BENSONHURST'S PREMIER NEWS BLOG

Source: Giancarlo Dessì via Wikimedia Commons. A hydroponic tomato greenhouse.

The environmental movement has taken root all over New York. From compost workshops in Flatbush to community gardens in Park Slope, the support for localized sustainable agriculture grows. Now, there is something else.  BrightFarms, a sustainable agricultural hydroponics business, recently announced plans to build the world’s largest rooftop garden in Sunset Park. The rooftop farm will be located on the roof of a former U.S. Navy building, Federal Building #2.

The 100,000 square foot hydroponic greenhouse will grow up to 1 million pounds of local produce a year, including tomatoes and various herbs, according to Super Market News.

“I am so pleased that the revitalization of Federal Building #2 is continuing,” said Congressman Jerrold Nadler in a press release. “As we watch this once-dormant industrial space recreated as a variety of innovative and productive uses, we can take great pride in the years of work and vision required to come to this point. This site is truly becoming a part of Brooklyn’s working waterfront once again. I look forward to tasting the first tomatoes and lettuce grown on its roof.”

Prior to the rooftop farms announcement, renovation of the unused industrial space created 1,700 construction jobs for New Yorkers according to The Real Deal.

As this project starts taking shape, will other Brooklyn neighborhoods work to transform abandoned or industrial spaces for urban farming? Readers, do we want a similar model here in Bensonhurst and if so, where?

Source: taberandrew via Flickr

The future of health care in Southwestern Brooklyn remains unclear, according to Joanne Seminara, the chair of Bay Ridge’s Community Board 10. Continue Reading »

A map of the Assembly Districts that have an Asian-American population above 20 percent. (Source: Citizens Union via Brooklyn Ink)

With the claim that the Asian vote in Western Brooklyn is too diluted, Asian-American civic groups continue to advocate for a majority Asian New York State Assembly District – comprised of sections of Sunset Park, Dyker Heights and Bensonhurst, writes the Brooklyn Ink.

After their public hearing last month, the New York State Legislative Task Force is expected to release a first draft of new district lines this month. District boundaries are redrawn every ten years to reflect demographic changes in the latest census results. Continue Reading »

Lou Powsner (Photo Credit: Daniel Bush via Brooklyn Daily)

An editorial in today’s Brooklyn Paper features longtime community activist Lou Powsner lamenting Bensonhurst’s lack of unified political representation in City Hall. Continue Reading »

The surveilance video that turned William Giraldo's life upside down (source: NY1)

It’s a story which many at the time thought would be wrapped up neatly like an hour long episode of Law & Order. But for Bensonhurst resident William Giraldo, the next five months of his life would more closely resemble the surreal plot of Franz Kafka’s novel The Trial.

After being teased by his friends last June for looking like the person in surveillance footage being circulated of a rape suspect, Giraldo later viewed the footage with his fiance – only to discover that the man in the Dunkin’ Donuts security video was him.

Things only got worse after Giraldo, who reasoned that he had nothing to hide, turned himself in to police at the 66th Precinct. He was picked out of a lineup, arraigned on his wedding day, then sent to Riker’s Island and threatened with deportation back to his native Colombia. Continue Reading »

An image of the alleged attacker (source: NY1)

A very brave and quick-thinking Borough Park nurse who was sexually assaulted not only fought back, but captured footage of her attacker on her smart phone.

Precy Jumangit, a nurse at Maimonides Medical Center who lives in hospital housing, was assaulted on September 8, as she took a late night walk to get something to eat.

(source:NY1)

When her assailant tried to grab her from behind on 49th Street near 8th Avenue (which in this blogger’s opinion is Sunset Park), she courageously fought him back not once but twice.

From NY1:

“I was able to grab onto my umbrella and I just started hitting him,” she said. “I don’t know where I got the strength and the adrenaline from, but I just kept on hitting him and hitting him.”

Jumangit said she fought off her attacker not once, but twice, and captured the suspect in pictures and video.

In one image, Jumangit’s umbrella fell to the ground after she beat him with it. Another image shows the man continuing to follow her in the dark.

Then, she videotaped the man right in front of her building. The video is pretty clear because of the lighting set up under the scaffolding. He looks like he is walking away, but Jumangit said he came back for more.

“He was pushing this door and I was pushing like this [from the inside],” she said.

Jumangit, who is a wife and mother of three children, says that after the incident she doesn’t go out as much anymore.

She reported the assault to police at the 66th Precinct and handed over the images of her attacker.

Investigators told reporters that the attack was not related to a pattern of sexual assaults in the area.

The Huffington Post reported earlier today that a suspect arrested for a pair of sexual assaults this weekend in Sunset Park might be connected to a string of rapes and gropings in central and southwestern Brooklyn that began earlier this year.

Federico Chamorro Yax – who lives in Bensonhurst – was arrested in his apartment on Sunday night. Police believe he may also be responsible for a September 4, attack on a 30-year-old woman near his home.

During the September sexual assault a man forced his hand up the woman’s skirt.

