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June 8, 2007

Weekend Events

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Crown Heights North: Walking Tour
In celebration of becoming the 79th historic district in the city, the Crown Heights North Association holds its first annual Crown Heights North Walking Tour this Sunday, June 10. Starting point is in front of St. Gregory's R.C. Church, corner of Brooklyn Avenue and St. John's Place, at 12:45. The tour will leave promptly at 1 p.m. Admission is $20, which includes the tour, as well as a Garden Tea at the Community Garden (Bergen and Nostrand Avenues), featuring light fare, international iced teas, and other beverages. Advance sale tickets are available at the CHNA website (www.crownheightsnorth.org). Tickets are also available from local vendors (check website for the list). Sunday, June 10, 1 p.m. at St. Gregory’s Church, 991 St. Johns Pl., near Brooklyn Avenue. (718) 756-1920.

Victorian Flatbush: 2007 Annual House Tour
Sunday, June 10, is the annual self-guided tour of Victorian Flatbush. This year there will be 13 houses on the tour and almost as many gardens. Advance tickets $15, available online at the link above. Tickets on the day of the tour are $20 and are available at the start of the tour at Temple Beth Emeth, 83 Marlborough Road at Church Avenue. It lasts from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. Call (718) 859-3800 for more info.

Brooklyn Matters Screening
For June and July, the documentary Brooklyn Matters will be screened each Friday evening at 7 p.m. at the Spoke the Hub Re:Creation Center, 748 Union Street, between 5th & 6th Avenue in Park Slope. The screenings are free, but donations to Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn are welcome at the door. Seating is limited, so reservations are suggested (call 718-408-3234).

Atlantic Avenue Art Walk
This Saturday and Sunday (1 p.m.-6 p.m.), Atlantic Avenue hosts its annual event featuring local artists. The self-guided tour consists of open artist studios and area exhibitions, as well as special events and local merchant participation. The event is free and open to the public.

Pedestrian Safety Forum
This Saturday, the District 15 Community Education Council and Community Board 7 sponsor a Pedestrian Safety Forum for the 3rd and 4th Avenue Corridor, focusing on local traffic problems and their effects on the quality of life in the area. The forum will feature transportation experts speaking on accident trends, pilot projects, and the best ways to prevent crashes. A light breakfast will be served. To RSVP or for more information, please call the CEC office at 718-935-4267, or send an email to cec15@schools.nyc.gov. Saturday, June 9, 9:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m., P.S. 24, 427 38th Street, at 4th Avenue.

Have an event you think we should list? Send it along to events@brownstoner.com.




Posted by cwodicka at 8:29 AM | Comments (33)
Categories: Events

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Comments

Isn't the victorian flatbush tour on this weekend as well?

Posted by: Anonymous at June 8, 2007 8:37 AM

That's it? That's all the announcement you're offering of the Victorian Flatbush House Tour?

Wow....

Posted by: Anonymous at June 8, 2007 8:39 AM

How much more of an announcement is Victorian Flatbush supposed to get?

I'm confused.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 8, 2007 8:50 AM

Question: Are the Crown Heights and Victorian Flatbush tours just walking tours through the neighborhoods, or do you get to go INSIDE some houses?

Posted by: bob999 at June 8, 2007 11:40 AM

Answer, partial: A quick click-through revealed that Flatbush features 12 houses, inside and out. But Crown Heights North's website doesn't indicate whether any interiors are part of the tour.

Posted by: bob999 at June 8, 2007 11:42 AM

Crown Heights Walking tour is only the streetscape. It is a teaser for our first (inside the houses) House Tour, which will be on Oct. 6th.

Many people are not familiar w/ CH, and have only heard about the negative things. This is an opportunity for people to walk around with our tour guides, and see parts of what the Landmarks Preservation Commission called one of the most beautiful and architecturally significant neighborhoods in New York City.

I would love to go to the Flatbush tour myself, so it's a choice, but hope to see some Brownstoner readers in Crown Heights. The tour is about an hour and a half, and price includes refreshments at the end.

Posted by: Brower Park at June 8, 2007 11:55 AM

Crown Heights North's actual house tour takes place later in the year. The walking tour is not the house tour.

However, the Vic. Flatbush House Tour is most definitely inside and out, and it's kind of a big deal for people who're into house tours. I'm also a little surprised that Mr. B gives it short shrift here.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 8, 2007 11:57 AM

Forgot to mention, closest train is the 3 to Nostrand Ave. Walk down Eastern Parkway 2 blocks to Brooklyn Ave, turn left and walk down 2 more blocks toward the campanile bell tower of St. Gregory's Church.

Posted by: Brower Park at June 8, 2007 11:59 AM

Maybe no one from their organization sent along more info, or pictures, who knows? Mr. B. is doing all of these organizations a favor by providing a forum for free publicity. The Flatbush website is very expansive and has plenty of pix and information. I'm sure they are grateful for the listing and the link.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 8, 2007 12:05 PM

11:26, you get on with your bad self! That's tellin' 'em what for...uh huh. Beautiful, baby....

