What’s News, Breaking: Tuesday, March 14, 2023

March 14, 2023 Brooklyn Eagle Staff

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NEW TUNNEL IS TOO SMALL FOR LIRR TRAINS, GOTHAMIST REPORTS

LIRR — “If you build it, they will come” is a popular variation of Kevin Costner’s line from the 1989 film, “Field of Dreams” — provided that it’s engineered correctly. However, the new Grand Central Madison Tunnel is now getting criticized for being too short to fit the Long Island Railroad train cars, with Gothamist reporting that as many as 20% of them can’t run through. Retired trains with mechanical problems had to be put back into use, and a reduction in service led to pandemonium instead of a smooth transition for LIRR passengers who travel between Manhattan, Atlantic Center in Brooklyn, and points east.

Gothamist also criticized the MTA for failure to order new train cars in a timely manner.

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PASTOR ON DECK: FR. JOSEPH GIBINO WILL SUCCEED RETIRING FR. WILLIAM SMITH AT ST. CHARLES

Father Joseph Gibino will become pastor of St. Charles Borromeo Church in July. Photo: Photo courtesy Diocese of Brooklyn.

BROOKLYN HEIGHTS — Bishop Robert J. Brennan of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn has appointed Fr. Joseph Gibino as the next pastor of St. Charles Borromeo Church to succeed Fr. William Smith, who is preparing to retire in June, according to an announcement on the parish’s website and Facebook page. Fr. Gibino, who will begin his pastoral leadership of St. Charles parish in July, is concurrently pastor of Holy Trinity Church in Whitestone and Vicar for Evangelization and Catechesis and Academic Dean for the Permanent Diaconate Program for the Diocese of Brooklyn.

Fr. Smith, who turned 71 in December — thus reaching the mandatory retirement age — was installed as pastor of St. Charles in 2017. He enjoyed a close friendship with the late Monsignor Charles E. Diviney, who had also been pastor of St. Charles from 1959-1978.

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MAN REPORTED MISSING AFTER HE LEFT HOSPITAL CAMPUS

Have you seen this man, who was reported missing on Monday? He is described as 4’8” tall, 120 pounds, with a dark complexion, thin build, bald headed and brown eyes, and last observed wearing a black shirt, gray coat and black jeans. Photo: NYPD/Crimestoppers.

EAST FLATBUSH — Police are asking the public’s help in locating a missing East New York man after he left NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County (known familiarly as Kings County Medical Center) on Sunday night, March 12. The man, identified as 57-year-old Scott Wrighton, and living within the 73rd Precinct, was reported missing on Monday after having been at NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County in East Flatbush around 9:40 p.m. Sunday.

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MAYOR’S BUDGET CUTS VACANT SCHOOL SAFETY POSITIONS

CITYWIDE — School safety agent positions that are vacant are on the mayor’s budget chopping block, as part of the Mayor Eric Adams’ Program to Eliminate the Gap, according to a notice from the NYC Independent Budget Office. The Mayor’s Preliminary Budget proposes the elimination of nearly 300 vacant school safety agent positions, continuing reductions made in prior financial plans (fiscal years) that resulted in the cut of 832 such vacant positions since last February. The number of active school safety agents police department staff providing security services in public school buildings has declined by nearly a quarter since the onset of the pandemic.

While school safety agents work in the city’s school buildings, DOE has not directly employed these staff for 25 years — since 1998.

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TEN JUDGES APPOINTED TO CITY COURTS

DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN — Mayor Eric Adams on Tuesday, March 14, made ten judicial appointments to New York City Family, Criminal and Civil Courts, including several judges with experience in Brooklyn. Judge Nisha Menon, who has served the last six years as a court attorney referee in Kings County Family Court, has been appointed Family Court Judge. Judge Raymi V. Ramseur-Usher served the New York State Unified Court System for the last 12 years in Kings County Supreme, Family and Civil courts. Prior to her appointment to the bench, she was a principal law clerk.

Judge Janet M. McDonnell, who began her legal career with the Kings County District Attorney’s Office, where she served for over 21 years in the Orange Zone, Crimes Against Children Bureau and Early Case Assessment Bureau/Arraignments. She also served as deputy bureau chief of the Domestic Violence Bureau and as deputy unit chief of the Criminal Court in New York City.

