Occupy Wall Street's 1st Brooklyn General Assembly - Franklin Ave

Occupy Wall Street – which began on Oct. 17, 2011,  is a self – pro-claimed -

“leaderless resistance movement with people of many colors, genders and political persuasions”.

Agree with their stance or not, the movement has been picking up international steam, sparking similar movements across the globe.

And tonight, Oct. 20, 2011 @ 7PM @ 613 Franklin Ave., in Crown Heights, Brooklyn - OWS is having their first ever:

Occupy Brooklyn General Assembly

“Come one, come all to the next General Assembly of Occupy Brooklyn.

We would like for these meetings to be representative of the Brooklyn community at large, so we hope that people all of backgrounds living anywhere in Brooklyn will come out.

A team appointed at the first GA has identified a location and time and has offered a proposed agenda.

At the GA, all members will be able to propose further agenda items, and vote on a final agenda at the beginning of the meeting.”

Proposed Agenda:

1. -Basics of the GA, why and how this is participatory
2. -Finalize Agenda
3. -Brief Announcements and Check-ins about what work is already being done in Brooklyn
4. -Relationship to OWS
5. -Should we occupy?
6. -Possible direct actions
7. -Identify working groups
8. -Divide into working groups

We reported earlier that legendary singer – performer, Lady Miss Kier – of Deee-Lite – Grooves in Crown Heights, Brooklyn and we posted her HOT,  new DJ Video.

Now on Saturday, May 28th, the legendary singer will be a Guest Deee-Jay @ BANZAI at The Red Lotus Room – 893 Bergen St., btw Classon & Franklin Ave.,  in Crown Heights, Brooklyn!

www.ladykier.com	www.ladykier.com
Lady Miss Kier On The Wheels Of Steel!!!	Deee – Jay Lady Miss Kier!!!

Muffinhead & Eric Schmalenberger Present:

BANZAI!!!!! Art and Performance Blitz

Special Guest DJ

Lady Miss Kier

Saturday, May 28th 8PM-3AM Memorial Day Weekend

Red Lotus Room – 893 Bergen St.

(Between Classon & Franklin)

Brooklyn, NY 11238

$10 Pre-sale Tickets Available at www.muffinheadland.com

$15 at the door

DJ SCOTT EWALT

VIDEO ART PROVIDED BY -  Ashley Connor and Wonderpuss Octopus

INSTALLATION – “Cabinet of Humanstrocities” Jeff Silverman, Poison Eve, Zazoo + Satori Zhenesse Staniec Heinemann

SPECIAL APPERANCE – Fritz Donnelly and Christina Ewald of HiChristina

Performances:

1. Big Art Group – Penny Arcade, The Illuminator (AlieNation),, enSUBTITLES, Soigné Deluxe, Darlinda Just Darlinda, Celso & Father Julian of Casa De La Blanca, Jonathan Nosan.   Art: Hope Bowers
2. Ryan Brennan
3. Wren Britton
4. Worm Carnevale
5. Bianca Cassidy
6. Samson Contompasis
7. Cameron Daily
8. Soigné Deluxe
9. Mitcheal D. E. Pope
10. Josuha Dreisacker
11. Raphael Fuchs
12. Kathy Grayson
13. Scott Hug
14. Stephan Keating
15. Jeremy Kost
16. Charlie Ledbetter
17. Lindsay Lowe
18. Snow Mack
19. Kevin Mack
20. Caden Manson
21. Chason Matthams
22. Muffinhead
23. Jemma Nelson
24. Wonderpuss Octopus
25. Sean Peirce
26.Jean Marc Ruellan
27. Darrell Thorne
28. Tillett Wright
29. Gerry Visco
30. Jaimie Warren and the Whoop Dee Doo

We’re blogged quite a few times about Bob & Betty’s Food Market – formerly Fisher’s Supermarket pending Grand Opening.

Well, as of this Friday, they’re finally OPEN!!!!!

What are your thoughts and comments on the renovations, food selection, prices etc.?

Fisher’s Supermarket – which is scheduled to reopen this Friday – has been renamed Bob & Betty’s Food Market – in honor of owner Tony Fisher’s parents – the original owners.

