raulism writes on the Prospect Heights Message Board:

I went by the house today and took some photos. It’s worse than I could have imagined- but don’t worry about this happening on your block. The neighbors have been complaining about the stench at this building for 15 years.

VSOP: “I should mention the guy with the bottle promised he was not going to drink it- he did want it as a souvenir,” Raulism says.

Wow: Prospect Heights Message Board

According to Fox News, this body bag contains the corpse of a dog that was half-eaten by 9 other dogs who were locked in a brownstone on Bergen St. and were starving:

Neighbors say the owner has been breeding dogs for years and that he was believed to be in the hospital. On the Prospect Heights Message Board, poot writes: “This is my neighbor. I can assure you that any dog breeding going on there is purely by accident and not for sport or financial gain…”

“He does climb in and out of a broken window… because all of the other ‘normal’ access routes to home or street (for example, the door) are blocked with trash. He also can often be seen sleeping on the stairs or walkway in front of his home.”

poot continues: “Word on the block is that he was sent to the hospital and has been absent for 10 days, which would account for the beaten appearance of the dogs, and the fact that they were ravenous enough to eat one of their own. His closest neighbors have been dealing with the overall filth and noise that comes with having many dogs for years. Hopefully the intervention of so many city agencies will get him the help that he clearly needs.”

Check out the video and other comments from neighbors on the Prospect Heights Message Board.

UPDATE: The cleanup begins, according to crustythor: “so, in rescuing my car from its alternate side purgatory this morning on bergen street, I passed a sanitation truck and about a dozen workers … in full-on coveralls with respirators … the door was open, and just inside the house was stacked - STACKED TO THE CEILING - with newspapers, magazines and assorted crap. the workers were raking it out and filling the truck, while a crowd gathered outside.

UPDATE to UPDATE: The excavation begins. 

Check out the video and other comments from neighbors on the Prospect Heights Message Board.

Rooting for the second game vs England

Originally uploaded by East Ham.

……………..teddyballgame writes on the Prospect Heights Message Board: “So I finally went to Sugarcane last night after a year of passing it and thinking it looked good and I should try it. Man, I was not disappointed at all…”

“We got jerk chicken wings for an appetizer, and they were ridiculous - the meat was like totally falling off the bone and stuff, and it came with a mango mayonnaise you could dip it into, which I support, because I’m all for dipping things in mayonnaise.”

“I had the chinese fried chicken. It was awesome but the portions were so big (and I had eaten so many jerk chicken wings) that I couldn’t come close to finishing it. The girlfriend had some sort of salmon that she said was really good but I didn’t really pay attention because I don’t like fish. Sides were good, too - I found the macaroni and cheese to be much better than that at the Islands (though there’s a price range / homeyness difference, obviously).”

“We also had big fruity beverages and those were delicious as well, though expensive and yielding a poor price / drunk ratio. Service was very friendly, albeit slow, though we were in no rush and the place was pretty packed.”

LINK: Sugarcane - So Good [Prospect Heights Message Boards]

Ciao Bella Green Tea & White Choco Chunks Gelato

Originally uploaded by sashmash.

teddyballgame writes on the Prospect Heights Message Board: “Does anyone have much info about this place? I passed by it the other night and it was the first time I’ve ever seen it open in the year that I’ve been living in the area…”

According to blackoyster, the people who run the shop “are very nice and they made me a strawberry champagne smoothie that was AMAZING!! They are only open half of the year. But I think this is the fourth year they have been there. Stop by, say hello.”

Check out their Grapefruit Campari Sorbet and more on the Prospect Heights Message Board

goodbye newswalk views

Originally uploaded by dailyheights.com.

rogersma says: “Here are some pretty amazing new pix. Welcome to Manhattan –only twice as crowded!”

This is a screenshot of some renderings of the proposed Atlantic Yards project … it’s the view (and absence of view) from the Newswalk condos on Dean Street. You can see more renderings at Atlantic Yards Report.

Comments on the Prospect Heights Message Board

Cuddle Time

Originally uploaded by SSCAO.