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CORRECTION: GOWANUS TOXIC GAS CLEANUP BEGAN IN SEPTEMBER 2022

GOWANUS — Levels of cancer-causing chemicals in the air inside Gowanus’ popular Royal Palms Shuffleboard Club were measured to be more than 20 times higher than the maximum safe amount, according to a piece by Gothamist from March 10, which reported although that the state Department of Environmental Conservation first detected the toxic chemicals nearly two years ago, a construction project intended to vent the fumes began only last month. The Department of Environmental Conservation contacted the Eagle on Tuesday, March 14, indicating that Soil Vapor Intrusion cleanup and remediation processes began in September of 2022 and completed in November of 2022.

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DELAYS IN BROOKLYN JAIL PROJECT RAISE CONCERNS ABOUT RIKERS CLOSING

DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN — The ongoing plan to close NYC’s troubled Rikers Island incarceration complex by 2027 and replace it with four smaller local jails could be jeopardized by severe delays at the Atlantic Avenue site, reports POLITICO, which says that information published in the City Record indicates that construction on the nearly $3 billion project is now expected to continue until at least 2029. City Hall told POLITICO that the initial timeline was “unrealistic” and did not reflect material and labor shortages in the construction industry, while also insisting that Rikers would definitely be closed on schedule — but did not explain how this would be possible without a functioning Brooklyn jail.

A public hearing on the contract for the Brooklyn jail is scheduled for March 23 at 10 a.m., according to the City Record, and can be participated in via conference call.

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POLICE SEARCH FOR MISSING TEEN IN BROWNSVILLE

BROWNSVILLE — Police are asking the public for help in finding Corisa Coppage, 18, last seen at her Brownsville residence on the morning of March 8. Corisa is described as 5’6” and 140 pounds; has black eyes and black hair with gold tips; she was last seen wearing a black jacket, blue jeans and red and black shoes.

Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782); or, log onto the Crime Stoppers website or Tweet @NYPDTips.

Have you seen this girl? Don’t hesitate to reach out to police with any information you can share.

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GROUP OF THIEVES TARGET SUNSET PARK MEN

SUNSET PARK — Police are searching for a group of three people who are suspected of involvement in three muggings that took place in Sunset Park in February and March, in which the criminals approached older men walking alone in the early hours of the morning to violently assault and rob them of their possessions. One victim has had to be hospitalized so far for his injuries.

Have you seen these men? Any tips given to police are strictly confidential.

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COMPETITIVE PICNICKERS TAKE OVER FORT GREENE PARK

FORT GREENE — Teams of aggressively hospitable picnickers descended on Fort Greene Park over the weekend, reports BK Mag, competing to put out the most outlandish spreads at the fifth annual Competitive Winter Picnicking games. The sixteen teams included groups like Operation Eagle Freedom Defense Initiative, who encouraged diners to use darts to shoot down “Chinese spy balloons,” and the Pirates of Penzants, who dressed as insects and serenaded judges.

As with the similarly chaotic Idiotarod event, bribery is heartily encouraged by the organizers, and prizes are eccentric, with awards like “Most Likely to Make Your Mother Cry” and “Best War Game” elevating the traditional picnic concept to a new level.

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BROOKLYN YANKEE JOE PEPITONE PASSES AT AGE 82

BROOKLYN — Brooklynite and New York Yankee Joe Pepitone passed away on Monday at age 82, according to the MLB, after a long career in professional baseball on and off the field. Born in Brooklyn in 1940, Pepitone attended John Jay High School and joined the Yankees in 1962, shortly thereafter becoming their first baseman, where he would stay until being traded to the Astros in 1970, before finishing his playing career with the Braves in 1972. Pepitone would later return to the Yankees organization in the 80s to serve as a coach in both the minor and major leagues.

“As a native New Yorker, he embraced everything about being a Yankee during both his playing career — which included three All-Star appearances and three Gold Gloves — and in the decades thereafter. You always knew when Joe walked into a room — his immense pride in being a Yankee was always on display. He will be missed by our entire organization, and we offer our deepest condolences to his family, friends and all who knew him,” wrote the Yankees in a press statement.

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HOCHUL NIXES LAGUARDIA AIRTRAIN EXPANSION

QUEENS — Governor Hochul on Monday announced that the state would be dropping its plan to build an extension of the AirTrain to LaGuardia Airport, reports Reuters, and will instead focus on expanding existing bus service to the airport and consider adding a new shuttle bus running from the Astoria-Ditmars Boulevard N/W subway stop. The governor cited a Port Authority report that concluded that the AirTrain expansion, a pet project of former Governor Cuomo, would cost $2.4 billion and take 6-7 years to complete, while the bus expansions would cost under $500 million.