The shelves are almost completely stocked with health conscious products – and except for a few minor details, the store looks as though it could open today.

Our picture below, offers a sneak peak at the almost fully stocked shelves at Bob & Betty’s Food Market.

And, if you didn’t have a chance yet, please read our recent post about the owners of Fisher’s Supermarket – now Bob & Betty’s Food Market – over 30 year history serving the ever changing community of Franklin Ave.

ILFA has a great picture of a hand written sign on Bob & Betty’s window, advising customers to follow owner Tony Fisher on twitter for more up to the minute news.

And in the same ILFA post, Nick, also makes an excellent point on “the emphasis for the great event Manuel is planning for Participatory Urbanism at LaunchPad” on  Friday, April 22nd, 6 PM – 8 PM.

Nostrand Park also blogged about the event spearheaded by local urban planner, Manuela Avila. He describes the project  as:  “I’m working on a research-design project called Participatory Urbanism in the neighborhood named “Crown Heights”.

The focus of the project is to start a discussion about public space in the community that has long been neglected and considering the possibility of opening the residual spaces adjacent to the Franklin shuttle as public spaces.”

So, as much as we  love our community being revitalized, revamped and up graded like Bob & Betty’s Food Market, Sweet Basil, Island Thyme, Chavella’s on Franklin Ave.,  Pacific Oasis Cafe, etc. – there is still a true need to join in on Manuel Avila’s discussion on Friday, April 22nd, 6 PM – 8 PM at launchpad – where he will  attempt to address the issues at the opposite end of the spectrum.

Namely the need for:  “STARTING A DISCUSSION ABOUT THE LONG NEGLECTED PUBLIC SPACES IN THE CROWN HEIGHTS COMMUNITY” that are not being revamped, revitalized and/or up graded, and what we as a community can do about it.

Crown Heights – Brownstones East Of Nostrand Ave. cica 2010 – Abeni Garrett

Curbed recently wrote an article about the Prospect Heights Condo Boom Swallowing Up Crown Heights and it’s in article renaming parts of “desirable” Crown Heights as “ProCro”.

And generally, Crown Heights was given a quite unflattering portrayal in the Curbed article. Sources in it quoted:

“creaky, rent-controlled buildings and graffiti-pocked bodegas.”
“a new neighborhood where’s there’s nothing going on.”
“Crown Heights is not as fashionable. The building stock isn’t as nice…”

Quite a few people were not happy with this over generalization of the community of Crown Heights.

Capt. Planet said (on www.brooklynian.com):

“The real deal is that the properties between Nostrand and Albany on average are far superior to those between Washington and Nostrand.

I once asked a well-known architectural historian about this seeming anomaly and was told that:

prime areas tended to separated from other prime areas by less expensive rental properties where the “support staff” for the wealthy folks lived.”

Apparently the area between Washington Ave. and Nostrand Ave. was one of those “non-prime” areas.”

That was exactly one of my main points about Franklin Ave. in the post: Fisher’s Supermarket – Revamped & Restocked – A Changing Store In An Ever Changing Community

So what are your thoughts of Realtors once again trying to rename Crown Heights or change Crown Height’s borders to make a more affluent – usually people not of color – feel safer to move into the community?

Because, times have changed and generally speaking, many of owners of the grand mansions could not afford to maintain the expensive upkeep on those enormous homes. So, usually because of years of neglect, they sadly began to deteriorate and then were auctioned off or sold and then sub-divided into apts at best or SRO’s at worst.

Immediately East Of Nostrand Ave. used to house many more grand mansions and semi-mansions, than the beautiful brownstones of today, pictured below. As many of the present day, grand brownstones – immediately East Of Nostrand Ave. – were built AFTER the original mansions of the St. Marks District and/or Bedford District – older names of Crown Heights – were torn down around 1900 – 1920′s.

Usually 2 – 3 semi-mansions, at most, were on a street and those semi-mansions depth usually stretched a city block from from St. Marks to Bergen – as one example.

Homes of that scale took a team “of help” to maintain.

