April 3–9, 2015 • FREE • Vol. 38, No. 14 • ® AWP/16 pages — Yo u r News Yo u r Neighborhood Serving Brownstone Brooklyn, Williamsburg & Greenpoint • ©2015 2500 • Brooklyn, NY • (718) 260– BrooklynPaper.com THE BABY BLUEStheir own architect to inspect the Red Hook tenants say building unsafe for theirbuilding, whonew reported kids that 14 out of 17 of the building’s systems — including plumbing, bathrooms, By Noah Hurowitz and roofs — have not been “sub- The Brooklyn Paper stantially rehabilitated.” A lawyer Talk about a baby boom! for the group said the discrepancy A Red Hook landlord who casts doubt on the legitimacy of leased cheap apartments in a less- the 2002 inspection. than-perfect building is putting the “The owner submitted drawings lives of toddlers in danger as he that show the building qualified, but jacks up rents and disregards nec- the drawings don’t reflect what is essary repairs, claim some long- at the premises,” said attorney Jack time tenants who have procreated Lester. “Either they didn’t look at all since moving in — and now expect or they were paid not to look.” a better living environment. The inspector who examined “People who have been living here the building no longer works at for a long time have gone through the Department of Buildings, a major life changes,” said Kelsey spokesman said. Knight Mohr, who has resided in In December, after almost two the former Monarch Luggage factory years of litigation — and shortly on Delavan Street between Dwight Speakman Jason by Photo after the ruling in favor of the and Richards Streets with her fiance landlord — tenants involved in since 2011. “When you have to lug the lawsuit began receiving evic- a stroller up four f lights of stairs in- Iris Follett sits near the stairwell’s open rail, which residents tion notices. Since then the notices stead of just your own drunk a--, say children could fall through. have come in waves, Mohr said, your priorities change.” they could live on the cheap and and now Harbor Tech has begun Residents claim many of the 98 proceedings against all but three units in the three buildings that in 1920 and remained commercial throw parties is no longer accept- able as they’ve grown up. units involved in the suit. make up the former factory lack a until 2005, when the Department Mohr and her fiance, who do of Buildings approved it for resi- “When you have a kid you sud- modern plumbing system, are not not have children, received a ter- accessible to people with disabil- dences, three years after a 2002 in- denly start paying attention to that spection. Building plans submitted unsafe railing,” Mohr said. mination notice in February, and ities, and contain railings a small in March, she said, her rent check child could easily fall through. In in that application show a work- Still, Mohr insisted if the build- ing elevator, accessibility ramps, ings were made more livable, the was returned un-cashed. 2012, owners Harbor Tech L.L.C. “It feels like they’re trying and other features that residents residents wouldn’t mind an in- began spiking rents on renewed to pick us off one by one,” she leases — sometimes as much as say never existed. But the build- crease in rent. ing passed inspection, and in 2014 “Everybody is willing to pay pre- said. 35 percent — with no correspond- Following repeated inquiries ing increase in living conditions, a judge ruled against the tenants’ dictable reasonable rent increases for bid for rent stabilization, arguing a place that is maintained in a safe by The Brooklyn Paper, a Depart- Mohr Knight Kelsey the group said. ment of Buildings spokesman said Now, residents from 30 unitsthat the city’s certificate of occu- way,” Mohr said. “We’re not just look- the agency is preparing to con- in the former Monarch Luggage pancy meant the building had been ing for a sweet deal anymore.” sufficiently modernized. New York’s rent stabilization duct a new inspection and to au- factory — who sued the landlord dit the certificate of occupancy when rents started rising — are The tenants say that the build- law mandates that landlords can only charge market rent on a build- issued in 2005. Members of the tenant group from the former Monarch Luggage factory stand outside pressing the Department of Build- ings should never have been is- their building, which they say is unsafe for kids. sued a certificate of occupancy in ing constructed before 1974 if it has Management did not respond ings to conduct a new inspection to requests for comment. of the property in a bid to retro- the first place. And what was a- undergone a complete infrastruc- actively designate the building as okay when residents just wanted ture overhaul. The tenants hired rent-stabilized. a place off the beaten path where The former factory was built L Railing