BENSONHURST'S PREMIER NEWS BLOG

Local Assemblyman William Colton has been advocating for the installation of additional sources of free wireless internet around Southern Brooklyn.

Colton expressed that he feels it is unfair that wealthier neighborhoods in northern Brooklyn and Manhattan are dominating much of the city’s free internet service at parks and public spaces. He said that his constituents deserve to be serviced as well as those residing in other areas.

“Many here feel that the city often caters to the needs of the few and privileged elsewhere and leaves us stranded,” Colton said in a letter fierce letter sent to the City Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe, according to the New York Post. “We pay our taxes like everyone else, and we are entitled to the same level of services just like everyone else.”

Following his letter, the Parks Department said they will be adding free wireless internet to the Coney Island beach and boardwalk, MCU Park, Manhattan Beach, Marine Park’s Nature Center, and possibly Owl’s Head Park in Bay Ridge.

Colton will be holding a press conference later today announcing the new locations.

Source: house.gov

Congressman Michael Grimm accounted for a trip to Israel on his Congressional financial disclosure filing in May, but did not file a required report about a subsequent visit to Cyprus, according to the New York Times.

But in June, Grimm updated the paperwork to reflect the Cyprus trip – just a day after the lobbyist who paid for Grimm’s visit was arrested on federal corruption charges.

Records show that in June, Grimm modified his financial disclosure to include his trip to Cyprus (pdf). Whether it was intentional or a mere coincidence, Grimm made this change one day after Peter Papanicolaou, the president of the Cyprus Federation of America and the individual who funded Grimm’s trip, was arrested on federal corruption charges, said the Times.

Papanicolaou was charged with providing an official of the city’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development with a free trip to Greece in order to obtain city contracts for his construction company in Brooklyn.

William McGinley, Grimm’s attorney, said that the filing had nothing to do with Papanicolaou’s arrest. He said Grimm filed the report when he did because the House Ethics Committee informed him that the Cyprus trip was not reported in his files just five days earlier.

Grimm’s trip was not a complete secret. Grimm submitted information about it to the Ethics Committee before booking it, and the committee approved it.

The Times also notes that, about a month before the Cyprus trip, a news release from Grimm’s office stated that he would co-sponsor a bill to assist American owners of property in “Turkish-Occupied Cyprus” seek restitution for the “illegal use and occupation of their property.” The news release said Grimm would travel to Cyprus in August 2011.

It remains unclear whether the timing of the release his report is connected to Papanicolaou’s arrest, though Grimm’s camp insists it’s just coincidence.

Grimm remains under intense scrutiny, as authorities investigate allegations of fundraising improprieties during his 2010 campaign.

Image courtesy of Lucretia Regina-Potter's Facebook page

The Republican District Leader of the 49th Assembly District and Director of Communications of the Fiorello LaGuardia Republican Organization, Lucretia Regina-Potter, announced her candidacy for the New York State Assembly’s 46th District seat on Monday.

The 46th Assembly District, currently represented by Assemblyman Alec Brook-Krasny, currently includes sections of the Coney Island, Dyker Heights, and Brighton Beach neighborhoods.

Regina-Potter, 56, has a reputation for “jumping down people’s throats,” while standing up for her principles. Earlier this year, she released a statement harshly condemning a plan that would create a 51 percent Asian district in Sunset Park and Bensonhurst. Regina-Potter blamed the Republicans and Democrats for gerrymandering, and stated that the new district was “arbitrary, capricious and politically motivated.”

Furthermore, after Governor Andrew Coumo promised to veto proposed redistricting plans in January, she wrote a letter accusing political operatives of trying to remove her from the position of District Leader and eliminate the foundation of her constituency.

Regina-Potter now enters the scene with a new accusation. Currently being challenged by another Republican candidate, she filed objections to her adversary’s petition signatures. Some of her objections were successful, while others were dismissed by the New York City Board of Elections. A press release issued by Regina-Potter’s campaign stated that the Board of Elections shelved many of Regina-Potter’s objections by “giving more importance to an obscure and inconsequential technicality over the validity of her opponent’s petition signatures.” As a result of this decision, a primary election is scheduled to take place on Thursday, September 13, 2012.

Regina-Potter has expressed her excitement and anticipation for the upcoming primaries, while criticizing her opponent and the nature of the election.

