Tag Archives: Brooklyn

On Brighton Beach: Here’s what we learned

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The goal: To find out what both native Brighton Beachers and visitors feel about the area’s increasing commercialization. The result: A mixed bag.

Brighton Beach Avenue, the neighborhood's main shopping center. Photo courtesy of Flickr user Violette79.

I asked a few pointed questions about the changing economy in Brighton: What’s your favorite local business? What’s your reason for visiting Brighton Beach (i.e., beach, Russian culture and food, etc.)? Would you still want to visit the area if it lost its unique “flavor”? In the end, ten people participated. Publicizing the post on Facebook – on both my wall and the walls of groups dedicated to Brighton – garnered me the most responses, though I also put it up on Twitter. Unfortunately, I don’t think I got any Brighton natives, and only three respondents had ever actually visited there before. So the information I got from this survey were more theoretical than practical, though still useful because they all pointed to one definite feeling: That Brighton Beach completely loses its appeal if it’s all chain stores and no more Russian mom-and-pop shops.

My favorite comment – which really sums up the general mood of the respondents – was from the person who said, “Why visit a place that’s lost its character?”

Going forward, if I were to do another survey like this, I’d obviously have to change my methods somewhat, though I’m not sure how. More aggressive marketing, maybe? I noticed that there was a spike in the number of responses for the hour or two after I re-posted the survey link on Facebook or Twitter – and then they’d drop off completely. An interesting commentary on how fast life moves online!

 

 

DEP Shows Off New Bioswales

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Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Carter Strickland displayed four new bioswales on Dean Street in Brooklyn this week.

Bioswales are vegetative pits on the side of the street that contain layers of soil, sand, and gravel. DEP said their introduction will filter storm-water slowly to prevent New York’s sewers from overflowing. The construction of the bioswales is part of the NYC Green Infrastructure Plan which is meant to build green infrastructure over the next 20 years. Stickland said construction on the four bioswales on Dean Street will be complete by the end of November. He said the city are planning to build 10 bioswales city wide.

Does MTA Construction Endanger Jobs?

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An F train at the Church Avenue F and G subway station. Photo: Jonathan Percy

In reports and articles about the economy we tend to focus on the unemployed and the underemployed. But with a scarcity of jobs on the market and a surplus of workers looking to fill them, keeping a job once you get one is critical.

A June article from Business Insider listed absenteeism and bad time keeping as the #4 most common reason that employees are fired.

As part of the MTA’s Viaduct Rehabilitation Project, a series of repairs that will continue through fall 2012, service on the F and G subway lines have been repeatedly disrupted throughout Brooklyn. One area in particular that depends on these two lines for service to and from Manhattan is Kensington. On Thursday morning I spoke to several commuters waiting for the trains that would take them to work. I wanted to find out just how much issues with train service affected their daily commutes.

Laura, 26, from Kensington on how train delays cause her frequent problems:

[audio:http://cdn.journalism.cuny.edu/blogs.dir/383/files/2011/10/Commuting_Laura.mp3|titles=Commuting_Laura]

Nancy, 51, discusses how she’s learned to pass the time during her long commute:

[audio:http://cdn.journalism.cuny.edu/blogs.dir/383/files/2011/10/Commuting_Nancy.mp3|titles=Commuting_Nancy]

Phillip, 47, from Flatbush is pretty forgiving of the MTA despite the occasional strain on his commuting time:

[audio:http://cdn.journalism.cuny.edu/blogs.dir/383/files/2011/10/Commuting-Phillip.mp3|titles=Commuting Phillip]

Natural sound from the Subway platform:

[audio:http://cdn.journalism.cuny.edu/blogs.dir/383/files/2011/10/Commuting-Natsound.mp3|titles=Commuting Natsound]

 

Brian Binsack. On the Journey from Music to Business

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Brian Binsack in The End New York art-gallery. Photo by Natalia V. Osipova

Brian Binsack, 30, is one of four owners of The End New York in Brooklyn, a new multifunctional creative facility, which combines professional recording and photo studio and a rehearsal room. It has a rooftop space for social event rentals and even art-gallery with paintings and sculptures of contemporary artists.

Binsack signed a lease for the space at the western waterfront on Greenpoint Avenue in February this year, and held the first arts event in May. Two weeks ago, the End New York finished the latest makeover works and organized a launch party to introduce their latest addition, a new performance venue.

Binsack is a professional composer converted into a businessman. In a short interview he describes his journey from music to entrepreneurship and approach in making a successful startup in New York City.

 

[audio:http://cdn.journalism.cuny.edu/blogs.dir/383/files/2011/10/Brian-New.mp3|titles=Brian Binsack Interview] [audio:http://cdn.journalism.cuny.edu/blogs.dir/383/files/2011/10/Brian-Plays.mp3|titles=Brian Binsack is playing cello on the music jam session with his colleagues]

Kensington and Windsor Terrace Parents and Kids Gather For Safety Awareness Night

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[Show slideshow]
Parents and kids from the Kensington and Windsor Terrace neighborhoods in Brooklyn met at P.S. 130 tonight to address issues of safety for both children and adults. The meeting, which included presentations by the NYPD’s 72nd precinct as well as Democratic Councilman Brad Lander, featured a mix of official and grassroots organizations. It was organized by members of the Friends of Greenwood Playground, a local community group.