against the shutdown the merchants association on a few in January or plan something else?” other occasions to make sure track Friday night to Monday morning said Tyler Boss, a clerk at Desert work did not conflict with important Williamsburg businesses demand MTA keep train running onneighborhood weekends events, according to classes during those weekends, and for five weekends between April Island Comics on Metropolitan Northside Merchants Association I am going to have to let them know 18 and May 18. Avenue. “This sounds like mis- By Danielle Furfaro manager Caitlin Dourmashkin. that they will not be able to reach The authority says it will pro- management.” The Brooklyn Paper The transit authority has acqui- But the authority says it won’t They are raising L. us,” said Taylor Erkkinen, owner vide a shuttle bus from the Lo- rimer Street station to the Marcy esced to the neighborhood busi- be moved this time. The Metropolitan Transporta- of the Brooklyn Kitchen, a store at “Unfortunately, it cannot be Frost Street and Meeker Avenue Avenue stop, and also beef up bus nesses on service suspension before. tion Authority must suspend its rescheduled later in the year be- in Williamsburg that also offers services in Manhattan. The Northside Merchants Associa- plan to halt L train service be- cause it cannot coincide with other cooking classes. “It will clearly More than 300 people havetion convinced the agency to switch tween Brooklyn and Manhattan scheduled work on the J-Z and G be thousands of dollars worth of signed an online petition , which a weekend L train closure that was for five consecutive weekends in set to take place during the annual lines,” said spokeswoman Marisa April and May even though the lost business for me.” asks the authority to change the The L train will run only be- dates until later in the year, when Northside music festival in 2013. Baldeo. agency claims it can’t, says a cohort And the agency has worked with of Williamsburg and Greenpoint tween the Lorimer Street station business is slower. business owners who fear the clo- in Williamsburg and the Canar- “Why couldn’t they do this back sure will cost them big bucks. sie–Rockaway Parkway stop from Photo by Jason Speakman Jason by Photo “I have 500 people scheduled for Brooklyn Kitchen owner Taylor Erkkinen says halting week- to kids even more wet behind the ears end L train services will cost her business. than he, even though he only started playing six months ago and knows a Honors for Paper lyn Paper editor Vince DiMiceli told handful of chords. “It is really fun.” Fitzpatrick and other older kids The Brooklyn Paper his gathered staff Monday morning. “And these awards show that there picked up the slack by starting to teach It’s official: The Brooklyn Paper is aren’t many better each other, and as soon as they would the best of the better. at finding and de- Your beloved weekly Yo u r Neighborhood — Yo u r News® livering the news Rock ’n’ roll junior high school learn a new chord or song, they would BrooklynPaper.com • (718) 260–2500 • Brooklyn, NY • ©2014 Serving Brownstone Brooklyn, Williamsburg & Greenpoint AWP/16 pages • Vol. 37, N o . 4 9 • December 5–11, 2014 • FREE seek out younger kids to show them how broadsheet took home Gunshots echo in the stairwell than our team.” Fatal police shooting of Red Hook man recalls Gowanus tragedy of 20 years ago By Noah Hurowitz MORE INSIDE That team used two top prizes at the The Brooklyn Paper The fatal shooting of a Red Hook man by a rookie police of- Ferguson protest takes Flatbush Ave. it is done. Friedlander and MacDonald ficer on Nov. 20 could have been SEE PAGE 12 prevented, said the father of the vic- tim of a similar shooting that took Paper reporter floored by officer place in Gowanus in 1994. Officer Peter Liang shot and SEE PAGE 12 killed Akai Gurley in a dark stair- Kids in Williamsburg are teaching each other guitar New York Press As- well of the Louis H. Pink Houses torney Charles Hynes chose not to up on charges of criminally neglect to include Rookie in East New York at 11:15 pm on press charges. At a press confer- homicide,” Heyward said. “There Nov. 20, police said. Liang and an- ence called last week in response is no reason to shoot into the dark- started asking their students to promise other cop entered the stairwell on to Gurley’s death, Heyward reit- ness. He had no idea what he was the eight floor with weapons unhol- erated the demand that police stop shooting at.” stered and, when Gurley came in on assigning rookie officers to do so- A grand jury declined to bring the seventh floor, Liang fired once, called “vertical patrols” in public the same charge against Officer hitting him in the chest, an NYPD housing developments, which of- Richard Neri, who shot Stans- spokeswoman said.