sustainableflatbush.org

Please come join us at the Sustainable Flatbush Monthly Meeting, this coming Monday. We will be continuing plans for our Arbor Day Street Trees Walking Tour and Newkirk Avenue Block Party, and discussing future projects.

WHAT: Sustainable Flatbush Monthly Meeting
WHEN: Monday April 14th at 7pm
WHERE: 462 Marlborough Road (between Ditmas and Dorchester)

Hope to see you there!

Congestion Pricing Ad, originally uploaded by wka.

As a supporter of Congestion Pricing, I felt that this week was the time to do whatever I can to help get this legislation passed. So last Saturday I spent some time in Crown Heights (Brooklyn) asking people to take the time to compose a personal letter in their own handwriting to their local representatives (in that case State Assemblyman Hakeem Jeffries and State Senator Eric Adams). I was quite amazed at how many people were willing to do this (it’s not an easy thing to ask for!). On Monday morning I went to City Hall for the Council hearings (wearing the green t-shirt pictured below) and heard testimonies from Speaker Quinn and DOT Commissioner Sadik Khan. Yesterday morning I was part of a small group that met with an aide to City Council member Kendall Stewart, who represents the 45th District (Flatbush, East Flatbush, Flatlands), and I also spoke briefly with Stewart himself afterwards.

What I can attest to from talking to ordinary citizens (meaning, NOT politicians) is that even those who weren’t sure where they stood on Congestion Pricing (or knew nothing at all about it) were in favor when told that the revenue would be dedicated to improving subway and bus service. A few expressed understandable skepticism that the money would actually be used for transit improvements, but were somewhat reassured when told that it would go to a dedicated lockbox.

As for our elected officials, many of them seem to be earnestly asking for the data and information that will enable them to answer their constituents’ doubts. Questions about neighborhood parking permits and whether New Jersey and Long Island commuters should pay more than those from the five boroughs seem to be sticking points for some people. But for those of us who don’t drive – a solid majority in all five boroughs – the need for better bus and subway service is not in question.

More posts on Congestion Pricing and Transit Equity in New York City:

• Obama Supports Congestion Pricing!
• Enrique Peñalosa on Transit Equity for NYC
• A Brooklyn Youth’s View on Congestion Pricing
• More Supporters for Congestion Pricing
• Brooklyn and Congestion Pricing: The Numbers

Several weeks ago I was filmed for an episode of A Walk Around the Blog, a series that profiles Brooklyn bloggers as part of the news magazine program Brooklyn Review that airs on Brooklyn Independent Television. We checked out the neighborhood (by bike, of course!), spoke about some of Sustainable Flatbush’s past, present and future exploits on Cortelyou Road, and visited the Gardening Committee’s planning meeting.

At last week’s Sustainable Flatbush Monthly Meeting, some collective decisions were made to change our organizational structure. Here’s how the change was described to everyone who has signed up for our committees’ listserv groups:

Based on discussion at Monday’s general meeting, we’re going to pilot using a single, unified group to coordinate planning for all Sustainable Flatbush events. The goal is to provide more support for each event across the Sustainable Flatbush membership, and to provide greatest awareness and involvement of all the events being planned. I believe this approach is also more reflective of the synergistic nature of sustainability itself, where one objective supports and enhances another. What I’m saying is, It’s All Good!

For example, the Gardening Committee has already begun planning for a whole weekend of activities on Arbor Day Weekend (April 25-27); yes, it’s about trees, but trees and neighborhood “greening” are also Livable Streets issues, they affect energy use, are proven to be good for business, and are healthy for children and other living things. As well, on behalf of the Livable Streets committee, Stacy has applied (and been approved!) for a Block Party grant (event date TBA), which is a great project that everyone can get involved with. In addition to the traffic-calming and community building aspects of closing the street for a party (complete with NYC street games!), we can also have information tables with literature on Recycling and Composting, we can have CFL bulbs available for sale, local businesses can get involved…. many many possibilities.

If YOU would like to get involved with Sustainable Flatbush events and projects, sign up for the Planning Group HERE.

Do you live in Flatbush or Midwood? Let your voice be heard on global warming!

CUNY Graduate School of Journalism’s New York City News Service has asked us to find out how you feel about global warming.

In addition to being posted on their web-based wire service, survey results may be picked up by local print-based publications. Please respond in the comments, with whatever degree of anonymity you prefer; all replies will be forwarded.

