Author: Oscar Fock

News

Jim Tampakis’ plan for the Red Hook and Columbia Waterfront piers pays for itself with shipping, industry and a little fun… not with luxury housing. Story and illustration by Oscar Fock

EDC claims only housing can pay for “the port of the future.” There are other options. Later in April, the Brooklyn Marine Terminal task force is set to vote on a vision plan for the massive redevelopment of New York’s last working waterfront. In the last few months, the New York City Economic Development Corporation (EDC) — which is leading […]

News

Opposition mounting against EDC’s plan for BMT

Everyone is outraged with the Economic Development Corporation (EDC) right now. Seriously — everyone. The community (except for a fringe group advocating for more housing). Members of Teamsters Local 814. Maritime experts. Community groups. City councilmembers. State assemblymembers. The Brooklyn Borough President. The Public Advocate. The Comptroller. Even a sitting Congressperson who no longer represent the district due to redistricting. […]

News

International issues invade local politics, by Oscar Fock

2025 is election year in New York City. Focus of most New Yorkers is, of course, on the mayoral race which is poised to be an interesting one, following Mayor Eric Adams’s string of mishaps, alleged criminal activities and flirting with Donald Trump, likely selling out many New Yorkers in his so far successful search for legal relief in the […]

News

Undersized lobsters seized at Brooklyn market, by Oscar Fock

It was a bitterly cold winter morning (probably) on Jan. 27 when New York State Environmental Conservation Officers Bieber and Keegan, fresh out of basic school (the Department of Environmental Conservation’s six-month-long training program for its specialized police officers) visited Star Market at 1778 86th St. in Brooklyn for a seafood inspection. The officers were only there to assist as part […]

News

BMT redevelopment update: March, by Oscar Fock

As most in the neighborhood are aware by now, the Brooklyn Marine Terminal is being redeveloped. Since our latest story in the February Star-Revue, nothing has happened that has changed the course of the city’s Economic Development Corporation (EDC), which leads the project on behalf of the city. Despite continued calls to push the deadline for the finished master plan, […]

Land Use, News, Parks, Quality of Life Issues, Red Hook Containerport

From opportunity to requirement: How the EDC is shoehorning thousands of apartments into the “Vision for Brooklyn Marine Terminal,” by Oscar Fock

It’s the evening of Dec. 18, 2024. The Brooklyn Marine Terminal task force is meeting for the fourth time, just before the winter holidays. Alexa Avilés, council member for District 38 and vice-chair of the task force, is late and arrives with about 30 minutes left of the two-hour meeting. “I walked into chaos,” she said. “People immediately started beelining […]

Environment, Gowanus, Gowanus Canal, News

Cautious optimism on the Gowanus smell front, by Oscar Fock

In December, The New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), overseen by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), began the second phase of construction of Gowanus’s two Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) tanks after pausing work since August. Because of the design of the much of New York’s sewer system, where stormwater and sewage water both go through the same pipe, […]

Feature Story, Quality of Life Issues

The attack of the Chinese mitten crabs, by Oscar Fock

On Sept. 15, a driver in Brooklyn was stopped by the New York Police Department after running a red light. In an unexpected turn of events, the officers found 29 Chinese mitten crabs, a crustacean considered one of the world’s most invasive species (it’s number 34 on the Global Invasive Species Database), while searching the vehicle. Environmental Conservation Police Officers […]

Feature Story, Food, Holidays, Quality of Life Issues

How to Celebrate a Swedish Christmas, by Oscar Fock

Sweden is a place of plenty of holiday celebrations. My American friends usually say midsummer with the fertility pole and the wacky dances when I tell them about Swedish holidays, but to me — and I’d wager few Swedes would argue against this — no holiday is as anticipated as Christmas. Further, I would argue that Swedish Christmas is unlike […]