BROOKLYN HEIGHTS HOME DELIVERED CARROLL GARDENS HOME DELIVERED FORT GREENE HOME DELIVERED COBBLE HILL HOME DELIVERED BOERUM HILL HOME DELIVERED PROSPECT HEIGHTS HOME DELIVERED PARK SLOPE HOME DELIVERED BROOKLYN HEIGHTS HOME DELIVERED CARROLL GARDENS HOME DELIVERED FORT GREENE HOME DELIVERED 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 • 14 pages •Vol.29, No. 9 BWN • Saturday, March 4, 2006 • FREE JAILHOUSE SHOP When House of Detention reopens, its ground floor may house retail By Ariella Cohen lantic Avenue, but it should not be the last. The Brooklyn Papers “We would like it to go away,” said Sue The only chains coming soon to the Wolfe, president of the Boerum Hill Associa- tion. “But if not, mixed-use is better than the Brooklyn House of Detention aren’t the big nothing there now.” kind with shackles. Markowitz said this week that he’s still Borough President Markowitz and the city pushing Correction officials to formally close Department of Correction are negotiating a the 49-year-old facility. But that’s not likely. way to put stores in the ground floor of the “It’s part of the inventory and that’s not mothballed jail on Atlantic Avenue in Boerum changing,” said Correction spokesman Tom Hill. Antenen, indicating that inmates may return The retail uses would be restricted to the to the “House of D” as soon as next year. part of the building that faces onto busy At- “We’ll be losing beds when we do repairs lantic Avenue. Inmates were moved out of the 11-story at the Bronx facility in 2007,” Antenen said. pen in 2003 but are sometimes held there as “It’s in good shape,” Antenen said. they await hearings at nearby court houses, Two years ago, the Correction Department which they access via underground tunnels. renovated the building with a granite facade It is too early to know whether retail ten- along its first floor, a concession to area resi- ants and jailhouse activity can coexist. dents who had demanded that the House of D “Sounds odd to me,” said a spokeswoman — celebrated in the works of countless rap- for Trader Joe’s, a grocery store that pers and novelist Jonathan Lethem — be shut for good. Markowitz believes would be ideal at the un- / Gary Thomas popular landmark. Around the time of the House’s make-over, / Elena Olivo After all, a luxury condominium is under the city closed its other Brooklyn jail, near the construction next door to the old jail. And Navy Yards, citing a drop in the number of Smith Street remains as hot as ever for posh prisoners citywide. restaurants. If the House of Detention closes, too, what Area residents and the Beep agree that will rock bands like Biohazard — which Papers The Brooklyn ground-floor retail is a first step towards inte- slipped a reference to the jail in its 1990s tune Street-level storefronts could be coming to grating the jail building into a gentrified At- Modern Democracy — write about? the Brooklyn House of Detention. Brooklyn Academy of Music Brooklyn Brooklyn Academy of Music Executive Producer Joseph Melillo holds “Hedda Gabler” star Cate Blanchett during Tuesday night’s post-play party on the stage of the Howard Gilman Opera House in Fort Greene. HEDDA THE CLASS RACE Blanchett shines during BAM’s best gala ever By Lisa J. Curtis Turturro and Borowitz, BAM Cinema Club chairs, GO Brooklyn Editor told GO Girl that they thought Cate Blanchett’s open- WAR ON ing night would be a great way to celebrate Turturro’s It’s been a while since GO Girl has dug out her birthday; he and Blanchett worked together in 2001’s finery for an honest-to-goodness, celebrity- “The Man Who Cried.” studded bash, so it is with “We’ve seen enough Ibsen at much gratitude that she thanks Yale,” said Turturro, looking the great continent of Australia dashing and authoritative in his YARDS and the Brooklyn Academy of GIRL chalk stripe suit and glasses. “If Music for bringing Oscar-win- she wasn’t in it, we wouldn’t By Ariella Cohen ning actress Cate Blanchett to Fort Greene have come.” In fact, the couple said, while finishing The Brooklyn Papers Tuesday night. each other’s sentences, that Diane Wiest’s impressive performance in the title role was their favorite, so far. Apublic meeting to dis- Blanchett is starring in “Hedda Gabler” at the BAM cuss the Atlantic Yards Harvey Theater through March 26, and her opening Could Blanchett’s interpretation possibly rise to night performance drew the theater world’s elite to wit- these Americans’ lofty expectations? project degenerated