… and just had to share:

Flatbush Gardener has a piece on Making Brooklyn Bloom, this Saturday at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden…

Streetsblog, Brooklyn Junction and Brooklyn Streets, Carroll Gardens on transit upgrades proposed in the recent State of the MTA address. Of particular interest is the idea of converting a “lightly used Bay Ridge freight line into a subway service that would run in an arc from southern Brooklyn to Queens to the Bronx”… yes locals, those are the tracks down by Avenue H…

This video illustrates why so few plastic beverage bottles get recycled in New York State, and why we need to update the Bottle Bill to change it…

Copenhagen Cycle Chic gives us the lowdown on Everyday Bike Culture…

Reclaimed Home on being Cheap and Green or, How I Learned to Get Past the Green Hype and Love Craigslist…

Streetfilms brings us more Livable Streets lessons from Bogota, Colombia: pedestrian-friendly streets, miles of bicycle paths, and free outdoor recreation for all…

A slice (and a sketch) of NYC subway life from Ami Underground…

Tonight is the final workshop meeting of Imagine Flatbush 2030, the community visioning project created by Municipal Arts Society and Flatbush Development Corporation to “assist in creating neighborhood sustainability goals and tools to measure progress toward consensus-based goals”. As this stage of the project comes to a close (along with, presumably, Municipal Arts Society’s direct involvement), many neighborhood stakeholders (including Sustainable Flatbush) are eager to know how we can participate in working toward the goals that have been discussed in the workshops: preserving and expanding affordable housing, making streets more pedestrian-friendly (especially for children, seniors, and the disabled), establishing indoor and outdoor spaces for community gatherings, supporting locally-owned businesses, promoting a neighborhood arts scene, and more. For those of us who live, work, and study here in Flatbush and have a vested interest in its future, tonight will be our opportunity to establish how we will move forward with this collective vision of neighborhood sustainability.

Imagine Flatbush 2030 from MAS on Vimeo.

Tonight’s meeting is at 6pm in the Brooklyn College Student Center, 6th floor, East 27th Street and Campus Road. Childcare is available and refreshments will be served.

Rebecca’s container gardening demonstration

Last Sunday’s event, “Greening Flatbush: Garden Where You Are” was a huge success! The Sustainable Flatbush Gardening Committee assembled a stellar program of speakers and demonstrations on topics including Container Gardening, Urban Composting, Street Trees, Permaculture and more.

Mela and Sandra talk trees

Karla advocates for worm composting

We can’t wait for spring to get our hands dirty and start planting up the neighborhood!

Here’s some great news for fans of Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) and fresh locally produced food in general:

Amantai Farm CSA is coming to Flatbush!

Shayna Lewis, last year’s market manager at the Cortelyou Rd. farmers’ market, is working with one of the farmers from that market, Jorge Carmona from Amantai Farm, to start a CSA in the neighborhood. They’ve already got 20 members signed up and their goal is 40. Here are some of the details from Shayna:

The share includes enough vegetables for a family of 4 for the week. Amantai Farm is not certified organic, but does not spray anything on their vegetables, which in my opinion makes them better than the certified organic farms who spray organic pesticides and fertilizers. It’s definitely a good deal for anyone interested in local and organic. Jorge will be doing just vegetables (and melons). In the spring he’ll have salad greens, spinach, peas, herbs, etc. moving into summer squash, cucumbers, a wide variety of heirloom tomatoes, eggplant, cilantro, sweet and hot peppers, summer greens, onions, potatoes etc into winter squashes, broccoli, cauliflower, kale, etc. He does produce honey and will provide it for CSA members at a discount.

DROP-OFFS: Saturdays will not work as a drop-off day, so we are going to pick either a Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday afternoon/evening to deliver the shares to your house, or to have you pick them up at a to-be-determined location if you live too far away or you’d rather pick up. If anyone has a preference for or against any one of these days, let me know and I’ll try to make it work for everyone the best way we can. Get back to me as soon as possible.

CHECKS: Please mail your checks/money orders made out to Jorge Carmona to:
Jorge Carmona
10039 Ziegels Church Rd.
Breinigsville, PA 18031
All checks should have arrived by mid-April, so you have some time, just don’t forget :). The cost is $400 for basic participation, add $60 to include a dozen eggs weekly, $30 for a half dozen. Eggs can also be ordered weekly. For a half-share, cost is $200.

SPREAD THE WORD: We now have about 20 members, but are going for 40. Please, tell any one you think might be interested. Feel free to give them my email address.

REQUEST VEGETABLES: Now is the time to request anything that Jorge is not already planning on planting. Most seed orders have to be in in the next three weeks, so speak now or forever hold your peas (sorry for the bad pun).

For further info, contact Shayna at shayna.lewis [at] gmail.com.

Shayna will also be speaking about Amantai Farm CSA and Community Supported Agriculture at this weekend’s Greening Flatbush event.