BROOKLYN’S REAL NEWSPAPERS Including The Brooklyn Heights Paper, Carroll Gardens-Cobble Hill Paper, DUMBO Paper and the Downtown News Published every Saturday — online all the time — by Brooklyn Paper Publications Inc, 55 Washington St, Suite 624, Brooklyn NY 11201. Phone 718-834-9350 • www.BrooklynPapers.com • © 2006 Brooklyn Paper Publications • 18 pages •Vol. 29, No. 32 AWP • Saturday, August 19, 2006 • FREE FLATIRON ON FLATBUSH Downtown tower mimics Gaphattan icon By Gersh Kuntzman sance of this whole area,” the hattanization of Brooklyn. tan Bridge to DeKalb Avenue. “This whole area is going to skylines and bridges,” Leyva’s The Brooklyn Papers building’s architect, Ismael Ley- He meant it in a good way. The area was upzoned two feel like Manhattan,” Leyva publicist said in a statement. It looks like the lovechild va, told The Brooklyn Papers “We are transferring what we years ago to encourage the said. “The aesthetics are “Elaborate duplex units will this week, touting his plans for a are doing in Manhattan to kind of development that Ley- changing. Everything is have two fireplaces. The struc- of the Flatiron Building and 22-story tower on the triangular- Brooklyn,” said the New York- va and others are rushing to changing. It’s new.” ture’s fragile volume will be a spaceship — but this just- shaped lot at Flatbush Avenue based architect, who is the de- begin. As The Brooklyn Pa- From the way Leyva’s press emphasized through the build- unveiled rendering of a lux- Extension and Tillary and signer of adjacent twin luxury pers reported last month, there agent gushed, the 108-unit ing’s setbacks and repetitive ury condo planned for the Duffield streets. towers on Gold Street, which are at least eight towers — building is actually old — as balconies, and a powerful, gateway to Downtown is Leyva said his design was in- will stand 40 and 35 stories, and some office buildings, some in old money. curved shape will enhance the the latest attempt to bring spired not only by the Flatiron “two or three” other buildings residential, but none of them “Almost every apartment has sharp intersection, giving the Manhattan across the river. Building, but also by wanting to already in the works for the inexpensive — in various a balcony showcasing the views building a strong personality,” “This is the start of a renais- play a role in the further Man- short stretch from the Manhat- stages of development. of Manhattan and Brooklyn’s the publicist said. White flight … to Brooklyn State’s only Atlantic yards public hearing Population pendulum is swinging back the other way set for Wednesday By Dana Rubinstein “Meanwhile, there’s tre- The Brooklyn Papers mendous numbers of kids The Brooklyn Papers coming into Park Slope, Boer- Brooklyn is getting whit- Population shift The state’s only public hearing on the Atlantic um Hill, Williamsburg, Green- Yards arena, office and housing mega-development er, the Census Bureau re- Numbers of residents in Brooklyn, according to the point, Flatbush and Canarsie.” ported last week, confirm- Census Bureau. will be held on Wednesday, Aug. 23. These mid-decade Census Expect a standing room only crowd — including ing many residents’ unsci- numbers are part of the Bu- entific observations. 2004 2005 Shift Atlantic Yards celebrities such as Forest City Ratner reau’s American Community Vice President James Stuckey, Develop Don’t Des- Between 2004 and 2005, Black 920,684 879,790 4.4-percent decrease Survey, a new program that the number of blacks in the supplies demographic data on troy spokesman Daniel Goldstein, Atlantic Yards- borough decreased by approx- White 964,171 1,030,543 6.9-percent increase an annual basis rather than supporting Assemblyman Roger Green (D-Prospect imately 20,000, while the every 10 years. Heights) and fiery Ratner foe City Councilman Leti- number of whites increased by planted in adjacent neighbor- wage earners. The report also showed: tia James (D-Prospect Heights). more than 66,000 [see chart]. hoods, and could advance fur- “You need people are will- • The number of college- The event is the only scheduled public opportuni- “The trend is very signifi- ther if projects such as Bruce ing to work low-wage jobs to educated Brooklynites in- ty to comment on the largest single-developer project cant,” said Pedro Noguera, a Ratner’s Atlantic Yards and keep the city running,” he said. creased by 50,000, or a hard- in Brooklyn’s storied history. A “community forum” demographer at New York Uni- the condo-infused Brooklyn But Queens College demog- to-believe 23 percent. will be held on primary election day, Sept. 12. versity. “The city is gentrifying Bridge Park come on-line. rapher Andrew Beveridge saw • The number of Brook- Wednesday’s