The Washington Ave. to Franklin Ave. area – was – cheaper to buy the smaller properties, and as more middle-class, primarily whites, were priced out of Park Slope and moved into Prospects Heights – PH’s reputation began to become more “desirable”.

Then, Realtors tried to name any property usually up to a block at most- immediately east of Washington Ave., where Crown Heights officially begins – as Prospect Heights.

But trying to push “Prospects Heights” as far East as Franklin Ave. – and trying to command those ridiculous prices for the quickly slapped together condos – i.e 1.3 Million Dollars for a 2 bedroom – has proved much more difficult than they and the developers initially speculated.

So that’s where Pro-Cro comes into play.

It’s a matter of semantics and economics, which does unfortunately include a large elements of class and race “fears”, which many, but not all, people want to tip toe around.

Present day Crown Heights name has a “stigma” compulsively attached and associated to it, justifiably or not.

Now ProCro comes in to use when – realtors consciously use it to quickly circumvent any stigma attached to Crown Heights area – as they to try and obtain the the highest price possible for a particular property – that is actual geographically located in Crown Heights!

Imagined Conversation between Realtor and perspective client:

Pro-Cro – Client – “Sounds interesting, tell me more about this delightful up and coming sounding neighborhood.

Crown Heights – “Good God! You must be joking?! I said I wanted to live there, this is not an investment property.

(Client’s Inner Dialogue) “Is this guy crazy? Don’t they shoot white people there! How long before the neighborhood’s racial balance turns over? There’s just no way, no way, just no way I can do it, I’m not racist but.., there’s just no way. Crown Height – Good God No!

But still, given all the changes – good and/or bad – Crown Heights has gone through over the years, does ANYONE have the right to try and change the name of Crown Heights and/or it’s borders to make a more affluent – usually people not of color – feel safer to move into the community?

Photo by: Abeni Garrett - All Rights Reserved - copyright 2011

Fisher’s Supermarket is a Mom & Pop type grocery store located at 805 Franklin Ave. at the corner of Lincoln Place. The supermarket has been a stable presence in this ever changing community for over 3 decades.

And their long anticipated, remodeling of the entire store, is almost finished! The owner, Tony Fisher, hopes to open his gleaming new, eco friendly doors around April 1 on a 24 hr, 7 days a week basis!

You can skip the fascinating history of the ever Changing Franklin Ave. and head straight to the portion concerning what the Revamped Fisher’s will be about.

UPDATE – Fisher’s Supermarket has been renamed Bob & Betty’s Food Market in honor of owner Tony Fisher’s parents – the original owners .  You can read our post on that here, after you finish reading about  Franklin Ave.’s fascinating history.

The Ever Changing Franklin Ave.

35 years ago, Tony Fisher’s parents relocated their store to the safer Franklin Ave. from it’s former location, on the much more dangerous and turbulent Washington Ave, a few blocks West.

When they moved to Franklin Ave. in the 70′s, the whole city was in a financial crisis and almost bankrupt. Many communities were still reeling from the death of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, the Civil Rights movement that had not reached fruition and the Vietnam War.

Washington Ave. was a war zone were many frustrations were vented on the few remaining business left on that Ave.

Franklin Av. and it’s immediate surrounding community – with it’s side streets of factories and warehouses – had always been a solidly blue collar type of community since the huge, old plantations of Brueklen had been sub – divided and sold as land parcels.

Here lived the working class people who either worked for or tolled away in the grand homes of their much more affluent neighbors immediately to the East of Nostrand Ave. – which was then called the St. Marks district – or West of Flatbush Ave in Park Slope.

And even though Franklin Ave.’s racial & ethnic demographic had been steadily shifting since the 1950′s from a mixed community of primarily Jewish, Irish, Italian and a small percentage of Afro-American’s – to a more exclusively Caribbean, African, Afro-American & Latino community – Franklin Ave.’s core economic demographic remained a solidly working class community.

This is the vibrant community that Fisher’s Supermarket opened its doors to in the 70′s.

As the neighborhood continued to change, and many more working class families continued to flee – as a direct result of the the neighborhood becoming a horrible casualty of the crack epidemic in the 80′s – Fisher’s Supermarket refused to move and stayed put.

