On August 20th, the NYC Economic Development Corporation (EDC) appeared before Community Board 6 to unveil their plan for a Red Hook location in an expanded commuter ferry location, due to begin operations in 2017. The Red Hook community was surprised by their plan to locate the terminal either off of the Beard Street Warehouse Pier, on private property at […]
Waterfront
The Great Atlantic Basin Mystery, by George Fiala
Red Hook has been home to many mysteries. Cherry factories, toxic sludge and HP Lovecraft are just a few. People in Red Hook today are scratching their heads trying to figure out why the NYC Economic Development Corporation (EDC), will do just about anything to avoid sharing Atlantic Basin, a huge expanse of local waterfront, with us. The latest dustup […]
Growing up on a Lehigh Valley Barge, by Halley Bondy
Lehigh Valley Barge #79 is a spectacular site for a brief waterfront visit. Now, try to imagine growing up there. Imagine waking up in the morning to find your house in a different state, hauling buckets of water on board to do your laundry, or transporting your mother to the hospital by sea so that she can give birth […]
May 15 Pirate’s Ball to raise funds for Waterfront Museum repairs
The Lehigh Valley Barge #79, home to the Waterfront Museum in Red Hook, Brooklyn, will be towed upstream near Albany this summer for necessary inspection and repairs. But before the Barge #79 heads upriver for dry dock, the Museum will be throwing the 2nd annual PIRATE BALL to help finance the expedition and repairs. Shortly after Hurricane Sandy, the US […]
A New Vision for Brooklyn Bridge Park, by George Fiala
In case you haven’t noticed, a waterfront park has been taking shape just north of the Red Hook Containerport. Brooklyn Bridge Park, conceived of in the 1980’s and 90’s, and built this century, has not been without controversy. For much of Brooklyn’s history, the Fulton Ferry piers were a busy hub for loading and unloading cargo ships. By the early […]
Are the Red Hook cranes headed to Sunset Park? by George Fiala
In an incredible overreaction, Kyle Kimball, head of the NYC Economic Development Corporation (EDC), announced that he was abandoning development of Sunset Park’s South Brooklyn Marine Terminal (SBMT), simply because City Councilman Carlos Menchaca didn’t give him what he wanted. SBMT comprises ten blocks along the waterfront in Sunset Park, southwards from 29th Street. It is an intermodal facility, named […]
Giant Red Hook Truck Parking Lot update, by George Fiala
In our current issue we wrote an editorial about the Revere Sugar Factory site that has been owned by Thor Equities since 2006. At times plans were floated for its use, including box stores and college dorms. Nothing materialized and it has remained basically unused since then. Last week it seemed to us that the Haddad Film Truck Company had […]
Red Hook loses Two day Music Fest, by George Fiala
In a decision fraught in a bit of mystery, the Escape Music Festival, which was to bring two days of entertainment to the Columbia Waterfront District, at Pier 9a, abruptly pulled out of Red Hook and moved across the channel to Governors Island. This came as somewhat of a surprise to people who attended a recent Community Board 6 meeting […]
Columbia Street loses Escape Music Festival, by George Fiala
In a last minute action of the Port Authority (PA), the Escape Music Festival, which was to bring two days of music to the Columbia Waterfront District at the pier, had their PA permit to conduct the festival taken away. Over the weekend, the promoter, Merrit Quirk, was able to move the festival over to Governors Island, so it will […]
Parks apologizes for hasty fencing at Valentino Pier, by George Fiala
Red Hook park lovers were fuming last week when, without warning, fencing was put up around Valentino Pier park. It turns out that the Parks Department had planned some minor renovations that would close some parts of the park for about a month. Many residents, still upset at the cavalier attitude in which the Coffey Park renovation was handled, couldn’t […]