four-hour hearing will begin at 4:30 rapidly, and rising property val- Sociologists say the shift the trend in a more neutral light, lynites of Asian descent in- pm in New York City College of Technology’s ues are driving people out.” also reflects the migration of saying the population shift is creased by more than 4,200, Klitgord Auditorium, 285 Jay St., Downtown. The “gentrification” trend lower-wage-earners, the ma- actually a long-term trend. or 1.9 percent. has been obvious since the jority of whom happen to be “The black population [in • Native Hawaiian Brook- People who want to testify will be asked to sign in, Brownstone Brooklyn revival black, to the south. Middle- Brooklyn] would have been lynites increased by nearly 14 said Jessica Copen, a spokeswoman for the Empire took root in the 1970s. The and upper-income blacks are declining for over 25 years percent — although the Bu- State Development Corporation. Copen also suggest- trend accelerated in recent not leaving at the same rate. were it not for the Caribbean reau admits that its margin of ed that the hearing could go beyond 8:30 pm if peo- A 22-story luxury condominium designed by Ismael Leyva years as numerous upscale res- Noguera warns that the city immigrants coming in,” said error is plus or minus more ple are still waiting to speak. — Ariella Cohen will rise in Brooklyn at 85 Flatbush Ave. Ext. idential developments were cannot flourish without low- Beveridge. than 100 percent. The Russians are running, the Russians are running! Mud flies as ex-Soviets duel for Dyker district By Dana Rubinstein characters from a Gogol novel, the KGB,” said Kagan. “[Brook-Kras- The 46th assembly district seat The Brooklyn Papers pair has traded increasingly bizarre ny’s] not a smart person. Most men came up for grabs when Cohen, a allegations — most of them with were in the Soviet army. It was four-term lawmaker, decided not to They may have been born in roots back to their native lands. mandatory service.” run for re-election. the Soviet Union, but two candi- The most vicious (so far) comes Kagan has levied some outra- The bitter battle to replace her is dates for a Dyker Heights As- from Brook-Krasny, who says that geous charges of his own. no surprise to Marty Levine, a long- sembly seat have certainly learn- Kagan, who moved to Brooklyn in “[Brook-Krasny] called me on time political insider who dropped ed about democracy, Brooklyn- 1993, has ties to the KGB, the Sovi- my cell at the end of March and out of the contest because he didn’t style. et Union’s spy agency. said, ‘If you don’t stop running, I have the stomach for all the mud. The two men — Ari Kagan, 39, a “Kagan graduated from the mili- will do everything to put a lot of dirt “They’re all a bunch of alliga- Minsk-born reporter for the Russian tary school of Soviet propaganda, and on you,’” recalled Kagan. “Your tors,” said Levine. “This is politics, Jewish Forward, and Alec Brook- some [bloggers] are saying that children will be ashamed to walk on Brooklyn style.” / Tom Callan / Tom Krasny, 48, the Moscow-born head of means he was somehow involved in the street.” The vitriol has little to do with the Callan / Tom the Jewish Émigré Community Orga- the KGB,” explained Brook-Krasny, Brook-Krasny calls that a bald- candidates’ politics, which are re- nization — are battling to succeed re- who has lived in Brighton Beach for faced lie. markably similar. tiring Assemblywoman Adele Cohen. 14 years. “When I hear something like this, Both Democrats are longtime But they’re not battling over the But Kagan says that he graduated I’m not surprised, because [Kagan] civic leaders who list affordable The Brooklyn Papers The Brooklyn issues. from a Soviet school of journalism. graduated from the school of Soviet housing and education as primary is- Papers The Brooklyn Alec Brook-Krasny Sounding more like embittered “I had nothing to do with the propaganda.” See VOTE on page 6 Ari Kagan at an event this week in Coney Island. ART ATTACK! Proud to be abnormal Museum regroups Despite naysayers, shake-up has big upside By Lisa J. Curtis said. “One of my greatest regrets is that so many of my GO Brooklyn Editor colleagues feel that it is a crime. This is a tax-supported By David K. Randall Curators will now collaborate with educa- ews coverage about a curator shuffle at the institution. Everyone who pays taxes deserves the same for The Brooklyn Papers tors and designers, who have traditionally treatment, same accessibility, and the same opportunity Brooklyn Museum suggested that the muse- as the person who gives us a million dollars. worked only on the presentation, not the con- um’s exhibition schedule would soon become For a museum that once hanged a tent, of an exhibition.