Yax reportedly attacked two 22-year-old women in Sunset Park on Sunday. The victims fought back and managed to injure their attacker. Hours after the episode, police found Yax at home still bleeding from the fight.

From Huffington Post:

Police have been searching for suspects connected to a series of sexual assaults being reported in Brooklyn, specifically Park Slope, Sunset Park, and other nearby neighborhoods. As of September 23, ten attacks had been reported since March and have contributed to a rise in subway crime.

Police say that it is still unknown however, whether or not Yax can be connected to the Park Slope attacks, which have generated a wave of community action to fight against sexual predators including a 300 person rally and volunteer escort services to protect women walking home from subway stations.

The above video, posted online by ABC 7, shows images of Yax in custody.

Here’s a great video that’s chock full of Southern Brooklyn – especially Bensonhurst – nostalgia.

It was posted on Youtube by tommyboombotz, who had the following to say:

Here is a great compilation that anyone who grew up in Brooklyn NY will relate to. Thanks to my dad for finding this and posting on my facebook page. Its not my video, I found it online and just wanted to share. 

Enjoy!

P.S. Because we always like to credit our sources, this video was first brought to our attention by a reader who saw it on our favorite hipster-hating site Diehipster.com.

Police sketches of the perpetrator

A rapist who police thought they had back in June is actually still at large and has attempted to once again prey on women in South Park Slope and now, Sunset Park.

The rapist, who struck while initial suspect William Giraldo of Bensonhurst was in police custody, has attempted a number of sexual assaults in recent weeks. In most cases, he would grab or grope a woman from behind.

Fortunately, during the most recent attempts, victims have managed to either alert neighbors with screams, scaring the suspect away and/or successfully fend off the attacker – who is described as small in stature.

News blog Gothamist is reporting that a group recently formed in Park Slope to prevent future attacks and raise awareness of a rapist that’s still on the loose, plans to hold a rally tonight near the sight of one of the attacks.

From Gothamist:

Safe Slope, a group formed last month, the “Take Back Our Streets” rally will begin by the Prospect Avenue R stop on 4th Avenue at 17th Street at 8 p.m., ending at the Detective Joseph Mayrose Park on 17th Street between 6th and 7th Avenues. Council Speaker Christine Quinn; Council Members Sara Gonzalez and Brad Lander are expected to join the rally, and at the park the Center for Anti-Violence Education will offer a mini self-defense demonstration. (You can also sign up for a series of free self-defense classes they are offering in collaboration with Council Members Sara Gonzalez and Brad Lander.)

The group is also launching a Safe Walk program in South Slope/Greenwood Heights/Windsor Terrace on Thursday through Sunday nights, between 8:00pm and 3:00am. Safe Walk volunteers will provide “pick-ups” at local establishments and subway stops and will provide “drop-offs” anywhere between 9th and 30th Streets and between 2nd and 8th Avenues in Brooklyn. The number to call if you want a Safe Walk volunteer to join you is T.B.A. And if you are interested in volunteering, the group urges you to email them at safeslope@gmail.com.

One of the rapist’s attacks from earlier this year touched off an internal affairs investigation into alleged inaction by police.

Similarly, a woman who says she may have had a run-in with the rapist, described receiving a rude and dismissive response, while trying to report the encounter to law enforcement.

Earlier this year, the rapist had also attacked a victim in Bay Ridge.

Anyone who has been the victim of either an assault or attempted assault should immediately call 911.

Anyone who has information regarding the rapist’s identity is strongly urged to contact Crimestoppers at  1-800 577 TIPS (800 577 8477).

Bensonhurst Bean urges all of our readers, regardless of location, to remain alert, especially when walking alone at night.

(image by Amanda Woods for Home Reporter)

Last Thursday’s Home Reporter carried a story about the now-closed Fort Hamilton Presbyterian Church, which leaves behind a legacy of community philanthropy by using its remaining assets to generously help neighborhood institutions.

According to an article by Amanda Woods, the church, which ceased operations in December 2010, has donated $10,000 of its memorial fund to the Brooklyn Public Library’s Fort Hamilton Branch (9424 4th Avenue).

From Home Reporter:

…a contribution which funded the purchase of 500 items for the library’s children’s section, including videos and tapes. In honor of the parishioners’ generosity, the library held a reception on August 4 to express the impact the small congregation made on a neighborhood literary institution.

“It really underscores for me…that you represent the best in the community,” said Councilman Vincent Gentile as he commended the church members. He added that the city money used for library renovations is not what makes the biggest difference – the real impact comes from within the community.

“What makes a library is what people contribute to it,” Gentile said. “That’s what makes it special; that’s what makes it great.”

Woods goes on to report that the funds also went to 39 other groups that benefit Bay Ridge and Sunset Park residents.

Beneficiaries include the Guild for Exceptional Children, the Bay Ridge Scholarship, the Norwegian Christian Home, the (food) Pantry of Shore Hill, the Saint Nicholas Home, Calvary Hospice and Augustana Lutheran.