“It’s so refreshing to see government leaders admit a mistake and change course before it’s too late… Much better bus service is the right answer both for Queens riders and the travelers who pass through their neighborhoods on the way to the airport,” transit advocacy group Riders Alliance told Reuters.

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NEW SUNY CHANCELLOR HAS DEEP BROOKLYN ROOTS

ALBANY — SUNY’s new chancellor, John B. King Jr., is a Brooklyn native with a long relationship with the borough, as shown in a new profile in BK Mag, which discusses King’s trailblazing family — his father was Brooklyn’s first black school principal and his uncle was one of the first players to break the color barrier in professional basketball — and his own past. King previously served as New York state Education Commissioner and then as Secretary of Education under former President Obama, and says he wants to carry on his father’s legacy of fighting against inequality in schools.

“So much of my identity is tied to growing up in Brooklyn. It defined my time growing up,” King Jr. told BK Mag.

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REP. GOLDMAN CO-SPONSORS BILL TO MAKE BUMP STOCK GUN ALTERATIONS ILLEGAL

NATIONWIDE — Congressmember Dan Goldman (D-10), whose district covers a wide swath of Brooklyn, is co-sponsoring legislation on firearms and guns to close the bump stock loophole once and for all. The bill, titled Closing the Bump Stock Loophole Act of 2023, would make it illegal to manufacture, sell, or possess for civilian use bump stocks, which are firearm modifications. The alterations enable shooters to fire semiautomatic rifles continuously with one pull of the trigger, similar to a fully automatic weapon.

The Closing the Bump Stock Loophole Act would codify the Alcohol Tobacco & Firearms rule and regulate bump stocks in the same manner as military style machine guns and limit the ability of gun manufacturers to create new devices that increase the rate of fire to those similar to machine guns.

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5TH AVENUE BID PREPARES FOR NEW SEASON OF OPEN STREETS

PARK SLOPE — The Park Slope Fifth Avenue Business Improvement District (BID) in Park Slope is planning a fundraiser for its fourth season of Open Streets New York, according to the organization’s website and local news sources. The BID, a non-profit organization that provides advocacy for local merchants and small businesses, and organizes community events, is working to meet the budget of the Open Street programs, including the extra payroll, insurance, and other related expenditures.

During Open Streets events, held one day each week in the spring through fall, a 16-block segment of the 5th Avenue corridor becomes a pedestrian avenue for display shopping and activities, including performances and sports. Other upcoming events include the Small Business Meet-up on Thursday, March 23, and the Fabulous 5th Ave. Fair on Sunday, May 21.

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GREENLIGHT BOOKSTORE’S PROSPECT LEFFERTS LOCATION ANNOUNCES CLOSURE

PROSPECT LEFFERTS GARDENS — Greenlight Bookstore will be closing its Prospect Lefferts Gardens location on May 14 according to an email to customers and a report from Brownstoner. Co-owner and co-founder Jessica Stockton-Bagnulo blamed the closure on pandemic-related financial issues: declining sales but increasing overhead. The closure of this popular neighborhood bookstore will also affect Voices of Lefferts, the community-based literary and history journal, and was the only physical store where the publication could be purchased.

Greenlight Bookstore, which also has a location on Fulton St. in Fort Greene, plans to hold pop-up events in the Prospect Lefferts Gardens neighborhood.

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BROOKLYN PUBLIC LIBRARY LAUNCHES APPEAL TO HALT BUDGET CUTS

BOROUGHWIDE — A major Brooklyn educational and cultural institution that just celebrated its 125th anniversary is seeking emergency funds in wake of Mayor Adams’ proposed budget cuts. The Brooklyn Public Library, which last year spearheaded the widely-popular “Books Unbanned” program, offering students across the country access to its holdings, and several other anniversary events, is now facing a budget cut — also called Reduction to Operating Subsidy — of more than $3.75 million to $5.7 million, (according to the chart, which adjusts City Fund amounts by 000.) Brooklyn Public Library President and CEO Linda E. Johnson on Monday, March 13, launched a letter-writing campaign for library supporters to urge the mayor and city leaders to keep library funding.

Calling the budget cuts a “gut punch,” Ms. Johnson said the BPL “will be forced to make agonizing choices about shortening hours, cutting programs and collections, and rolling back services,” adding that she will testify before city leaders next week to urge them to reverse their proposal.