“I feel very optimistic about this challenge, which in ordinary circumstances should have been prevented and avoided by those people who have the responsibility to strengthen the Republican Party instead of creating such divisiveness that weakens the Republican Party in Brooklyn,” Regina-Potter said, according to a press release.

Regina-Potter was born in Brooklyn, and currently resides in Bath Beach. She received her bachelor’s degree from Fordham University, and works as a Design Consultant at Bari Tile and Stone in Brooklyn. Regina-Potter is also a member of the Executive Committee of the Kings County Republican Party, the Republican National Committee, and the National Federation of Republican Women.

Local officials cut the ribbon on the elevators of the new ADA Bay Parkway station.

A ribbon cutting ceremony was held at the West End D Line’s Bay Parkway station today, after crews completed years of work rehabilitating seven of the line’s stations throughout Bensonhurst.

This stimulus project, which cost $88 million, was funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009. It

Prendergast and Recchia take their first ride on the elevators. (Click to enlarge)

involved the conversion of the Bay Parkway Station into the 78th handicapped-accessible  (ADA)station in the subway system. This was accomplished through the installation of three elevators, which required widening of the station’s platform. The station also underwent repairs involving the lighting, platform edges, staircases, and technology.

“This is a great day for the thousands of Brooklynites who start and end their travels in one of these newly renovated West End Line D train station,” said State Senator Marty Golden, who, along with Assemblyman William Colton  and Councilman Domenic M. Recchia, was present for the ceremony.

Learn all about the new enhancements at local D line stations, view photos, and watch video of statements made by local leaders at the ribbon-cutting ceremony.

Senator Golden with HCS clients and staff. (Source: Golden's office)

A Bensonhurst senior center offering specialized services to the area’s growing Asian population has been designated a NYC Neighborhood Senior Center, and will now receive public funding to continue its mission.

The center, located at 7907 New Utrecht Avenue, is a local annex of the Sheepshead Bay-based Homecrest Community Services, and has been operating since 2004 through donations and grants. The public funds will now ensure continued services for a booming population.

The city’s decision to fund this senior center recognizes Bensonhurst’s Asian boom. The Asian population of Community Board 11, which is comprised of Bensonhurst and Bath Beach, has swelled 10.5 percent since 2000, according to the 2012 Brooklyn Neighborhood Report of the Center of the Study of Brooklyn. Asian-Americans now account for 33.7 percent of Bensonhurst residents.

State Senator Martin Golden, New York City Department for the Aging Commissioner Lilliam Barrios-Paoli, and officials of Homecrest Community Services, held a press conference on Monday to announce the public funding.

After the event,  Golden’s press secretary John Quaglione said that  the neighborhood now has the highest concentration of aging Asians in Brooklyn.

Quaglione added that although there are other senior centers in Bensonhurst, the Asians have additional barriers, such as language, which makes them in need of additional assistance. He said that this center is “Asian-run and Asian-attended,” which makes it easier for the Asian seniors to participate in activities and enjoy themselves.

According to Quaglione, the center will now be funded by the Office of the Mayor and the Department of Aging. He said that $369,000 will be needed each year to run the center adequately and efficiently. The senior center offers a day program to all seniors, consisting of meals, social activities, health care opportunities, citizenship assistance, case management and recreational activities.

Homecrest Community Services’ primary operation is based in the Homecrest Presbyterian Church located at 1413 Avenue T in Sheepshead Bay, where it has been serving that neighborhood’s Asian senior population since 1997.

“As a long time supporter of Homecrest Community Services, I am proud to be part of this historic announcement designating them as an official NYC Neighborhood Senior Center,” said Golden at the press conference. ” I know that this senior program will greatly advance the Asian American community in Southwest Brooklyn, and will support all senior citizens in need in  my community.”

Source: Carla Nunziata via Wikimedia Commons

Constantina McKenna grew up in Gravesend with a garden that included 3 rosebushes behind her home: One red, one white, and one pink. She shares the story of a rosebush that for her was not just a part of the garden where she grew up, but a familial legacy that spans boroughs.

McKenna writes that she always loved the pink rosebush best. She would gaze at it from her kitchen window while living with her parents. Even after she got married and moved to Queens, she would visit and take home pink roses that her mother would give her.

