Hey neighbor -
Happy Saturday! It’s 7:30A and I’m doing my best to get this to you by the time you’ve had your coffee and are ready to start the day.
My apologies if you weren’t able to link to articles in last week’s post. As soon as I clicked publish, Beehiiv (like Substack, or Ghost) sent a warning message that I had no idea how to quickly resolve. Gone are the days when I could call IT in a panic. Alas, the links are now working.
If you weren’t able to watch videos from past posts, not to worry they will soon be located in one drop-down. Like this one from Dynamo, a new-ish production company from the former EIC of Business Insider, which takes viewers inside one of the enormous cranes and introduces you to the mysterious world beyond the iron fence on Columbia Street. The fate of the crane operator’s job and the port, as a whole, are at the center of the Brooklyn Marine Terminal debate. Check it out!
If you like WARD 6, subscribe and please share with a friend (or 2)!
4:55AM on my way to work at a poll site | Yummy treat mid-day
HEY NEIGHBORS - BROOKLYN LOVES MAYOR ELECT MAMDANI!
If you haven’t seen the NYT breakdown of Tuesday’s election, you should definitely check it out. Spoiler: Brooklyn loves mayor elect Zohran Mamdani minus Howard and Manhattan Beach, where he came in third.
The breakdown of votes in WARD 6— Columbia St. Waterfront, Cobble Hill, Carroll Gardens and Red Hook are nearly identical - #1 Z. Mamdani #2 A. Cuomo, and #3 C. Sliwa.
By comparison, our neighbors just across the river, did not show any love for our Mamdani:
Broken down by neighborhoods, Mr. Cuomo won in Battery Park City (with 2,944 votes out of 4,863), Tribeca (with 4,692 votes out of 7,525), and the South Street Seaport/Civic Center (with 1,314 votes out of 2,551). Mr. Mamdani prevailed only in the Financial District, where he won 4,187 votes out of 7,997). (The Republican candidate, Curtis Sliwa, garnered 3.6 percent of the local vote, with 841 ballots.)
Some of you may have seen me on election day. It is a loong day (5A to 10P or so), but compared to the June primary when it was 100+ degrees, with barely enough poll workers for such a massive turnout, Tuesday was a breeze. Warren Street (between Court and Hicks), by the way, show up on election day!
If your curious about what happens behind-the-scenes with your vote and your curious about your Ward 6 neighbors you might otherwise never meet, I highly recommend working an election day. At my table was a 40-something, single mom and teaching assistant from Gowanus and a newly engaged, unemployed, younger woman living in Cobble Hill, who just completed her masters in public health.
HEY NEIGHBORS - LIVE MUSIC BLOCKS FROM YOUR DOORSTEP
Source: Jalopy
Whether you like folk music or are folk curious or just love live music, you should definitely check out the 17th annual Jalopy Theater and School of Music’s folk festival. If you haven’t heard of Jalopy, it’ non-profit organization and longtime fixture in our neighborhood localed Columbia St. right off Hamilton.
With 30+ American and world musicians, on three stages, performing within walking distance @ St Ann’s Church @ 157 Montague, this festival has something for everyone (sample music here). For around $60, you can see as many of the musicians as you want, playing throughout the day and night. I saw a ton of different genres of folk, folk-country, Garifuna, Latin-Jazz, singer-songwriter and Yemeni folk-rock in the two hours I was there last night.
(L) Nathan Zander, main stage, Gogo Norales, Bella White, Juntas Chicas, Allegra Krieger,
If you’re uncertain who to see, not to worry, I asked Natalie Jordan from Jalopy, and also the festival’s executive producer, Lynette Wood for suggestions.
I’M NOT A FOLK FAN BUT I’M CURIOUS TO LEARN MORE:
NJ: The Slide Stops, Olivia Ellen Lloyd, Down Hill Strugglers
LW: Nick Shoulders (Saturday at 8:40), Alash Ensemble (Sunday at 8:30)
FOLK FANS WHO NEED SUGGESTIONS:
NJ: Angela Autumn, Cristina Vane & Bella White
LW: New Dangerfield (5:20 on Saturday), Nora Brown ( Sat at 7 )
PARENTS WHO WANT TO TAKE THEIR KIDS:
NJ: Hopalong Andrew
LW: Hopalong Andrew (Saturday at noon), Boxcutter Collective ((Sunday at 3:40), Saturday at 2 - Dio Cramer Crankie Show (Saturday at 2)
CELEBRITY FOLK BANDS PERFORMING:
NJ: Alice Gerrard & Nick Shoulders
LW: Angela Autumn, Chris Acker, Nick Shoulders
One final note from Jalopy: “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.”
