Brooklyn Today December 21: Winterfest Owners Retaliate Against Vendor for Speaking to the Press

The Lede

Happy Friday! A jury reaches a verdict in the Jack’d murder trial, we interview Amy Poehler, and Michelle Obama speaks again at Barclays Center. Plus, we show you a country villa in Crown Heights, NYCHA tops the worst landlord list, and Williamsburg’s retail thrives despite the looming L-train shutdown. Finally, the Winterfest owners retaliate against a vendor for speaking to the press, and we recommend the best curries in the city.

Imprint

Model Ashley Graham graces the January cover of Glamour España.

The Rundown

AMY POEHLER’S NEW PARK SLOPE GIG BRINGS HIGH SPIRITS TO BROOKLYN

Comedian and actress Amy Poehler has set up shop in Park Slope. Along with her two partners Amy Miles and Mike Robinson, she has opened Zula Wines and Spirits at 487 Fifth Ave., between 11th and 12th streets. While Poehler is a novice, her partners have considerable experience in wine retailing. Poehler is best known for her time as a cast member on “Saturday Night Live” and for her role as Leslie Knope on the NBC sitcom “Parks and Recreation.” We recently interviewed Brooklyn’s newest wine merchant. (via Brooklyn Eagle)

JURY CONVICTS PHILLY MAN FOR CAUSING DEATH OF MAN MET THROUGH DATING APP

After a two-week murder trial, a Brooklyn jury acquitted a Pennsylvania man on Wednesday for stabbing and killing a man he’d just met on a dating app. David Keegan Riotto Haigh had a brief moment of relief inside Brooklyn Supreme Court as the foreman announced that the jury found him not guilty of the second-degree murder of James “Koron” Johnson. But in the next breath, Haigh and members of his family in the courtroom were in tears as the jury unanimously agreed that he was guilty of first-degree manslaughter. Haigh faces a maximum of 25 years in prison and a minimum of five. (via Brooklyn Eagle)

COME SEE A COUNTRY VILLA IN CROWN HEIGHTS NORTH

Prettiest. Country. House. Ever. The George B. and Susan Elkins House is clad in impeccable blue-painted clapboard. The porch looks inviting. It stands on a tiny hill with a fence and gated walkways. This is the work of Amber Mazor, who renovated the former country villa and turned it into a four-family home with a city Landmarks Preservation Commission-approved design. When it was built some time between 1855 and 1869, the house stood alone in the countryside. That spot in the countryside is now in the middle of a busy, built-up part of Crown Heights North. (via Brooklyn Eagle)

MICHELLE OBAMA SAYS DESIGNER’S ENERGY INFORMED HER FASHION CHOICES

For Michelle Obama, choosing what designer to wear while she was in the White House involved many factors, from diversity to whether they were a nice person. Obama talked the decisions behind the outfits that made headlines during her time as first lady during a conversation with another fashion trendsetter, Sarah Jessica Parker, who was the moderator for the Wednesday event for Obama’s “Becoming” book tour. During Obama’s eight years as first lady, she became a powerful influence in fashion; she could wear a dress and it would sell out hours after she wore it. (AP via Brooklyn Eagle)

NYCHA TOPS WORST LANDLORD LIST

It seems like everyone’s trashing the Housing Authority these days, and state Attorney General-elect Letitia James is no exception. James, who will be public advocate for another few weeks, has placed NYCHA at the top of her annual “Landlord Watchlist.” “The conditions of NYCHA buildings are among the worst in the city, and the response from management has been inadequate,” James said. This is the first year that the list, which usually includes only private landlords, has included NYCHA. (Curbed via Brooklyn Eagle)

WILLIAMSBURG RETAIL THRIVES DESPITE L-TRAIN SHUTDOWN PLAN:

The looming 15-month L-train shutdown may have decreased demand for apartments in Williamsburg, but the neighborhood’s retail sector is still relatively healthy. A recent report from the Real Estate Board of New York found that the average asking rent for ground-floor retail space along Bedford Avenue from North Eighth to Grand streets declined 11 percent between the summer of 2017 and the summer of 2018. However, it was still $351 per square feet annually, the highest among 16 retail corridors in Brooklyn that REBNY surveyed. (Crain’s via Brooklyn Eagle)

WINTERFEST OWNERS RETALIATE AGAINST VENDOR FOR SPEAKING TO THE PRESS

Winterfest behind the Brooklyn Museum has been the subject of quite a few complaints from customers and vendors. Winterfest’s organizer Millennial Entertainment has now retaliated against at least one vendor who complained. After Johanna Guevara-Smiley, owner of a herbal company, complained to Bklyner, Millennial called her statements defamatory and false, terminated her agreement and told her to remove her belongings. After other vendors protested, Millennial told her she could stay, but also gave her a “last warning.” (Gothamist via Brooklyn Eagle)