What’s good enough for professional sports franchises (Citi Field, PETCO Park, U.S. Cellular Field, the ‘Verizon call to the bullpen’), must surely be good enough for one of the most corporately violated sections of the outer boroughs next to West 43rd street, where the run off from the cellphone infused mess that is 86th has spread like MRSA-staph along our rooftops for almost a solid decade.
Two years ago parents of St. Anselm’s Catholic elementary school mobilized in outrage at a proposed cell phone tower to be installed atop an apartment building near the school, resulting in well publicized protests garnering the support of Councilman Gentile, and his then Republican city council electoral rival, Pat Russo.

Capped off by a dramatic march on 86th street’s Sprint/Nextel store – the cell phone giant backed down from their plans to complete the instillation amid the fierce protests and public relations fiasco for the company.

Fast forward a year later -

Imagine the surprise when only a block away from that very same elementary school, residents of 301 81st street watched their block come under siege by 50 ton booms hauling steel up the side of their pre-war building to make way for a fresh crop of cell towers – frighteningly without warning.

This time around however, not one oak tag sign of skull and crossbones was in sight.

Not one fresh faced adolescent grimacing in fear of a cell phone.

Not a single local politician with a bull-horn chanting: ‘hell no nextel must go!‘

Not one piece of theatrics present that accompanied the 2006 push back against the same industry that’s been invited to imposed itself on 81st street.

And despite what parents may have thought they were fighting in 2006, it speaks to the heart of the more urgent and underlying issue with the proliferation of this infrastructure in our community – respect.

Specifically, the respect for a community’s most basic right to have a meaningful consensus on something with implications affecting virtually every neighbor.

The consensus on the science doesn’t have to be unanimous for communities to have a say over something as inherently structural and invasive as the infrastructure being amassed above ones head!

Particularly when done in a dense residential neighborhood, or directly opposite a school.

Which is precisely the uphill battle faced in the newest round of build-up, this time by residents of 8701 Ridge Boulevard as they attempt to confront local politics of perception, change the attitude of a lucrative industry that’s pitted landlord against tenant – and neighbor vs. neighbor.

To have neighbors, parents, owners, renters be something other than an afterthought in a process thus far that has no guidelines, rule or ceiling.

The only relief so far has come from Community Board10, who, one year before the St. Anselm cell tower incident, voted to adopt a resolution halting construction of this equipment near schools.

The Department of Buildings was informed of this decision, but has apparently disregarded it.

Similarly, Senator Golden’s bill to restrict construction of this near schools was not passed in the New York State Senate.

So the only question remaining is when Bay Ridge will go that extra mile and start giving away its birthrite alongside its air rights by renaming some of our quaint pre-war buildings to go along with the massive surge of cellular telecommunication nip-tuck so prevalent over the past few years.

Will buildings such as 301 become, “Verizon Suits?”

8701, the “T-Mobile Towers?”

Will the 86th street BID be brought to you by “Circuit City?”

To hear one local insider tell it: “once they’re up, what else can you do about it.”

Which doesn’t bode well for Bay Ridge.

We hope you like the sound of “Cingular Town”

a blogged week:
Right in Bay Ridge: Platform mishap turns 96th street into Ringling Bros. and ‘building brdgs in Bay Ridge’
Gowanus Lounge: Roebling Oil/Warehouse11 condos, more questions than answers? Bullets Over Prospect Heights
SunsetParkBlog: art deco in Sunset Park
Left in Bay Ridge: the crime stats are out, Park Slope beats Bay Ridge in robberies, but we have it all over them on murder 4:1, Someone in Golden’s office calls Marty an ‘asshole?’
OTBKB: updates the public on rash of muggings, hostage situation on 9th gives BR a run for its money
GothamCityInsider: the 25cent dump comes to Madison Square Park, watch for it. Wipe your feet, One Hanson Place finally ready.

Roughly two years after popular nationwide mommy-to-be retailer ‘Motherhood and Maternity‘ opened their 86th location – corporate has apparently deemed their Bay Ridge store worthy enough of an enthusiastic downgrade to Motherhood and Maternity Outlet.