Even after business after business bordered up it’s doors and closed on Franklin Ave., not to re-open for decades, Fisher’s kept serving the existing community and their diverse and changing needs. From stocking a variety of “ethnic” foods – from the Caribbean, Africa and various Latin countries – to delivering food to their elderly or immobile customers or extending credit to families they knew were in need.

The Revamped & Restocked Fisher’s Supermarket

And in a few weeks – hopefully around April 1, Tony Fisher – son of the original owner – will be finished remodeling the family store.

Fisher’s Supermarket will have a much larger Organic selection, be open 24 hours – as the communities work patterns have changed – and have a focus on fair pricing as Tony wants the revamped Fisher’s to serve the needs of the entire community.

Tony remolded the store with the idea of having a primarily “green” store that’s environmentally conscious and friendly and that has a small town feel with a solid relationship with all the members of the community.

From the produce, the way the store will be lighted and technology used to run the store – the way to refrigerators are cooled etc., will be green and eco friendly.

Fisher’s is only using local farmers from Upstate New York, no more than 50 miles away, to cut down on the supermarket’s carbon foot print.

I eagerly await the grand Opening of Fisher’s revamped and restocked Supermarket!

This past Saturday, my good friend Lady Miss Kier invited me to the Shanghai Mermaid Party!

Shanghai Mermaid is a highly secretive, very underground, prohibition era themed, rotating Burlesque extravaganza – evoking the 1920′s – 1930′s Gilded Age of Cabaret & Speak-Easy’s – that is held in a variety of undisclosed, rotating locations throughout Brooklyn.

The gracious host and organizer JC has given me permission to blog, just once, about our incredible experience!

As our cab made its way down the cities post-industrial landscape, passing the cities abandoned factories and shipyards, I wonder what Prohibition era, New York night life was like?

I didn’t have to wait long! Once we entered the venue, it was as if we entered a Shanghai themed speak -easy, circa 1920′s. The entire space was covered with red, Asian inspired fabrics and prints. Cigarette “girls” with feathered period costumes circulated through out the audience as attentive waitresses, also in period costumes, made sure every cocktail order was filled to perfection.

Then the show started. There were rag time acts, period – era blues, jazz, a fire dancer, a ballerina and of course the marvelous Burlesque acts. We were thoroughly mesmerized and entertained with over 2 hours of wonderful performances!

If you’re lucky enough to find out the location of the next event, expect to come outfitted in fringe dresses, feather or spats, wingtip shoes, vests, or a zoot suits. Because, not only are the performers dressed in period era costumes – but the audience is also expected to come dressed in prohibition era attire – like the couple below – or there’s a strong possibility of not being granted admission.

Tickets are around $25.00 per person.

Being that this is quite a sexy Burlesque show, Lady Kier has posted the more deliciously, decadent, risque pictures that she took of the various performances on her tumblr page.

Chavella, the wildly popular Mexican restaurant on Classon Ave., has a new restaurant – Chavella’s on Franklin Ave. – which is almost ready for it’s Grand Opening!

I passed by yesterday and spoke with one of the workers who said Chavella’s – Franklin Ave should be opening in approximately 2 weeks! Exciting news for the community!

And from the looks of the picture above, besides rehabilitating the original, gorgeous, kick ass, tin ceiling, Chavella’s on Franklin will also have a bar! I wonder how this will affect Franklin Park’s business with two bar/restaurants in such close proximity?

For those in the community who wanted more choices, there are now a number of “sit-down”, dine in restaurant’s to choose from on Franklin Ave.

Sweet Basil, Island Thyme, Keslo, Dutch Boy (though I consider that more of a specialized burger diner than restaurant).., and soon Chavella’s!

I wish them better luck than the short lived Oaxaca a few blocks North on Prospect Pl off of Franklin Ave.

But this begs the question: with all the “changes”/ commercial development taking place recently.., - ILFA did a wonderful in depth write up about this - is the “authentic” flavor of Franklin Ave. being irrevocably changed?

