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Brooklyn Today April 13: Luxury Buildings Prepare for Possible Doorman Strike

April 13, 2018 Brooklyn Daily Eagle
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THE LEDE: Happy Friday, Brooklyn! A German billionaire goes missing in the Swiss Alps, rents drop in Brooklyn, and the borough’s doormen may go on strike. Plus, a Colorado civic group wants to buy The Denver Post, Uber purchases a Brooklyn bicycle startup, and we recommend the best brunch spots in the city. Finally, a 65,000-ton cruise ship crashes into a dock in Honduras, a sperm whale in Spain dies after eating 64 pounds of trash, and we share the Royal Family’s favorite baby names. Have a great weekend.                         
 
IMPRINT: Tina Fey grins on the April cover of Variety.  

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The Rundown
 

~LUXURY BUILDINGS PREPARE FOR POSSIBLE DOORMAN STRIKE:Residents of 3,500 residential buildings across the city are facing the possibility that their doormen, elevator operators, porters and handymen could go on strike on April 21, when the current union contract expires. In many buildings, tenants are being asked to sign up for door duties, and will be required to bag and haul their garbage if a walkout takes place. Roughly 31,500 members of 32BJ, a division of the Service Employees International Union work in the affected buildings. Buildings staffed by 32BJ workers in Brooklyn Heightsinclude 75 Henry St., 10 Clinton St., 40 Clinton St., 101 Clark St. and 140 Cadman Plaza West. The management company for 75 Henry St., Gumley Haft, has already distributed strike instructions and volunteer signup sheets to tenants. Elected officials, including Mayor Bill de Blasio and Gov. Andrew Cuomo came out solidly on the side of the union members. “I am going to stand with you shoulder to shoulder, 100 percent in this fight. We will fight for your rights, whatever it takes. And if we are united, we will never be defeated,” Cuomo told union members. The typical SEIU Local 32BJ doorman salary is $23 an hour. Union members say that is not enough. (via Brooklyn Eagle)
 
~RENTS DROP IN BROOKLYN: Rents have dropped in Brooklyn and landlords are offering extra incentives for people to move in, according to reports by Miller Samuel Inc. and Douglas Elliman Real Estate. “For the renter, it’s a pretty good time to jump in,” said Hal Gavzie of Douglas Elliman. “For the landlords, it’s a little stressful.” Brooklyn rents dropped 6.3 percent to an average of $2,629 in March from a year earlier. Extra incentives were also offered in 48 percent of new leases compared to 16 percent in March 2017. Property owners throughout Brooklyn, Queens and Manhattan are dealing with a glut of apartments, forcing them to cut prices. (via Bloomberg)
 
~UBER BUYS BROOKLYN BICYCLE STARTUP: It looks like Citi Bikes are going to have some competition. Uber announced it bought the Brooklyn-based bicycle startup JUMP. The two companies have already started working together in San Francisco to test out a dockless bike-share program, and if all works well, users of the bike feature on Uber will be able to locate nearby bikes wherever they are, unlike Citi Bikes that are only parked at specific docks. The price of using the bike is listed as $2 for up to 30 minutes. JUMP was founded in 2010 and is based in New Lab at the Brooklyn Navy Yard(via Technically Brooklyn)
 
~ERASMUS HALL TEACHER INDICTED FOR ALLEGEDLY SEXUALLY ASSAULTING STUDENT: A 66-year-old business teacher at Flatbush’sErasmus Hall High School was arraigned on Wednesday for allegedly sexually abusing his 16-year-old student. Mervyn Affoon pleaded not guilty at Brooklyn Supreme Court to the 25-count indictment charging him with promoting a sexual performance by a child, forcible touching, sexual abuse and other counts. Between February 2017 and June 23, 2017, Affoon is accused of performing sexual acts on his student nine times in both the school and Affoon’s apartment. Specifically, he allegedly groped the student and placed his hand on his penis, once in a classroom and twice in a school elevator, prosecutors said. The school teacher also allegedly continued the acts in hisEast Flatbush apartment multiple times. “This defendant’s alleged actions are an incredible betrayal of trust,” Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said. “Teachers should protect their students and schools should be safe havens.”(via Brooklyn Eagle)

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Staff Picks:   
 

LONG READ: “The Post-Campaign Campaign of Donald Trump” (via The New York Times Magazine)
 
ANOTHER LONG READ: A group of expert Polish climbers risked their lives to save two people stranded on a mountain. The result? An inspiring tale fit for the movies. (via Outside)
 
EXPLORE: Here are the fastest growing metro areas in every state. (via USA Today)
 
EAT: It’s the weekend, so here are the 40 best brunch spots in New York City, including 12 in Brooklyn. (via Eater)

 
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NATIONAL BULLETIN: An Indiana fireman finds a second infant inside his station’s “baby box“…Students in Indiana are denied entry to their prom for not having student IDs…And a Colorado civic group wants to buy The Denver Post(via People, USA Today and NYT)
 
FOREIGN FLASH: A 65,000-ton cruise ship crashes into a dock in Honduras…A German billionaire goes missing in the Swiss Alps…And a sperm whale in Spain dies after ingesting 64 pounds of trash(via NPR, USA Today and NYT)                                   
 
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 ROYAL WATCH:
 With a third one on the way for Prince William and Kate Middleton, here are the Royal Family’s 20 favorite baby names(via Redbook)

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BROOKLYN TONIGHT   
 

10:00AM – 12:00PM — Free Workshops for Alzheimer’s and Dementia Caregivers at Restoration Plaza. Details.
 
6:00PM – 9:00PM — Friday Night Flights at Coney Island Brewery. Details.
 
6:30PM – 8:30PM — Twilight Tour at Green-Wood Cemetery. Details.
 
7:00PM — Friday the 13th: Free Will, Determinism, or F**k It All? at The Strand. Details.
 
7:00PM – 9:00PM — “A” Written and Performed by Taji Senior at FiveMyles.Details.
 
7:00PM – 9:00PM — The True Nature of Happiness: Lessons From the Mystics at New York Open Center. Details.  
 
7:00PM – 10:30PM — Brandon Lopez’s Mess / Jessica Pavone and Emily Manzo / Lucie Vítková at Areté. Details.
 
7:30PM — Word. Sound. Power. 2018 at BAM Fishman Space. Details.
 
8:00PM — Look + Listen Festival: Floating Borders at BRIC House. Details.
 
9:00PM – 11:00PM — Comedy at The Gallery at Richard Beavers Gallery.Details.     
 
 
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EAGLE SPORTS: While the Red Sox and Yankees were brawling at Fenway Park on Wednesday night, the Brooklyn Nets were taking it on the chin at TD Garden. “We’ve got a long way to go,” Nets head coach Kenny Atkinsonadmitted following his team’s regular season-ending 110-97 loss to the playoff-bound Boston Celtics. Winners of a season-high three straight and a season-best 7-5 over their previous 12 games, the Nets (28-54) entered this finale hoping to build on the success of the past several weeks. Instead, they received a painful reminder of just how far away they truly are from competing for a postseason berth, something they have not earned since the 2014-15 campaign. (via Brooklyn Eagle)

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MILESTONES
 
Happy birthday to Peabo Bryson, Jack Casady, Robert Casey, Bill Conti,Baron Davis, Tony Dow, Sergei Gonchar, Al Green, Garry Kasparov, Davis Love III, Ron Perlman, Saundra Santiago, Rick Schroder, Paul Sorvino, Lyle Waggoner and Max M. Weinberg!
 
Brooklyn Today’s editor is Scott Enman. Contact him at[email protected].

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