This comes as ‘business, no matter where you go, has slowed down’ – according to 5th avenue BID pres Basil Capetanakis in this week’s Yellow Hooker, which asks: ‘Is Bay Ridge Out of Business?

“Bay Ridge is ahead of the game compared to years ago when there were 30 empty storefronts on Fifth Avenue alone,” according to Capetanakis.

Which doesn’t go very far to explain why one of the country’s largest retailers of maternity clothes needs to retool as an outlet, while 3rd avenue is locked in the grips of a baby boom with stores like Ola Baby, Hip Squeak – and a new toddle shoe store on the horizon.

Meanwhile 86th and 5th continues to corner the market on any and all retail with .99, discount, and outlet worthy.

So Moms-to-be out there, here’s your opportunity to stock up on all those great maternity ‘values’ expecting mothers didn’t pull the trigger on after getting marked down 75% the first go around.

Score another victory for Bay Ridge shoppers, getting their veritable pick of the run of the litter.

One of the most watched developments in Bay Ridge since a parking ticket revealed the true name of Son of Sam, Basile’s 10002 4th avenue now has a name too – ‘Cento, 100.’

Cento is ‘18 luxury residences,’ where for a mere 940,000.00 you can buy 1300 square feet of prime penthouse space, according to the New York Times Real Estate, and Cento’s exclusive broker NYRealEstateToday, which appears to be Basile’s in-house MLS outfit.

Advertised with all the idiomatic flare of an infomercial, Cento is ‘the modern life!‘

“Your City, Your View, Your Opportunity To Own a Piece of Bay Ridge…”

… by destroying a small part of it!

For the second time in only six months, residents are once again gearing up to do battle with local building owners and their telecommunication tenants over the placement of potentially harmful antennas and signal equipment atop a residential apartment building, this time at 8701 Ridge Boulevard – only a few feet away from Bay Ridge’s P.S. 185.

Fresh concern over what neighbors are calling ‘additional/new equipment’ was recently sparked when they spied a new brick camouflage shed being constructed (seen below), and fresh mounting brackets (pictured right) anchored above the extremely busy 85th street and Ridge crosswalk – which point directly into the classrooms of neighboring P.S. 185.

Residents of 8701 Ridge now find themselves in exactly the same boat as their 81st street neighbors who only last August found their entire block at the mercy of cell tower sub-contractors installing similar infrastructure atop 301 3rd avenue.

For residents, furor over the proliferation of these cell phone towers has become a question of proximity, restraint and notice.

The proximity – too close.

The restraint with which these can be amassed – seemingly none.

And the prior-notice to surrounding residents – non-existent.

All of which are souring landlord tenant relations in Bay Ridge, casting building owners as greedy – if not outright ‘sneaky and underhanded.’

The only successful bid to date against the cellular carriers came in 2006 when parents and local politicians launched a negative media campaign that ultimately caused Sprint/Nextel to abort plans for cell towers near St. Anselm’s School on 83rd street and 4th avenue.

So far, pleas of 8701 residents, parents of p.s. 185 (just as those of 301 81st street) wait on local officials.

Police have finally released security footage of the person believed to be responsible for last month’s Commerce Bank heist on 5th avenue, first broke by Right in Bay Ridge.

Described as a white man, medium build, with a goatee and in his mid- to late 40s…

According to police, the man walked into the branch at 8206 Fifth Ave. around 2:45 p.m. and passed one of the tellers a note demanding money, saying he had a bomb. He then showed the teller a small, circular object with a blinking blue light and a button tied around his neck. He told the teller that the device was a remote detonator – reports the Brooklyn Eagle.

Anyone with any information is encouraged to call crime-stoppers, or the William Morris Agency.

Less than 72 hours after Henry Grattan’s served their last draft, the building’s new owners wasted no time commencing their gut job.

Turning a days work, into a family affair.

Well-wishers turned out in droves Wednesday evening to pay respects to Bay Ridge’s Henry Grattans, and the affable Barry O’Donovan – whom many consider to be among Bay Ridge’s best community-centric entrepreneurs, and last true civic activist.

Those who know him best say that ‘he was’ Henry Grattans – maintaining that more than money, Barry bet his reputation on every business he developed.

“They don’t make ‘em like Barry anymore… the guy plays it straight.’