HEY NEIGHBOR - UPDATES FROM LAST WEEK
The floating oyster restaurant/bar, Pilot docked at Pier 6, is no more. As I wrote about a few weeks ago in W#7, the boat needed way too many repairs to open this year. But not to fret, oysters and cocktails will be available again on Pier 6 when it warms up again on the smaller fireboat, Gov. Alfred E. Smith (see in the pic below). If you want to read more about the two brothers behind the floating restaurants and more on the historical boats, click here.
Source: Ward 6
Express yourself! CB6 District Needs Assessment Survey is still ongoing. “Brooklyn Community Board 6 is currently preparing our Fiscal Year 2027 District Needs Assessment. This document, which we submit to the City of New York each fall, helps guide our budget priorities.”
I want to join my community board! Apps due in February
Nov 13th | Red Hook warehouse fire fundraiser for Displaced Motoco, a motorcycle parking garage that lost everything a few months ago. | @ 7P | $20 | Brooklyn Gin, 6 Bay St. in Red Hook.
While a few of the warehouse tenants have related (brick and mortar or online) and are open for business, most of the people who worked in the warehouse are still displaced and without the resources to relocate. Gothamist spoke to some of the warehouse tenants, who are still waiting to retrieve what’s left of their belongings, including artist Justin Neely, who told me soon after the fire that he had 30 years worth of work in his studio. Even if the tenants can salage their belongings, a lot of it is contaminated with mold. Musician, Melinda Faylor, commented on the Gothamist article about her piano:
Melinda Faylor: My piano is still in this building. When I checked on it in mid-September, I actually thought it would be ok. Little did I know I would not be allowed in again even for 5 minutes to seal it in plastic tarp that I bought. It has been another month and a half, allowing mold to bloom and grow. I have no idea of the rust and mold damage that has occurred since. It is so frustrating because further damage could have been avoided easily with better handling of the situation. (Gothamist comment)
Yes, the SNAP headlines are confusing but the bottom line is CHIPS on 4th Street and other organizations— need your help! From CHIPS:
Host a drive – Collect essential items like pantry staples, eggs, coffee, sandwiches, prepackaged tuna and other needed items.
Donate – Your contributions help us purchase supplies directly from wholesalers, stretching every dollar further (here).
Volunteer – Join us on-site to prepare meals, sort donations, and support our community
Other ways to help: The Floating Hospital is looking for infant formula donations and NY Edge needs food for school pantries.
HEY NEIGHBORS - THE LARGEST DOC. FESTIVAL STARTS THIS WEEK
Support your WARD6 neighbors who work in the documentary industry and check out DOCNYC! Filmmakers need you more than ever with the loss of PBS funding, on top massive cutbacks by Amazon, Netflix, and Apple. If you have a film at the festival or know of a friend with a film, please email Ward6 ([email protected]) or DM (@ward6_brooklyn) so I can share!
HEY NEIGHBORS - I SCROLL THROUGH NEXTDOOR SO YOU DON’T HAVE TO!
Endless posts about Court St. that I will write more about next week. I’ve had long conversation with various merchants and I’m trying to get more information from newly re-elected Councilmember Shanana Hanif.
HEY NEIGHBORS - WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING IN WARD 6?
A new cafe on Amity and Court St. I haven’t had a chance to meet the owners, but it looks like they also have a location in Park Slope. Welcome!
Bake me a cake Bolo Bolo on Court St! Chocolate Room and Mia’s are my go-to places for local cake, but I will definitely try Bolo Bolo the next time I’m celebrating. Check out Bolo Bolo on IG - they never stop!
Bolo Bolo - Court St. btwn Congress and Warren St.
Nov. 9 | Second Sundays at Pioneer Works in Red Hook | Free! | check out this amazing place.
Nov. 9 | PS 58 Rummage sale! | 10 AM - 2 PM| 330 Smith Street
Look ahead….
HEY NEIGHBORS - WHAT I LISTENED / WATCHED / READ THIS WEEK
Did you see this fantastic Zohran Mamdani FIFA video where he does soccer tricks and talks about the exorbitant prices for the NYC World Cup tixs? This podcast from Semafor goes deep about his media team: The secret to Zohran Mamdani’s Winning Media Strategy (start about 9 mins in)
From the BBC: Gowanus Dredgers - Meet the locals who paddle this polluted New York Canal
This newsletter is a regular for me: Wonder Tools. I’m about as tech forward as a lot of people I know whose 20s, well, also early 30s happened sans cell (not even mobile) phone. I heard this CUNY journalism professor at a conference in September and found his newsletter just what I needed when in need of a tech tool, but I have no idea what I need or where to find it. For me, I needed a tool (s) to help me keep track of my many projects and learned about TickTick and Sunsama. He also writes about tech tools for younger people that don’t involve screen time.
Next week, I’ll introduce you to Shiny Sparkle Labs co-founders, two glass fusion artists I stumbled upon during the Red Hook Open Houses a few weeks ago.
See you next week. JLH