Posted by: Anonymous at June 8, 2007 12:06 PM

There's always someone on this blog with a beef against Flatbush. I don't get it.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 8, 2007 12:12 PM

Well, the VF House Tour certainly isn't getting the lavish christening that some of the others receive. That is interesting. I mean, this site is about real estate, so it's perfectly in keeping with the overall aims of the site. But interesting is just that...interesting, and I don't think anyone needs to feel ticked off or offended when for all we know there could be extenuating circumstances of some kind. So chill out folks.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 8, 2007 3:52 PM

Hey Brownstoner, nice job on this feature, along with the invitation to share events. Excellent. Thanks.

Posted by: donatella at June 8, 2007 4:48 PM

The 4:48 post is brilliant. Either it is biting sarcasm directed at Mr. B or it is a curt "in your face" directed at the Flatbush crew. Either way...OUCH!

donatella, you go girl!!!

Posted by: Anonymous at June 8, 2007 6:00 PM

Why would I pay $20 to walk through Crown Heights? I'd rather wait for the house tour and since it is not an actual house tour, why would they have it on the same day as the more popular Victorian Flatbush tour. They are usually planned so that they do not conflict. Not very neighborly of the Crown Heights planners, since they plan on having a house tour at a later date. I try to make all of the house tours, so I'll go to the Victorian Flatbush tour on Sunday and wait until Crown Heights has their actual house tour.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 9, 2007 12:19 AM

I will also go on the Victorian Flatbush tour. If you're gonna be outside walking around on a summer day, there's no better place than Victorian Flatbush with all the trees, flowers, etc. And I love the old homes. Victorian Flatbush also strikes me as one of the friendlier, more 'open' nabes.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 9, 2007 7:50 AM

I agree with you about the Victorian Flatbush tour being one of the friendlier, more open nabes. That's what sold me on the nabe. I think it has a lot to do with the way the nabe was planned. Having a big front porch leads you to more outdoor activity in the front of your home facing the street as opposed to having only a backyard deck which gears your activity to the back of your house. Being on the front porch naturally allows you to interact more with your neighbors and passers by. This doesn't mean that I don't enjoy my back yard and garden as well though.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 9, 2007 8:59 AM

12:19, we were not aware of the date of the Flatbush tour when we planned our walking tour, and by the time we knew about it, it was too late to change the date. We certainly are not trying to compete with Flatbush. All historic neighborhoods are our allies in our battles to preserve magnificent architecture and viable communities. We looked at a lot of dates for our walking tour, and every late spring weekend had a conflict of some sort, with something somewhere. If our turnout is adversely affected by the Flatbush tour, then we've learned something, and we'll be better next time.

We hope to see many people at our first house tour, if not tomorrow. Good luck to Flatbush, I'm sure it will be great.

Posted by: Brower Park at June 9, 2007 9:58 AM

Anon 12:19 here. I know that you didn't have to but thanks for explaining the reason for the walking tour date Brower Park. I agree that all of the neighborhoods regularly referred to on this blog should be supportive of each other in preserving and promoting the distinct character of each community.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 9, 2007 9:39 PM

House and neighborhood tours are all great! Those who have spoken previously about the challenges of scheduling are right: there are only so many weekends available. Once you work around Mother's Day, Easter, Memorial Day, Father's Day... and then when it gets too hot... it's a challenge to find a good day. Conflicts with other tours and events are inevitable. The Victorian Flatbush House tour (details at fdconline.org), for those who don't already know, includes the interiors of 12 wonderful homes... and many of their back yard gardens. Brownstoner regulars have said how great the tour is in Victorian Flatbush, and they will be right again this year. That said... we can't imagine a more exciting house tour in all of New York than the house tour this fall in Crown Heights North. The work they have done to get landmarked... and the excitment that comes with this being their first ever house tour... is certain to make their tour in the fall an overwhelming success. What ever you choose to do on Sunday, June 10, 2007... enjoy yourself.

Posted by: Phillip for Victorian Flatbush at June 9, 2007 10:32 PM

Hmmm. I guess I'll pass on the Victorian Flatbush tour, then. Thanks.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 10, 2007 12:11 AM

Phillip signs off as "Phillip for Victorian Flatbush", but it's pretty clear from his post where he lives and it is not Flatbush.

It amazes me how the people on this blog treat Brooklyn neighborhoods like athletic teams. It is not enough to root for your own team to succeed. You also have to root for the other teams to lose. So silly.

I AM going to the Victorian Flatbush tour later today. And while I am there I will not be thinking about this blog. Instead I will enjoy the comeraderie and friendship of my neighbors in Flatbush, who are not out to do anything other than enjoy themselves and make their neighborhood a better place. I am sorry this is so upsetting to some of you.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 10, 2007 8:31 AM

I too will attend the tour today. While I am not from the immediate area, I was walking around prospect lefferts gardens yesterday near prospect park and really like it, so I'm curious about the flatbush area.

