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The latest from the National Weather Service predicts Brooklyn could get hammered with up to three feet of snow thanks to the nor’easter rolling through tonight and tomorrow, and the city will effectively shut down tonight. Cuomo declared a state of emergency around 1 p.m. today for New York City, along with Rockland, Ulster, Suffolk and Westchester counties. Subway trains will run on local tracks only after 8 p.m., as the MTA will use the underground express tracks to store trains.

City public schools will be closed tomorrow, and all non-emergency vehicles are banned from the roads starting at 11 p.m tonight. Parks will close at 6 p.m., and public libraries will shut at 5 p.m. Alternate side parking rules are also suspended today and tomorrow while plows clear the streets. And for those of you in Prospect Lefferts Gardens and southern Crown Heights, the CB 9 ULURP meeting is cancelled! For current updates, follow the Times’ live blog and WNYC’s Transit Tracker. And of course, steer clear of the long line just to get into the Court Street Trader Joe’s.

Update: All MTA service, including subways, will shut down at 11 p.m. tonight. From the MTA’s website: “The MTA is committed to the safety of its customers and its employees, and due to the forecast, will be suspending service on all bus, commuter rail and subway service at 11:00 p.m. this evening.”

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East River Ferry service to and from Greenpoint’s India Street pier has been shut down after the ramp to the ferry collapsed suddenly into the water during this morning’s commute, The Daily News reported. Less than a minute after 10 people had crossed the ramp onto the ferry, it collapsed into the freezing East River. Shortly afterward, New York Waterways, the ferry operator, issued an alert letting customers know service to and from Greenpoint had been suspended.

“East River Ferry service to and from the Greenpoint Pier is suspended until further notice as we continue to assess the cause of a gangway that detached this morning,” the company wrote in a statement to the newspaper. “A team of engineers will be sent to investigate the cause and repairs will be made as soon as possible.”

Photo by Alan Tansey

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The Downtown Brooklyn Partnership announced today that Forest City Ratner President and CEO MaryAnne Gilmartin and Makerbot CEO Bre Prettis had been named co-chairs of the organization’s board.

“MaryAnne and Bre embody a new generation of Brooklyn entrepreneurs, and I am delighted that we’ll be able to tap into their experience and wisdom,” Downtown Brooklyn Partnership President Tucker Reed said in a press release. “Nothing reflects innovation more than Bre’s ingenious MakerBot 3D Printing Ecosystem and there’s no better example of a prominent CEO and company dedicated to innovation and to the continued success of the Downtown Brooklyn area than MaryAnne and Forest City Ratner Companies.”

DBP is a nonprofit local development corporation that manages three business improvement districts: the MetroTech BID, Court-Livingston-Schermerhorn BID and Fulton Mall Improvement Association.

Photo by snackaroo

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A larger than anticipated crowd of over 200 people showed up to discuss their concerns and wishes and help plan the future of Gowanus development Monday night at The Children’s School on Carroll Street. The meeting was the first of a series of public planning forums called Bridging Gowanus convened by local politicians about the ongoing development of and cleanup plan for Gowanus. The Pratt Center for Community Development moderated and presented findings from previous invitation-only meetings held over the summer.

City Council Member Brad Lander remarked that with the EPA’s Record of Decision for the Gowanus Canal Superfund Site and the impending transition at City Hall, it’s an important moment for the community to come together and establish a shared vision for the infrastructure of the low-lying and industrially polluted Gowanus area before planning begins. The consensus of the crowd was that every effort should be made to preserve the area’s socioeconomic diversity and keep it affordable for the mixed uses (manufacturing, residential, commercial, artistic) that currently exist. A number of local artists in attendance expressed fears of gentrification and said they felt threatened by the diminishing affordability of studio space. In brief, locals called for a rezoning to preserve affordability and Gowanus’ eclectic identity as a community with vibrant street life and activity.

Other issues raised included the need for a permanent protection plan against coastal disasters; it was noted that the current recovery infrastructure is insufficient to handle even regular rain. The group also said another priority is more schools and suitable health care facilities to accommodate the area’s growing residential population. They would also like the canal to be opened up as a recreational public waterway.

A series of followup meetings will be held early in 2014. In the meantime, anyone interested in joining a working group can contact info@BridgingGowanus.org.

Gowanus Residents Meeting to Create Development Plan [Brownstoner]

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After a peaceful vigil Tuesday, police and protesters clashed Wednesday in East Flatbush over the killing Saturday of 16-year-old Kimani Gray by police. Reportedly an officer was hit in the head with a brick, a police car windshield was smashed, and dozens of protesters were arrested. Unconfirmed reports online said NYPD had declared the area a “frozen zone,” meaning transit was shut down and no one was allowed in. The autopsy results also came through Wednesday, revealing Gray was shot seven times. Police said Gray aimed a pistol at them Saturday before they shot him; witnesses said he was fiddling with his waistband but did not see a gun; the boy’s family said he did not have a gun. Gray had an arrest record, but reports he was a member of a gang were not confirmed.
Anger in East Flatbush Persists Over Teenager’s Killing by the Police [NY Times]
Officer Smashed in Face With Brick, 50 Arrested in Brooklyn Protest [NY Post]
Flatbush Teen Kimani Gray Died From Gunshot Wounds [NY Post]
Dozens Arrested as Protesters Clash With Police at Rally for Shot Teen [DNAinfo]
Photo by DNAinfo

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Is Soho House opening in Brooklyn? That’s the claim of an item in Out magazine, whose author says he heard it from someone who works at Soho House, the club “known for its raucous rooftop pool parties, swanky book, movie, and fashion events, and plenty of credible celebrity sightings,” as he put it. There’s no word about when or where exactly, although we’d bet Williamsburg, where new clubs are sprouting up around the Wythe Hotel. It would be interesting, though, if it located in Downtown near Barclays Center. There’s an older, more monied crowd there, but what are the chances they’ll make it back out the door once they go home after work to change? (At least we probably wouldn’t.) “Is this a good thing or bad?” the story continues. “Well, I live in Manhattan, so I don’t understand all the fuss. If you can have a backyard, a great farmers’ market, and a chic club, I say go for it. But people never like change. The reality is that Brooklyn, the commodity, has already been bought — and sold. So you better get your piece as fast as you can.”
Is Soho House Opening in Brooklyn? [Out]
Photo by Soho House

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We are receiving reports that stations in Brooklyn are out of gas. “We drove from Park Slope to Coney Island last night and passed 20 stations that were all out of gas. My colleague said she drove Pro Heights to Greenpoint in the middle of the night and could not get any then either,” emailed a reader. Gas stations throughout Crown Heights and along Bushwick Avenue near the Jackie Robinson are out. People with generators and cars have drained them, and apparently they have not received new deliveries, although roads into Brooklyn are open. Has anyone found a gas station open in Brooklyn with gas? Update: A reader found a station on Coney Island that still has some gas, above. It’s hard to tell, but the cars in the right-hand lane and past the station, beyond, are waiting in line for gas.