DOG LOVES TO PEE ON FLOWERS

Oct 11, 2025

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14 min read

IS YEAR-ROUND DINING COMING BACK? NEIGHBORS PUSH FOR NEW CONFIGURATION OF COURT ST. BIKE LANE; HELP! MY DOG LOVES TO PEE ON FLOWERS

Ward 6 #5

Julie Holstein