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NEW TENANTS AT 16 COURT OFFICE BUILDING

BROOKLYN HEIGHTS — Landlord company CIM snagged three major new tenants at its 16 Court Street office building, according to the Commercial Observer, which reports that podcasting company Pineapple Street Studios, architecture and design firm Sasaki Associates and political consultants New Deal Strategies have all signed new leases for office spaces in the 36-story historic tower at the corner of Montague and Court streets, with New Deal taking the full 34th floor. The law firm Friedman Sanchez also extended its existing lease, which covers the entire 26th floor.

CIM is currently suing the Brooklyn Democratic Party over an unpaid rent dispute in this office building, having filed suit in federal court earlier this month.

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STUDY PREDICTS HURRICANES FOR NYC IN NEAR FUTURE

CITYWIDE — A new study found NYC could face a threefold increase in storm-related damage by 2053, as climate change heats waters and raises sea levels, according to the New York Post. The report, by the nonprofit First Street Foundation, says Brooklyn will be the hardest hit of the boroughs by these increases, with low-lying coastal areas seeing increased flooding and stronger winds.

NYC has already had a taste of this potential future after twelve deaths were linked to flash-flooding from Hurricane Ida in 2021.

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BIKE RIDER DIES AFTER STRIKING PARKED TRUCK

WILLIAMSBURG — On the morning of Saturday, March 11, emergency responders answering a 911 call of a motor vehicle collision involving a bicyclist discovered 51-year-old Ricardo Antonio Sicajau lying on the roadway with severe head injuries, where he was later pronounced deceased. Further investigation by the NYPD’s Collision Investigation Squad determined that Sicajau had been operating an E-Bike when he struck a parked and unoccupied flatbed trailer parked on Kent Avenue.

Police say the investigation is ongoing.

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GREENPOINT RESTAURANT OFFERS BLINDFOLDED DINING EXPERIENCE

GREENPOINT — Southern Italian restaurant Leuca is offering a unique dining experience to its customers on Sundays through the end of March – the chance to “dine in the dark,” reports SI Live. The Greenpoint eatery is offering a special mystery menu to guests who will don blindfolds, in order to highlight the flavors of its dishes, which have options for meat-lovers, seafood enthusiasts and vegans alike.

The tasting experience costs $110, not including drinks.

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‘LETTERS TO SPIDERMAN’ AT WILLIAMSBURG MUSEUM

WILLIAMSBURG — Quirky Williamsburg museum the City Reliquary is showcasing an exhibit of kids’ letters to Spiderman – the Marvel comics superhero whose real name is Peter Parker – this month until April 2, displaying hundreds of letters collected by a Queens family, coincidentally also surnamed Parker, living at an address Marvel used for the teenage superhero in 1989. The letters come from all over the globe, reports the New York Post, showing the far reach of one of New York’s hometown heroes – even if he is fictional.

“One of the really nice things about that superhero is that, unlike other superheroes, he comes from a real place,” said family member Pamela Parker, who mentioned that the letters initially caused some confusion in her household.

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NEW EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR AIMS TO EXPAND BROOKLYN ARTS COUNCIL’S NETWORK

DUMBO — The Brooklyn Arts Council has named Rasu Jilani as the organization’s new Executive Director. A native New Yorker of Caribbean heritage, he brings more than 15 years of experience advocating for the Brooklyn cultural and creative community to the organization, and is a reputable facilitator in the cultural sector, the founder of Coup d’état BROOKLYN and Coup d’état Arts, and a producer for Afropunk.

Jilani aims to enhance BAC as a cornerstone arts organization in Brooklyn by expanding its network of artists, arts organizations, and programs. He will lead efforts to support and empower local artists toward achieving the Council’s vision of generating a self-sustaining and integral creative community that fosters connectedness and engagement in society.

Rasu Jilani, Executive Director of Brooklyn Arts Council. Photo: Stephanie Mei-Ling.

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CITY’S ‘RAT ACADEMY’ WILL TEACH RODENT PREVENTION

PROSPECT HEIGHTS — Rat Academy will be offered on Thursday evening, March 23, the second installment of Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso’s Department of Constituent Services’ resource information series. Hosted at the Brooklyn Public Library’s Central Library at Grand Army Plaza, the session will focus on safe and effective methods for rat prevention in homes, buildings and communities. The NYC Department of Health’s Rat Academy will present this training and several area non-profits will man resource tables.

