Around Brooklyn: Fire breaks out in Cypress Hills

February 9, 2021 Brooklyn Eagle Staff

Highland Boulevard runs through Highland Park, which is a mini-neighborhood within Cypress Hills. Eagle file photo by Lore Croghan

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Fire breaks out in Cypress Hills

An early-morning fire swept through a two-story home in Cypress Hills on Monday. The fire started around 2 a.m. on the second floor of the house on Etna Street near Eldert Lane, the FDNY said. Sixty firefighters from a dozen units responded to the blaze, putting it under control by 3 a.m. There were no injuries, according to the New York Post.

Seven-story building coming to Flatbush

A seven-story rental building is slated to go up at 160 Clarkson Ave. in Flatbush. The building is designed by Hill West Architects and produced by New York Developers & Management and PLG Estates. Preliminary renderings show a gray masonry façade with dark metal-framed windows and ornamental balcony railings. The top floor is primarily enclosed in glass. Open-air terraces are positioned at each setback. In addition to the apartments, there will be a parking garage for 58 vehicles. Amenities will include a multi-use lounge, a game room, a screening room, an open-air courtyard and a fitness center. The site is currently occupied by several older row houses, according to New York YIMBY.

Wanted poster for cat-killer

The NYPD has produced a wanted poster for a man who egged his dogs on to kill a beloved neighborhood cat in Brooklyn. The poster shows two images of the suspect, who is accused of using a stick to knock Tuxedo, a black-and-white cat known as the “mayor” of NYCHA’s Breukelen houses, out of a tree on Jan. 13 so his dogs could attack Tuxedo. Cops are seeking two men, who fled with their dogs east on Stanley Avenue and north on Williams Avenue after the incident. It’s about time,” the cat’s caretaker, who was feeding and caring for Tuxedo since 2011, told the New York Post.

U.S. Rep. Yvette Clarke: Reject Haitian president

U.S. Rep. Yvette Clarke (D-East Flatbush, Central Brooklyn) co-led a letter with House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Gregory Meeks (D-Queens) to Secretary of State Anthony Blinken encouraging the United States to reject the undemocratic actions of President Moïse to retain power in Haiti. “The human rights situation in Haiti is equally perilous. Civil rights are under siege, and those who advocate for them are often facing literal attacks. Seemingly state-sanctioned violence targets those who challenge the state. Meanwhile, Haiti remains gripped in a cascade of economic, public health and political crises,” she said.

State Sen. Felder: Don’t hike property tax

State Sen. Simcha Felder (D-Boro Park, Midwood) is demanding New York City skip the annual rise in property tax this year. “Considering the health and economic crisis we are facing, it is the height of chutzpah that New York City would increase property taxes during the peak of this pandemic, especially after New Yorkers have been asked to sacrifice so much,” he said. In a letter sent Friday to Mayor de Blasio and Speaker Corey Johnson, Felder argues against over-burdening homeowners who are struggling under the economic hardships brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.

BP Eric Adams: Resume team sports

Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams joined About U Outreach, an organization dedicated to the empowerment and academic success of student athletes across New York City, and coaches of team sports ranging in grades from elementary to high school, to urge the city to allow public schools to resume team sports. Adams and participants of the rally argued that the policy of keeping team sports closed, despite evidence that it does not cause an increase in COVID-19 infection rates, is having a long-term negative impact on students.

Board 2 meeting on Wednesday

Brooklyn Community Board 2, covering Brooklyn Heights, Downtown Brooklyn, Boerum Hill, DUMBO, Vinegar Hill and Clinton Hill, is slated to hold its regularly scheduled monthly meeting on Wednesday at 6 p.m. via Webex. There will be a presentation by Michael Barbosa, assistant New York State attorney general in charge of the Brooklyn-Queens regional office. There will also be a question-and-answer session by staffers from Wegman’s supermarket near the Brooklyn Navy Yard.

Mayor Bill De Blasio names Roberto Perez as commissioner

Mayor Bill de Blasio has appointed Roberto Perez as the new commissioner of the mayor’s Community Affairs Unit. In his new title, Perez will support the mayor’s Vaccine for All initiative as well as other projects. Perez, a native New Yorker, has lived in Queens for almost 40 years. Until recently, he served as senior executive director of intergovernmental affairs for the NYC Department of Education. “Perez is a true professional and a dedicated public servant who lives and breathes New York City. I and my fellow New Yorkers are fortunate to have his talented service as our Commissioner of New York City’s Community Affairs Unit,” said Chancellor Richard A. Carranza.

Affordable lottery for ‘The Garnet’

Nearly 100 new apartments are available in an affordable housing lottery for a building known as The Garnet on Fulton Street in Bedford-Stuyvesant. The lottery includes 94 studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom units in the 11-story building. “The launch of the Garnet’s affordable housing lottery is something we’ve looked forward to for months,” said Joseph Ferrara, principal of the building’s developers, BFC Partners. “At a time when the city is facing a critical housing shortage, projects like this are more important than ever.” The Garnet features a 24-hour attended lobby, a landscaped outdoor terrace, a fitness center, a children’s playroom and washer and dryer facilities on each floor, according to Patch.

Cops keep jobs after murder

Two police officers who failed to get out of their patrol car while responding to a domestic violence episode in which a woman was later murdered have been allowed to keep their jobs. Tonie Wells called 911 from he Crown Heights home saying her husband was acting odd. A neighbor called a half-hour later saying she was screaming, “He’s going to kill me,” according to the Daily News. Officers Wing Hong Lau and Wael Jaber drove to the home, but didn’t get out of the car to investigate. Later, Tonie Wells was found strangled at the bottom of the stairs. The two police officers were placed on “dismissal probation” for a year.

Spike Lee endorses Councilmember Robert Cornegy

Director-actor Spike Lee plans to endorse Councilmember Robert Cornegy on Thursday when Cornegy officially kicks off his campaign for borough president. Lee knew Cornegy when Cornegy was on the St. John’s University Final Four during the 1984 NCAA tournament. In 2015, Cornegy renamed a stretch of Stuyvesant Avenue “Do the Right Thing Way” in honor of Lee. Other recent endorsements for Cornegy include actor-comedian Tracy Morgan and Teamsters Local 237, according to the Daily News.

Crazed subway slasher attacks man

A subway commuter was stabbed in the face by a man whom he didn’t know but who told the victim he was going to “die today.” The attack took place Saturday morning on the J train at the Kosciuszko Street station, where the rider was approached by a knife-wielding man who asked, “Why are you following me.” When the victim turned his back on the attacker, the attacker stabbed him in the cheek with a knife. The victim and a motorman were able to fight the attacker off, and the attacker fled, according to the New York Post.

Man shot to death at birthday party

A man fatally shot outside a Brooklyn apartment complex was at a party with his children, who were asleep when he stumbled back inside bleeding from gunshot wounds to his chest, police said Monday. Malik Wright was shot twice in the chest in front of the Stuyvesant Gardens Houses on Gates Ave. near Malcolm X Blvd. in Bedford-Stuyvesant about 1:20 a.m. Sunday. Wright, 33, and his girlfriend, Ebony Walker, 34, were at a friend’s birthday party when Wright stepped out to get some air, she said. Wright was shot after a dispute with his attackers, according to the Daily News.

Compiled by Raanan Geberer.