After her mother passed away in 1998, McKenna’s father continued to give her flowers upon her visits. After several years, during one of her visits to her father, McKenna describes an idea she had when she went to the back window of her house to gaze at her favorite pink rosebush.

There they were in all their glory – beautiful big pink roses in full bloom.  The rose bush was now at least 12 feet tall and the roses were so high up on the very top of the bush that Dad had to get a long stick with a hook on it to pull the branch down so he could cut some roses for me to take home. Then I had this thought, why not take a few cuttings to see if I could root them – then I could have my own pink rose bush – just like Mom’s!  When I mentioned it to Dad he thought it was a great idea and cut a few stems for me to take home.

After many weeks, when roots began to grow on the stems, McKenna placed them in a pot with soil. In 2002, she named the pot “Fannie’s Rose,” after her mother, for these pink roses signify the bond between them. Yet, it was five years more until McKenna noticed any signs of pink roses in the bush.

I think it was in the Spring of 2007 when one day I was checking on Fannie’s rose on my deck as I always did, when I noticed a small bud. I couldn’t believe my eyes. My heart was pumping and as I continued to look further I saw a few more buds. There were 7 buds in all that Spring and I was thrilled beyond belief.  Within a few weeks the buds were fully opened and there they were – the most beautiful pink roses in all their glory on my deck in Roxbury – just like the ones that had bloomed in Mom’s garden. After that Spring Fannie’s rose didn’t bloom again for the next few years. Then last Spring, just one single large rose bloomed.

Now, Fannie’s rose has six big blooming roses. A couple of weeks ago, McKenna cut one of them and placed it near a picture of her mother. She left the others on the bush outside for her to look at out the back window, like she did as a youngster in her mother’s house in Gravesend.

Source: Tom Harpel via Wikimedia Commons

New Yorkers may have fewer places to go see exotic color fountains splash in the night sky next week on July 4.

This upcoming Saturday, the New York Police Department will host “Fireworks Amnesty Day,” to dissuade the use of fireworks. The NYPD is encouraging individuals to drop off fireworks anonymously to the 62nd Precinct.

No fines will be given out to anyone bringing fireworks – which are illegal in New York City – to the precinct. The police are merely holding this day to discourage the use of fireworks.

Every year, individuals are injured accidentally by fireworks, said the NYPD. They feel that safety comes first, before entertainment of the public.

Thousands of people are injured each year as a result of firework mishaps. According to the 2004 Annual Firework Report, around 9,600 individuals in America were treated for firework injuries in hospital emergency departments in 2004 alone. Six thousand and six hundred of these injuries occurred between June 19 and July 19, most likely as a result of the rampant amount of fireworks displayed in honor of the July 4 holiday.

Also in 2004, eight firework accidents resulted in fatalities. Amongst them was a four-year-old child from Missouri, who was at her house where a party was hosted, and fireworks were displayed. While standing on her porch, she was struck in the face with a piece from the device’s launching tube. She was taken to the hospital, placed on life support, and died two days later.

If you’d like to participate in “Firework Amnesty Day,” visit the 62nd police precinct at 1925 Bath Avenue any time on June 30, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

On Tuesday, June 26, voters will hit the polls to vote in federal legislative primaries, choosing Democratic or Republican candidates for Senate (Republican only) and Congress. This year’s elections, however, are complicated by redistricting, which changed the borders of the existing district and left many residents with incumbents they may be unfamiliar with.

We’ve put together this pre-primary primer to help you understand the geographic and demographic changes within the district, as well as background information on incumbents, their primary challengers (if any), and challengers in November’s general elections.

Here’s a quick rundown on how to use this guide before Tuesday’s primary:

1. Visit the New York City Board of Elections poll finder and enter your address. This will tell you what congressional district you’re in, where your poll site is, and provide sample ballots for the general election so you know who is running.
2. Return back to this page.
3. Use the following links to find the district profile we’ve put together, with bios and background on each of the candidates. Note that we’ve split up the district profiles between Sheepshead Bites and Bensonhurst Bean, and the links below will direct you to the appropriate site.

• District 7 (Bensonhurst Bean)
• District 8 (Sheepshead Bites)
• District 9 (Sheepshead Bites)
• District 10 (Bensonhurst Bean)
• District 11 (Bensonhurst Bean)

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