THIS WEEK IN INDEPENDENCE COMES TO DUMBO: P.9 CARL PEEK DEAD: P.5 WWW.BROOKLYNPAPERS.COM ISLAND FOCUS Gearing up for annual Brooklyn’s Weekly Newspaper West Indian carnival Published weekly by Brooklyn Paper Publications Inc, 26 Court St., Brooklyn 11242 Phone 718-834-9350 AD fax 718-834-1713 • NEWS fax 718-834-9278 © 2002 Brooklyn Paper Publications • 14 pages including 4 pages GO BROOKLYN • Vol.25, No. 34 AWP • September 2, 2002 • FREE INSIDE GUILTY ANGEL QUITS COUNCIL Faces 4-to-5 years for shaking down developer By Patrick Gallahue accomplice shook down devel- Speaker Gifford Miller. prison. If he were convicted of he chooses. Rodriguez cannot n’t want to put his family and charged with attempted extor- The Brooklyn Papers oper Greg O’Connell for cash Rodriguez’s attorney, Ron- all the charges against him, withdraw his plea, but can ap- friends though a very long tri- tion, extortion conspiracy and / File photo and property over a controver- ald Fischetti, told The Brook- Rodriguez would have faced peal the sentence if it exceeds al,” Fischetti said. fraud in addition to a battery of He’s no longer a council- sial plan to build a massive lyn Papers on Wednesday that 20 years behind bars. the agreement, according to “Anything he did,” Fischetti other charges handed down by man and soon Angel Fairway supermarket on the his client would enter a guilty Judge Frederic Block does Fischetti. added, “did not affect his con- the grand jury. Rodriguez will no longer Red Hook waterfront, Ro- plea on Thursday, Aug. 29, in not have to honor the plea bar- “I think other than the fact stituents.” Rodriguez, who earlier this be a free man. year was a leading candidate driguez on Wednesday tendered exchange for a sentence of be- gain and can sentence Ro- that he wanted to take respon- On March 28, Rodriguez Papers The Brooklyn Facing charges that he and an his resignation to City Council tween 46 and 57 months in driguez to more prison time if sibility for his actions, he did- was arrested at his home and See ANGEL on page 5 Angel Rodriguez Creamy goodness SMOKE Marty crowns best egg cream SCREEN By Patrick Gallahue As NASA images show The Brooklyn Papers Ever one to reminisce about the glory WTC ash over Brooklyn, days of the Brooklyn Dodgers and luncheonettes on every corner, Borough pols seek health study President Marty Markowitz poured Brooklyn a tall, sweet glass of nostalgia By Patrick Gallahue Monday when he hosted the first ever The Brooklyn Papers “Egg Cream Extravaganza.” As each of the Twin Towers collapsed on Inviting about 20 soda jerks from around Sept. 11, the dense black-and-gray cloud of Brooklyn, Markowitz held a competition on smoke and debris rolled rapidly over the East the plaza outside Borough Hall on Aug. 26 River, enveloping already shocked onlookers to find the bona fide best egg cream. on the Brooklyn Heights promenade in its Among the 15 judges was Ron Schweiger, the official borough historian; Joe Chirico, sky-darkening blanket. owner of the Gage and Tollner and Marco And in the days that followed, reports came from Polo restaurants; Markowitz’s hyper, Cy- as far away as Brighton Beach of people finding clones cheerleading namesake, “Party” Mar- documents, their edges burned and frayed, from of- ty Haber; and Ed Weintrob, president of The fices that had been in the World Trade Center. The Brooklyn Papers. smell of the moldering Ground Zero site filled the “I used to work at Miltie’s Candy Store and air in Brooklyn Heights for nearly two months fol- I have to tell you, egg cream was the drink of lowing the tragedy. Brooklyn,” Markowitz said. “And even after But while testing has been offered to the emer- all these years, when many other drinks were gency workers at Ground Zero and in the homes of introduced in the borough, for those of us that residents in Lower Manhattan, the effects of the va- are Brooklynites through and through, the egg pors and ash on Brooklynites has largely been ig- cream was always our drink.” nored. Now borough officials, their point lent re- Gus Vlahavas of Tom’s Restaurant in Prospect Heights whips up a fancy The 19 contestants were divided into two In this view from space, the smoke plume from the World Trade Center newed credence by the release of NASA space egg cream for Monday’s contest. The Brooklyn Papers / Greg Mango See EGG CREAMS on page 9 blows directly across Brooklyn on Sept. 11. NASA See SMOKE on page 9 DA Hynes lays off 50 Despite budget crunch, Howie stays in 125G job By Patrick Gallahue the axe amid reports that Hynes’ would be worth something.” The Brooklyn Papers Fiscal Year 2002 budget operated at