According to Dari Litchman, a member of the FOGP and tonight’s emcee, the event was originally scheduled after the murder of 8-year-old Leiby Kletzky in July, but was repeatedly postponed due to scheduling conflicts. As a series of sexual attacks against women have continued however, the group decided that the event should go forward. Continue reading →

Attack of the Big Bad Businesses

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Brighton Beach, Brooklyn is equally renowned for its boardwalk and its borscht. But now, one of those claims to fame is in jeopardy.

Shoppers on Brighton Beach Avenue. Photo courtesy of Flickr member Axel Drainville.

Small, family-run operations – like the dozens of beachfront restaurants specializing in Russian and Ukrainian cuisine – have dominated the Brighton Beach economy for over 50 years. In fact, according to a report released in July by the state comptroller’s office, an astounding 88 percent of the Greater Coney Island area’s businesses have fewer than 10 employees. But in the last few years, residents have seen a marked increase in the number of national chains moving into the neighborhood. Walk down Brighton Beach Avenue, the fifteen-block heart of Brighton’s retail scene, and you’ll see half a dozen wireless stores, and nearly twice as many large banks. (And if those numbers sound excessive to you, check out the “All Shops” listing on the Brighton Beach BID website for proof.)

The takeover by AT&T and Bank of America has come at the expense of the independent shops that give Brighton Beach its unique flavor. “Every month, you see one big company come in, and three or four little guys close down,” said one staffer in the comptroller’s office – himself a longtime Brighton Beach resident. Some Brighton Beachers suspect that the forcing out of local businesses is a form of spillover gentrification from neighboring Coney Island, which has been battling its own redevelopment issues for some time.

If the big bad businesses continue to take over in Brighton Beach, pushing out the family-owned Russian bookstores, markets, and cafes, will the neighborhood lose its appeal as a tourist destination? Take the survey, and let us know what you think.

Participatory Budgeting: How Will It Affect Kensington’s Economy?

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Photo courtesy of samuelalove

As discussed in articles from The New York Times, and the Daily News, Brad Lander, City Councilmember for the 39th district in Brooklyn, which includes Kensington, is bringing “Participatory Budgeting” to his constituents. The initiative, tried previously in Brazil as well as in Chicago in the United States, allows members of the community to have a direct say in how $1 million dollars in discretionary funds will be spent. Meetings have already begun throughout the district to pitch ideas and elect the neighborhood delegates who will ultimately craft the final proposals for spending the money. Residents will vote on the potential options.
Continue reading →

Do you live where you spend?

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Some Bay Ridge small businesses, including privately-owned stores, bakeries and salons are mainstays in the relatively quiet, residential New York neighborhood, but too often, when new stores open, the businesses can’t stay afloat for long.

Since Bay Ridge is on the far south end of Brooklyn, a commute there from Manhattan is relatively long compared with the commute to many other Brooklyn neighborhoods. A long commute, combined with limited store hours and generally more shopping and dining options in Manhattan, may be hurting small Bay Ridge businesses. But it’s unclear whether the same case could be true for many other neighborhoods in the city.

Please take this survey to help me find out whether this is a problem specific to this Brooklyn neighborhood or whether it’s a citywide phenomenon. Thanks!

In a Big Box World, a Small Brooklyn Business Adapts

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Photo by RetailByRyan95

Seven years ago, Larry took over the store where he had worked for more than a decade, Power Video & Electronics at 1703 Pitkin Ave. in Brownsville, Brooklyn.

His first order of business? Start selling furniture.

Larry, who declines to give his last name — even on his business card — made the move because he couldn’t match electronics prices at big box stores like Best Buy and Target. So Power Video & Electronics is now Power Furniture.

The days when national retailers were still hesitant to set up shop in Brooklyn must seem like ancient history to Larry and other small businesses along Pitkin Avenue. Indeed, the arrival of more and more big box stores means Larry and his fellow small retailers need to stay on their toes.

Continue reading →

Are You Shopping Locally?

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Behrens Pharmacy in Clinton Hill

Mohammad Rahman has been working at Behren’s Pharmacy in Clinton Hill for decades. He is one of the millions of workers employed at a small business, the lifeblood of the American economy (PDF).  And to New Yorkers, and Green Point and Clinton Hill, Brooklyn residents in particular, small businesses are a way of life. The threat of their disappearance is enough to incite protest, as seen with the Atlantic Yards development.

But, according to Rahman and workers at other businesses in the neighborhood the deadliest small business killer is less tangible than the Atlantic Yards and local residents have less control over it’s operation: it’s the American economy.

Rahman, standing behind the pharmacy counter waiting for customers said business was very slow, but doesn’t blame people for not shopping locally.

Unless people have a disposable income – unless they have money in their pocket, this economy can’t work…people don’t have the jobs, how will they spend the money?

Rahman said local residents are shopping online at places that don’t have the overhead that a local store like Behren’s does.

Down the street at the cafe Tillies of Brooklyn barista Khephran Riddick echoed Rahman’s sentiment.

“It’s been a little show…It’s tough to find jobs out here.”

Still, small businesses seem to be holding on, despite the continued economic downturn.

Where do you fit in?

If you are a small business owner in Fort Greene or Clinton Hill:

How has your business been affected by the ecomonic downturn?

And residents:

Are you still shopping locally and eating out?

Please respond in the comments.