In all honesty, I wasn’t sure what to expect when I decided to try the new restaurant , Island Thyme, located at 751 Franklin Ave. – home of the Former Bristens Eatery & Bristen’s Noodles.

Even if I ignored the new name and awning, I had heard enough rumors to be aware that there was a high probability that the new business would be a sit down, Caribbean themed restaurant with the same owners as Bristens Eatery and Noodles.

So Sunday I ventured over to 751 Franklin Ave at Sterling for their “soft opening” brunch, prepared to at least order a small appetizer as I took in the memo.

Island Thyme is an authentic Caribbean Restaurant run by the same owners as Bristens! And the food is delicious! Their current menu is at the end of this post.

The menu is about 80% authentic Jamaican with dishes like ox tail, curry goat, and jerk chicken.., but the chicken and waffles from Bristens Eatery is still on the menu AND the owner plans to add more “Caribbean inspired” dishes for those who may need an slow introduction to the deliciously, flavorful Caribbean spices.

For vegetarians, they offer some vegetable only side dishes like Steamed Cabbage with Green Peas, Carrots, Corn, Onions, Scallions, Thyme & Garlic ($3.50) or Plantains ($2.00) or Baked Macoroni & Cheese ($4.00).., AND they have brought back some of their delicious salads from the Bristens Eatery’s menu – like the Goat Cheese Spinach Salad ($8.95), Green Salad ($6.95), & Mixed Greens Salad ($7.25)!

I ordered the Curry Goat dish – ($8.00 – small or $10.50 – large) – and was blown away. The meat was soft, juicy, succulent and literally fell off the bone. The seasoning was flavorful, but subtle enough for my non-Caribbean pallet.

My friend ordered the Ox Tail dish – she’s half Jamaican – and she could not stop praising the flavors, texture and taste of her dish.

I’ve experimented with quite a few Caribbean places in the neighborhood – mainly on Nostrand Ave. – and I must say, Island Thymes quality of meat, serving size and presentation far exceeds any of the local places I’ve visited so far.

The menu is about 80% complete and I do look forward to seeing what many of the “Caribbean inspired” dishes will consist of.

But for affordable, sit down Caribbean dining – with incredible food – Island Thyme has hit the mark.

Hours of Operation: Tuesday – Saturday 10AM – 10 PM and Sunday 10AM – 7PM!!!
Phone: 646 – 393 – 9422

ISLAND THYME’S MENU

Photo copyright – Abeni Garrett

UPDATE – Island Thyme is now OPEN!!!!!! Read my review!

The new awning is up at 751 Franklin Ave., for the new restaurant Island Thyme, located at the former home of Bristens Noodle’s, which was the former home of Bristens Eatery.

Since Franklin Ave. has begun it’s unofficial “commercial revitalization” – starting sometime in 2008 (ILFA had a wonderful write up about this) – 751 Franklin Ave has seen a number a business’s try to make a go of it on the rapidly changing Ave.

751 Franklin Ave. – Bristens Eatery – Version 1.0
Bristens Eatery had a fantastic menu- including scrumptious burgers, a wildly popular brunch, but ultimately no liquor license. This lack of liquor license seemed to trump their superior menu and ultimately Bristens decided to re-vamp itself as a Breistens Noodle’s.

751 Franklin Ave. – Bristes Noodles – Version 2.0
Bristen’s Noodles served a variety of moderately priced noodle and tasty soup dishes – and even brought back their popular weekend brunch – but ultimately the revamped menu could not save their business.

751 Franklin Ave. – Island Thyme – Version 3.0
There’s strong speculation that this will be a Caribbean Restaurant, that may or may not be affiliated with the former owner’s of Bristens. We’re still not certain, but will clarify as soon as possible.

The ultimate question is, will Island Thyme be able to survive and thrive on a quickly changing Franklin Ave.? Considering there is another Caribbean restaurant about 2 blocks south on Franklin Ave., Jam Rock, will there be enough of a customer base for both to thrive?

Will island Thyme meet the needs of enough of the community to be a lasting presence?

Only time will tell, but with it’s quaint new awning going up today, we suspect the answers will come soon.