Whether or not it was worth a $4.8 million deficit, Golden has $125,000 should be evaluated, Rather than cut into his many made negligible public appearances Davis added. and varied social programs, or on behalf of the district attorney’s Of the nearly $5 million deficit the six-figure salary he’s paying office and, almost nine months into reported by the Daily News, Hynes to his longtime buddy Howard his job, has yet to create a single spokesman Jerry Schmetterer ac- Golden, District Attorney program. Golden did not return a knowledged that it existed but said Charles Hynes has instead laid call seeking comment. it was being “taken care of” with off 52 incoming prosecutors Both Hynes and Golden are the city’s Office of Management until at least January to reduce powerful players in the Kings and Budget (OMB). Calls to OMB his bloated budget. County Democratic Committee, were referred to the mayor’s office, According to published reports, which has come under heavy and mayoral spokesman Jordan scrutiny this year following a series Barowitz said the city and the what most rankles many of the pros- Pamela Wheaton and Clara Hemphill with copies of their “Best ecutors on Hynes’ staff is that a of judicial misconduct cases, Brooklyn DA were working to Public Elementary Schools” book. The Brooklyn Papers / Greg Mango seemingly patronage position was bribery cases involving a judge and make up last year’s budget gap but created specifically for Golden, former Councilman Angel Ro- that he did not know how that was upon his ouster as borough president driguez, and the alleged misappro- Charles Hynes BP / File photo being achieved. at the beginning of the year, while priation of funds by the county De- The 52 prosecutors put on hiatus they go on understaffed. Golden mocratic chairman, Assemblyman system of back-door deals and until at least January will save the draws a $125,000 a year salary in Clarence Norman. office $800,000 in Fiscal Year School aides cronyism. his role as director of civic and gov- “If that doesn’t look like a politi- “But when you think of the com- 2003, the current year, to meet an ernmental affairs. He also draws a cal patronage job I don’t know munity affairs office [in which order from Mayor Michael Web site, books help parents roughly $90,000-a-year pension, be- what does,” said Fort Greene Golden works], after his length of Bloomberg to reduce the DA’s next cause he is over 70 and retired from Councilman James Davis, who has time in office [as borough presi- two budgets by 15 percent. By Heather J. Wilson lutions to their problems. his city job. vociferously criticized the so-called dent], he would have developed Golden began his job in January. The Brooklyn Papers According to Hemphill, it’s the Howard Golden BP / File photo But while prosecutors are getting “county machine” for its alleged important connections and that See DA HYNES on page 3 new-age approach to knowing With all the changes to the what’s going on in a very big sys- city’s public education system tem. this year, Clara Hemphill, “It is going to be great,” who has authored four critical Hemphill said this week. “Parents guidebooks on city schools, can get right on and have a wealth would be a handy expert for of information at their fingertips.” Nabes sue Bloomie over new shelters parents to consult with on a Hemphill, who has authored daily basis over the ins and “The Parents’ Guide to New York outs of New York City public City’s Best Public Elementary By Patrick Gallahue Residents of Clermont Avenue schools. Schools” (SoHo Press, 1997), expressed shock last week after The Brooklyn Papers Now they can … online. “New York City’s Best Public finding out that 65 Clermont Ave. is Middle Schools” (SoHo Press, Community members and going to be a 24-unit shelter. Resi- The former Newsday, Associat- ed Press and CBS reporter, is in- 1999) and “New York City’s Best elected officials, furious after dis- dents said they had thought, based troducing her Zagat-like guide to Public High Schools” (Teachers covering plans for four new on renderings placed outside the public schools to the Web, allow- College Press, 2001) just released homeless shelters in Fort Greene construction site, that the building ing parents to point and click their a revised second edition of the el- and neighboring Prospect Heights, was going to be developed as luxu- ementary school guide, published are charging that the Bloomberg way through detailed information ry condominiums. about every public school in the by Teachers College Press and co- administration is trying to “sneak “This went from being a 12-unit city.