into a ness one of their own tackle the notoriously difficult Even GO Girl’s tablemates from the Norwegian con- shouting match that re- sulate, who have been laboring to commemorate the opened Brooklyn’s class role. Callan / Tom Prior to her performance, the refreshingly unconven- centennial year of the death of their native son Henrik and race scars. tional benefit dinner was held on the BAM Opera Ibsen, had seen lots of his work, too. / Gary Thomas A mild-mannered update House’s stage, but it’s safe to say that few of the event’s Was there anyone in the audience who wasn’t a on Bruce Ratner’s proposed guests had stage fright. Among the veteran thespians “Hedda” aficionado? $3.5-billion arena and resi- spotted in the crowd were theater-cinema-TV triple Well, er, GO Girl’s Ibsen credentials are on the thin dential project was quickly threat Mary-Louise Parker; actor-director-legendary side. (BAM’s “Hedda” surprised Go Girl; it was noth- derailed when a black sup- The Brooklyn Papers file The Brooklyn Park Sloper John Turturro and his wife, actress ing like that one she’d seen in the Village, helmed by Papers The Brooklyn porter and a white opponent Katherine Borowitz; actor Liev Schreiber; and ac- naughty drag queen Hedda Lettuce.) fought over differing no- Bruce Ratner tress Marisa Tomei. After dinner, GO Girl marched with the muttering tions of the “community” GO Girl couldn’t help but worry for Blanchett: This gala patrons as they cautiously navigated the two Nets topple Knicks that will be affected by the said. “I don’t about all that. was a tough crowd. Turturro, Borowitz, Tomei and blocks to the BAM Harvey Theater for the perform- mega-development. I know about housing.” ance. (For those positively crippled by their outer-bor- Vince Carter (right) of the Brooklyn-bound New Jersey Nets drives past The fireworks began when Lewis added ACORN, a Schreiber all told GO Girl that they had studied lots of Coney Island’s Stephon Marbury during game last Friday at Madison Ibsen and seen many “Heddas,” while Borowitz said ough-phobia, a bus was provided!) panelist Candace Carponter housing advocacy group, she’d even played the role. See HEDDA on page 7 Square Garden. For a week’s worth of Nets highlights, see page 11. of the anti-project group De- could find common ground velop Don’t Destroy Brook- with DDDB if the anti-Rat- lyn, told co-panelist Bertha ner group would fight other Lewis of the Association of area developers, too. Community Organizations “There are 49 developers for Reform Now [ACORN] in central Brooklyn,” Lewis that DDDB supported devel- said. “Ninety-one percent of Study: Show up to opment that would benefit what they are building is the “community.” luxury. Pick on them, and “What community are you I’ll be down with you.” talking about?” Lewis fired See ERUPTION on page 3 back, telling Carponter beat parking tickets that her group’s opposi- tion to the project ig- By Gersh Kuntzman there was a simple explanation over one year old.” nores her “community,” The Brooklyn Papers for Golden’s truthful numbers: Tickets, he said, are supposed which is desperate for Paper judges are overwhelmed by a to be settled in 90 days, he said. housing and jobs. Want to beat your next ticket backlog of more than a But the judge did confirm the Lewis said ACORN parking ticket? You may year. IBO findings: “Yes, you general- cast its lot with Ratner jobs waste more in time than “The big issue is that there’s a ly get a better deal when you because of the afford- Employment opportunities you’ll save in fine. shortage of judges to [process] show up in person, but there’s a able housing promised are available at The Brooklyn A new study commissioned the hearings by mail,” said the trade-off. You want to kill your by the developer, but Papers. Inquiries are solicited by state Sen. Marty Goldin (R- judge, who requested anonymity. whole day? You have no life?” Carponter said Lewis for these immediate openings: Bay Ridge) shows that people “They make us do them in our Golden said the average wait- was ignoring the larger ADVERTISING SALES. who fight parking tickets in per- supposed spare time between ing time at one of the city’s five consequences of the The Brooklyn Papers offer a son have a much better chance of live hearings. It’s not unusual for walk-in hearing offices is just 45 project, such as envi- proven route to professional ABC Television getting the summons thrown out me to adjudicate tickets that are minutes.