Elvis got his name because he was rescued during Elvis week and he looks like a king! Elvis was wandering the streets in Clinton Hill—he followed his foster mom to her door and when he rolled over so she could rub his belly, she had no choice but to invite him inside. We think his original owners dumped him—poor guy! Elvis is just a young fella’ … only around a year and a half old.

Elvis got beat up by some neighborhood cats, but he’s cleaned up to be a very handsome guy with great hair, a regal Egyptian face, and the big green eyes of a true heartbreaker. He’s neutered and vaccinated, has tested negative for FIV/FELV and is litter-trained. We think Elvis will want to be an only cat.

Elvis is a cool guy who loves to be petted. He will sit and purr at your side and he likes being held in your arms like a baby. He enjoys a good catnip buzz (another reason to call him Elvis!) and loves to chase bouncy foam balls—he’s so excited to finally be off the streets and in a home where someone will play with him! Don’t be cruel—invite Elvis into your home. He’s ready to play for keeps!

If you are interested in meeting this wonderful guy, click here.

Laura B writes on the Prospect Heights Message Board: “I’ve been depressed about this building for months now.”

Brownstoner sums it up nicely: “This bomb shelter of a building at 117 Underhill is an unfortunate step backward for a neighborhood with so much beautiful existing architecture and so much potential for its new buildings. What a bummer.”

“Aw, give ‘em a chance…” Drano says in response. “It’s obviously unfinished. Maybe they’ll slap on all kinds of pretty stuff - if nothing else you can look forward to reading ‘Fedders’ in those sweet AC wells…”

Read more about the Bomb Shelter on the Prospect Heights Message Board 

Duke of Flatbush asks on the Prospect Heights Message Board:

Has anyone seen (or heard) this guy who rings a bell, presumably, on his way to church on Sunday morning?

He woke me up like clockwork for about three weeks in a row and I’d always go to see who the hell was ringing a bell at 9 o’clock in the GD morning. Finally I got a couple of snapshots of him and he quit waking me up.

More “Bell Man” sightings on the Prospect Heights Message Board

It’s not a race

Originally uploaded by visual.resistance.

roux42 asks on the Prospect Heights Message Board:

“How long does it take for the city to clean off the graffiti, usually?”

“I was so unhappy to see it this morning. Since moving here, I have been so proud to have one of the grungiest BUT graffiti-free subway stations in NYC.”

Meanwhile, the Brooklyn Museum is promoting an exhibition of “graffiti as a phenomenon of modern urban life.” nychas grouses: “Our tax dollars at work… It is one thing to exhibit art that people might find offensive; they are not forced to look at it. It is quite another thing to encourage people to deface public and private property.”

So begins an inevitable pro-graf vs anti-graf discussion… vanilla says: “NYC has some of the most amazing graffiti in the world … I would rather see graffiti than live in a police state. aren’t there better things the cops could be cracking down on? …like my neighbors beating the shit out of each other, or the kids selling drugs down the street, guns and other assorted violence?”

Pro and con, and pro and con, and on and on, on the Prospect Heights Message Board

Kimchee, etc. Wonjo Korean BBQ

Originally uploaded by sassylittlepunkin.

Look out, Wonjo… Brooklyn is about to give you a little competition. sje reports on the Prospect Heights Message Board:

“I’ve been told 2-3 weeks till the opening, then we can enjoy Korean homecooking and barbeque without leaving PH.”

“I’m VERY psyched! I love Korean food! It’s in the old Nalani space on the corner (of Vanderbilt Ave. and Pacific Ave.).”

Details and comments on the Prospect Heights Message Board

Check out the latest entries in the Prospect Heights Photo Pool:

According to Bloomberg News, “The plant, dubbed “Baby,'’ has been growing at the Brooklyn garden, across the street from Prospect Park, for 10 years without producing a flower … The realization July 31 that the plant would blossom this year has sent the garden into a frenzy…” At an event this monumental… you know that you-know-who would be showing up:

unknown writes on the Prospect Heights Message Board: “This property has been through the ringer…”

unknown continues to say (NOTE: we don’t have any way to verify this information, so read with a grain of salt):

“The original owner died in 1992, leaving the property to his grandson and his son as the executor. Through unknown reasons, the will was not probated until 2004 by the son and his father. The son sold the property to someone who promised to renovate the building, this person incurred violations from the DOB while cleaning out the building. This person then sold the building in late 2005 early 2006 to someone else.”