While Grattans’ closing lacked the hysterical petition driven remonstrations of another 3^rd avenue favorite, Griswolds.

Some of last evening’s patrons, decidedly somber amid the revelry, did as so many are inclined to do – quietly ruminate over the future of their Bay Ridge.

“People like Barry, for one reason or another, are making a decision to go and make money elsewhere. That’s bad, regardless of what the new owners will do here. When people like him tell you the neighborhood’s changing, foot traffic is down – Bay Ridge needs to start listening.”

On the other hand, those with their ears planted firmly to the ground see Grattans’ demise as something more than the result of shifting demographics. Others familiar with Barry’s longtime contribution to Bay Ridge civic-affairs say that O’Donovan’s exit and Grattans demise after just 5 short years is a symptom of Bay Ridge’s oppressive ‘government by friends’ attitude slowly killing its civic, and commercial landscape.

Those familiar with the 68^th Precinct Community Council circa ‘05 – ‘o6 describe a council that best showed their appreciation for Barry’s years of council work and civic participation by ‘showing him the door.’

Most of whom till this day remain cynical in their assessment of the cumulative effect Bay Ridge’s ‘boys-club’ will have on the future of the community.

As one Grattans well-wisher put it last night: ‘the shit rolls down…’

‘You could pretty much say we get the neighborhood we deserve. No more, no less. We walk around totally unaware of how things work, cry in our soup when we see graffiti, fights and all this other shit we love to complain about… so when good men, like Barry, go in there to try and turn things around, where are we to support him? Asleep. These people will throw everything good under the bus if it means protecting their interests and careers. That’s how things are until people start getting involved in Bay Ridge. Until then we’ll continue to treat good people like children, drive away talented people, and run what’s left of this community into the ground. All so guys like Bob Copano can stack the deck with every crony from John Imbriali to Pat Russo, to round out the dog and pony show by making it a permanent part of the Bay Ridge political machine.’

a blogged week:

Right in Bay Ridge:Bids Farewell to Henry Grattans, Bay Ridge’s British invasion, checking in with, Bay Ridge… Maryland that is.
GowanusLounge: the other Amityville Horror, Nightmare on Pacific Street
SunsetParkBlog: String of Pedestrians killed in Sunset Park
LeftinBayRidge: digs local historian’s new book
GothamCityInsider: the lowdown on Henry Grattan, blogging from the grave, eminent domain puts Nets on pace for 2010

2007 marked the end of another prototypical Brooklyn, if not wholly New York institution – the dirty water hot dog.

Those spicy Sabbret casings which, much like a fine wine, ferment in its own natural stock consisting of a succulent broth of natural oils and bacteria. And, as so many other things in Bay Ridge, have also felt the effects of a changing terroir.

Seen here in front of 5th avenue’s Commerce Bank, the dirty water hot dog now replaced by a more suitable street side cuisine more in line with 5th avenue’s middle eastern neighbors.

This Bay Ridge Avenue development which opened a little over 5 years ago to lackluster sales, and not much better rental occupancy, has recently undergone something of a summer makeover in an effort to reintroduce itself to the Bay Ridge ‘luxury condo’ market as ‘Pier Pointe’ – suitably named for its northeast corner locale adjacent to Shore Rd’s 69th street Veteran’s Memorial Pier.

The Bay Ridge Rover wishes our fellow bloggers, readers, and Bay Ridgites a very happy and healthy New Year.

Our special thanks go out to such online publications as Right in Bay Ridge, Mark Brown (Lefty), The Phantom at BRB, John Malloy of local message board BayRidgeTalk, Rob Guskind’s Gowanus Lounge, the editors of Curbed, NY Magazine’s Daily Intelligencer, and our friends at the Brooklyn Paper for making us a part of this powerful network of journalistic synergy.

It’s the goal of The Bay Ridge Rover in ‘08 to continue to expand as a resource for the community – particularly for local events and live entertainment.

We invite all members of Bay Ridge’s small business, civic community and local entertainers to alert us via email with their event calendars, press releases, etc… to be posted in a weekly roundup of Bay Ridge events and happenings.

Thanks for making 2007 a great year for the Rover.