“Our rat problem is really a trash problem. The rats are everywhere because our trash is everywhere. You supply the feast, the guests come,” said Borough President Reynoso, who said his office is fighting for containerized trash bins on every street in every borough.

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SIGNATURE BANK REMAINS OPEN AFTER REGULATORS TAKE OVER

NEW YORK — Signature Bank was seized by the New York Department of Financial Services on Sunday, according to a press statement from Superintendent Adrienne A. Harris, with the FDIC being appointed as receiver after granting regulators a “systemic risk exemption” for the bank, in a nationwide effort to protect the banking sector following Friday’s bank-run-triggered collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, a major player in the tech industry. While officials assured the public that depositors would be made whole, bank investors could face massive losses on the value of their shares, which were trading at over $100 as recently as Wednesday of last week.

The boutique bank, founded in New York in 2001 with one of its flagship branches located directly opposite Brooklyn Borough Hall, had become a favorite of cryptocurrency enthusiasts in recent years and struggled following a downturn in the crypto market earlier in 2022, according to the New York Times, which also reports that officials plan a broad array of measures designed to protect bank depositors without risking taxpayer money.

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PRESIDENT, GOVERNOR PROMISE STABILITY IN WAKE OF BANK FAILURES

NATIONWIDE — President Biden on Sunday issued a press statement on the failures of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, saying “I am firmly committed to holding those responsible for this mess fully accountable and to continuing our efforts to strengthen oversight and regulation of larger banks so that we are not in this position again,” and promising that taxpayer money would not be used, easing fears of another bank bailout. Governor Hochul also weighed in on the failure of New York-based Signature Bank, writing “Throughout the weekend, [Department of Financial Services] Superintendent Adrienne Harris and I have been working closely with federal partners on ways to stabilize the banking sector and protect the hard-earned money of New Yorkers whose livelihoods depend on impacted companies. I’m grateful that the federal regulators have taken steps to do just that, and I hope that these actions will provide increased confidence in the stability of our banking system.”

Governor Hochul is expected to make a more comprehensive announcement on the bank situation at 9:30 a.m. on Monday morning from her office in Murray Hill in Manhattan.

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MAN SHOT IN FLATBUSH BASEMENT, OTHERS WOUNDED

FLATBUSH — A Brooklyn man, 39-year-old Emmanuel Soray, was found deceased with a gunshot wound to the face in the basement of a Flatbush apartment building on the afternoon of Saturday, March 11, according to police. Officers also discovered a 27-year-old woman and 40-year-old man who had been wounded by gunshots, who were transported to local hospitals, as well as a 33-year-old woman who was taken to a New Jersey hospital by private means; police say that no arrests have been made and that the investigation is ongoing.

“We must find ways to break the cycle of rising gun violence in our city that causes neighbors to be traumatized and feel unsafe,” Councilmember Farah Louis wrote in a press statement on the mass shooting, calling for federal laws restricting handguns.

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HOCHUL UPDATES PUBLIC ON SIGNATURE BANK SITUATION

MURRAY HILL — Governor Hochul at a press conference, streamed online on Monday morning, stated that Signature Bank, which was seized by the New York state Department of Financial Services on Sunday, would remain open, in response to concerns that the troubled bank’s customers would not be able to access their accounts. The governor added that shareholders would not be bailed out with taxpayer money and emphasized that the government had simply effectuated a “change in leadership” intended to stabilize the banking sector.

“So, the banks are open. Everything is fine, calm. Now the FDIC is in charge of the bank, and they’ll be communicating any further details about the future,” Hochul summed up.

Governor Hochul spoke about the Signature Bank takeover on Monday. Photo courtesy of the governor’s office.

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REPORT SHOWS STEEP DROP IN MATH PROFICIENCY SINCE START OF PANDEMIC

STATEWIDE — New York students’ academic performance dropped significantly in 2022, and fourth grade math proficiency rates declined steeply as well, according to a federal review that State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli has released. Recent data from The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) shows student performance dropped significantly in 2022 from 2019 — before the pandemic — with the decline in math steepest for Asian and Pacific Islander students, at 14 percentage points.

Responding to these scores, DiNapoli has urged New York school districts to assess their plans for spending federal pandemic funds, of which New York was allocated $15 billion in emergency education aid during the pandemic, with $14 billion from three rounds of the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund (ESSER) assistance. But New York’s school districts have spent roughly only 40% of ESSER funds, according to data from DiNapoli’s COVID-19 Relief Program Tracker.