“The property is 696 Washington Ave and you can find the new owners name on the property tax website. This property is an eyesore to our community and I would love if someone can do something with it.“

Geido Sushi!

Originally uploaded by Cat Whisperer.

What must-try PH restaurants would you recommend to a Park Sloper? steve asks in the Prospect Heights Message Boards: “I think I’m gonna cross the great divide tonight and head into the heights. Where would you recommend we go to dinner? I would prefer to stay closer to GAP, other than that I’m flexible.”

Here’s the short list so far:
1. Geido (sushi on Flatbush)
2. New Prospect Cafe (good lunch spot)
3. Garden Cafe (”this place definitively has the best food in Prospect Heights,” says Carnivore)
4. Grand Castillo de Jagua (El Carneviento. Need we say more?)
5. Aliseo (cozy but somewhat pricey Italian dinner spot)
6. Amorina (low-key pizza by the owner of Aliseo)
7. Sorrel (worth a try)
8. Beast (try the burger and/or skirt steak)

Where to? Check for updates on the Prospect Heights Message Board

bobobob posted a photo of the scene from my cellphone camera on the Prospect Heights Message Board: According to one of the crew, it was for a Rolling Stone magazine publication, but not necessarily the magazine — it sounded like some sort of calendar. Apparently Cassie, the hip hop singer, was there for part of the shoot at some point.

Flatbush Speaks, Again

Originally uploaded by Dope on the Slope.

Blogger/journalist Paul Berger, who previously wrote about the Flatbush Pavilion anagrams for the New York Times, has another piece in that paper yesterday, this time on the creeping chain store takeover of Flatbush Ave. near Grand Army Plaza.

Brooklyn is one of the few places left in America where “Mom and Pop vs the Big Boys” is still a remarkable story, so go read this article now, which chronicles the Crunch Fitness squeezeout of Christie’s Jamaican Patties, the American Apparel takeover of the old Flatbush Pavilion space (and formerly anagrammed marquee), and… and… well, can’t all good trends be broken down into 3 bullet points?

Perhaps a third example is the Blockbuster across the street, which doesn’t exactly fit Paul’s story, as it’s not a “new” entry among the retail storefronts of Flatbush Ave., but it fits the character of “Future Flatbush” quite well. Blockbuster is certainly the villain in countless vintage “Mom and Pop vs the Big Boys” stories, since that chain wiped out perhaps thousands of independent video stores seemingly overnight (note that the photo accompanying Paul’s article does subtly bring Blockbuster into the story).

Small business owners on Flatbush, beware: the pace of change is likely to grow exponentially in the next few years, especially now that virtually no one outside of Prospect Heights seems to oppose Bruce Ratner’s Atlantic Yards project (at least, that’s the sense you get from reading this editorial from Bruce Ratner’s “partners” at the New York Times).

New (York Times) Discussions on the Prospect Heights Message Boards:

NYT Confirms Support for Atlantic Yards

Christie’s Vs. Crunch

Q-Train Mystery

Originally uploaded by AMRosario.

Thanks, trent, for the update! As noted on Regional Geographic, the Q Train of the Future is upon us: “It was bright and had a red LED on front of it. At first I thought it was a misplaced 6 train, but then it came closer.”

“… I looked inside and things were still shrink-wrapped; there were Print Shop Pro signs that said ‘Test Train - not in service.’ Inside was like you would expect. Not the L style with the barely-informative 3-color LED panels but the normal 4,5,6 kind with the regularly informative one-color strips and lighted maps.”

“There were other fantastic things on the train. The first couple of cars had flatscreen CRTs that had screen savers, scrolling [Windows] 95-style, that said ‘SUPER.’ And boy were they, because they had an octopus worth of cables going in and out of their boxes…”

Read more at Regional Geographic

UPDATE: Comments on the new Q Train on the Prospect Heights Message Board