Around Brooklyn: Kevin Durant named all-star captain

February 22, 2021 Brooklyn Eagle Staff

Kevin Durant. AP Photo by Kathy Willens

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Kevin Durant named all-star captain

Brooklyn Nets forward Kevin Durant and Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James have been named the captains for next month’s NBA All-Star Game. James and Durant will pick their respective teams from the remaining 22 All-Stars on March 4 after getting the most votes of any player in either conference. The All-Star Game will be played March 7 in Atlanta, according to ESPN.

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Cleaning service owner honored by Adams

Jamaican-born Ingrid Murray, CEO of Prospect Cleaning Service Inc., recently received a citation from the Brooklyn Borough President’s Office on the occasion of the business’ new headquarters at 249-251 Empire Blvd. Among its clients are Flatbush Kings Theatre, the MTA, Health and Hospitals Corporation, Weill Cornell Medical Center and MTA Bridges and Tunnels. The company was started by her husband, Courtney Murray, 20 years ago, after which she took it over, according to Caribbean Life.

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GoFundMe helps Brooklyn teacher

A GoFundMe started for Cary Golden, a teacher who has worked at I.S. 318 for 34 years, has brought in tens of thousands of dollars. An electrical fire destroyed his home and killed several family pets at the beginning of January. After hearing of his hardship, a parent of one of Golden’s students set up the fundraising effort on his behalf. The fund reached its $25,000 goal in less than a day, according to Brooklyn News 12.

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Affordable housing lottery launches in Crown Heights

An affordable housing lottery has launched for 2266 Pacific St., a four-story residential development in Crown Heights. The building, designed by Asher Hershkowitz Architects, will have nine units. Available on NYC Housing Connect are three units for residents whose family income ranges from $75,000 to $159,640. Residential amenities include a shared laundry room, dishwashers in every apartment, terraces, security cameras and a virtual doorman, according to New York YIMBY.

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Kavanaugh: submit hardship form

State Sen. Brian Kavanagh (D-Northern Brooklyn, Lower Manhattan) and Assembly Member Jeffrey Dinowitz (D-Bronx), who sponsored New York’s recent legislation mandating an eviction moratorium for tenants facing COVID-19 hardship, led a group of elected officials and tenant activists Friday to raise awareness that tenants behind on their rent due to COVID can submit a Hardship Declaration Form to avoid facing eviction or unnecessary court proceedings until at least May 1.Following a report that more than a month after enactment of the eviction moratorium, New York City housing courts have received fewer than 2,300 hardship declaration forms, the elected officials and advocates are seeking to increase awareness on how to access and submit the forms.

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Brisport introduces new bill

State Sen. Jabari Brisport (D-Fort Greene, Boerum Hill, Red Hook, Bedford-Stuyvesant, Sunset Park, Gowanus, Park Slope) and Assemblymember Michaelle Solages (D-Long Island) this week introduced the Heirs Tax to the State Senate and Assembly as part of the Invest In Our New York Act. The legislative package seeks to rebuild New York’s economy and end tax breaks for the wealthiest New Yorkers. If passed, the Invest In Our New York Act would represent the single largest measure taken to close New York’s inequality gap in decades.

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Menchaca to host hearing

City Council Member Carlos Menchaca (D-Sunset Park, Red Hook) announced that the City Council this week will hold a public hearing on the proposed 14-story mixed-use building at 737 4th Ave. (corner of 25th Street) in Sunset Park. The development calls for 135 apartments with ground-floor retail. Of these apartments, 33 will be reserved for households earning 30% to 60% of Area Median Income (AMI). In other words, a family of three making $30,000 to $60,000 a year should be able to afford them, said Menchaca. The City Council public hearing is slated for 11 a.m., Tuesday, Feb. 23.

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Speakers’ Corner in Fort Greene Park

On Feb. 20 and 27, there will be a Speakers’ Corner, presented by The Fort Greene Park Conservancy and The Lay Out. In celebration of Black History Month, people will be reading out notable works from Black revolutionaries and creatives. Meet at noon inside the DeKalb Avenue and Washington Park entrance, stay to listen or bring a work of your own to read. All are welcome in this celebration of Black History Month.

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DiNapoli praises MTA budget

New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli released the following statement Friday in response to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s improved revenue forecast and expectations of additional federal aid: “Improvements in fare, toll and tax collections have put MTA’s short-term finances on a stronger footing than expected. These positive developments mean that MTA can avoid recovery-damaging service cuts or layoffs in 2022,” he said.

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Richardson launches small-biz survey

Assemblymember Diana Richardson (D-Brooklyn) is seeking feedback from small businesses and nonprofits for a survey on challenges they may be experiencing in the COVID-19 pandemic. “It’s clear that the public health crisis we’re facing has impacted every aspect of our communities,” Richardson said. “However, it’s critical for us to understand that businesses and not-for-profit organizations are not facing the same challenges and may require different resources and support to open.”

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Man beaten with bat

A video obtained by police shows a baseball-bat attack on a Brooklyn street that ended when a bystander stepped in, police said. Ashanti Robinson, 46, who has 14 prior arrests, is facing criminal charges in the assault that occurred on Flatbush Avenue around 5:30 p.m. In the video, he can be seen swinging the bat and attacking a man who was on a bicycle. Robinson was charged with assault, menacing and criminal possession of a weapon, according to the New York Post.
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Brooklyn butcher makes meat-and-veggie sausages

Cara Nicoletti, a fourth-generation Brooklyn butcher, loves to make sausages. To make them more sustainable, she started “sneaking vegetables in the sausages I was making,” she said. Last year, she partnered with friend Ariel Hauptman to launch a new venture to sell her sausages, Seemore Meats and veggies. Seemore Meats and Veggies is one of the first women-owned and operated butcher businesses in the U.S., according to published reports. Among the vegetables she uses to flavor her meats are beets, broccolini, potatoes, carrots, celery, garlic, basil, dill and parsley.
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Driver charged with killing child, injuring another

A driver who fatally struck a 4-year-old boy and left another child in critical condition after dropping them off at a Bensonhurst religious pre-school last month has been arrested and charged, cops said Thursday. The driver, identified as 76-year-old Yehiel Guzi, drove a group of children to the Yeshiva K’tana (“little yeshiva”) on 67th Street near 20th Avenue around 9:20 a.m. on Jan. 4, but after he let them out he allegedly hit the two children and drove away, police said.

Compiled by Raanan Geberer.