Walked around the historical section, and like the area, but i'm not sure about crime. looks good though since it's near the park.

Posted by: anonymous at June 10, 2007 9:47 AM

Well, Victorian Flatbush is a large area. Some parts of it are near the park and some aren't.

All parts of it are wonderful, especially on a summer afternoon.

There is of course crime in Victorian Flatbush, though for an urban environment it is pretty minimal.

In my opinion you're looking in some excellent places. PLG and Victorian Flatbush are really, at least in my view, choice locations right now. Try them both on and see which one looks best on you, given your needs and preferences. I think that's ultimately what it comes down to in this case. Both nabes are lovely and have a lot of spirit.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 10, 2007 10:09 AM

There seem to be a lot of stray cats in Victorian Flatbush:

(http://victorianflatbushlife.blogspot.com/2007/06/stray-cat-problem.html)

Is this true in pretty much all the neighborhoods in Brooklyn? I've seen a lot of them myself in the Bay Ridge area.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 10, 2007 10:52 AM

Yes, stray cats all over the place. City does not have a "cat catcher" like suburban towns have dog catchers.

I see home in victorian flatbush for just under 1 million and they look nice, but PLG has two families in the $600-700 ranges which looks more attractive due to the lower cost and rental income. Plus PLG is right near the park, and the stores and shops seem nice to me. Yes, not Park Slope type stores but good enough for now.

I'm concern about the crime and gunshots though that some on this blog have mentioned, and gang activity.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 10, 2007 12:00 PM

Location wise, both nabes have their pluses and minuses. If proximity to the park is a significant factor, then it's a no brainer. Crime is not a big problem in either nabe, though you should bear in mind that the park you crave is itself an epicenter for certain types of criminal activity. That's always the case with parks in urban settings, and you see it even on the PS side of the park.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 10, 2007 12:45 PM

Yes, it crossed my mind about crime and the park, but being that close to the park seems like a big plus, and if you say crime isn't that bad than it might be worth the risk. As long as the crime isn't as bad as in areas such as bushwick and bedsty, where there are a lot less amenities. The park, BBG, and being so close to park slope seems like big pluses to me.

Looking online the rentals don't go for very much in PLG - wonder why. Homes in PLG seem to go for the same price as Bushwick and Bedsty - 600s so why hasn't PLG gentrified way ahead of the talk of these other two nabes - since the park is big draw.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 10, 2007 1:27 PM

The park is a big draw, but a nabe can have many selling points and proximity to a park is only one of them. Both Bushwick and BedStuy have some awfully nice housing stock, especially in some areas. Having spend a fair amount of time in BedStuy and at least a little time in Bushwick, I have no trouble understanding the attraction of either neighborhood.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 10, 2007 1:42 PM

I went on the Victorian House Tour as well. I know that the various house tours are not competetions but this was by far the best of the house tours that I've been on - all of them CH/FG, PLG, etc. Victorian Flatbush is a big area and the housing stock reflected this, varying from mansions in Prospect Park South built for the early 20th century wealthy, to some of the more modest homes built for the middle class in Beverley Square East. Well organized and volunteers were great. Good Job!

Posted by: Anonymous at June 10, 2007 7:59 PM

I took a walk around PLG today,which by the way is considered part of flatbush where the house tour was today.

i took the S shuttle train from the C train and got off at prospect park stop, and BBG was right there! I walk down flatbush avenue, and it's your average commercial strip. lots of stores nothing gentrified, but a lot more than broadway has running through bushwick, and bedsty.

walk around the historial district, around midwood, and maple streets, nice homes well maintained, and quiet.

i did like the area, but still amazed this area is not more popular given it's location.

according to the city's demographics it's largely caribbean people, and that's who I was in the nice homes in the historical district.

Odd there is more talk/buzz about this area.

Posted by: anonymous at June 10, 2007 9:44 PM

I second what the others say about the Victorian Flatbush house tour. Great Scot, the organizers and participating home owners really outdid themselves this time. Everyone was so gracious and there was a very good 'vibe' come the end of the day.

A very happy time. Good job, everyone.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 10, 2007 11:56 PM

Anon at 1:27,

You don't see as much gentrification because the homes in PLG proper all contain a covenant that they cannot be subdivided into multi-family dwellings. Therefore people who are buying do not have the ability to get rental income off of their properties. The apartments you see listed in the nabe are from large apartment buildings, and homes outside the limstone blocks that do not have such restrictions.

BTW, I took part in the CH walking tour and it was fantastic. The folks from CHNA threw a great event and I am looking forward to their house tour in the fall.

Posted by: Oh Lord! at June 11, 2007 10:03 AM

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