News on Oh No DoBro

Cinephiles rejoice! Alamo Drafthouse strike ends with success

Sun, 20 Apr 2025 22:02:06 +0000

Photograph by [Alamo Drafthouse][1]

If you visited City Point mall recently, you likely spotted striking workers distributing flyers outside Alamo Drafthouse. Good news: after nearly two months, the strike has ended with a victory for the union!

Hooray! The $8M Fulton Mall Facelift Begins

Tue, 06 Aug 2024 15:00:44 +0000

Image from Brooklyn Eagle

Fulton Mall, arguably the “Main Street” of Downtown Brooklyn, is about to be greener and more pedestrian friendly thanks to a joint effort between the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership, the NYC Parks Department, and the city’s Department of Transportation.

Cadman Plaza Park Gets a Cafe Upgrade – Proposals Due February 15

Fri, 10 Feb 2023 21:03:23 +0000

Get ready, Brooklynites! A brand new cafe is coming to Cadman Plaza Park in Downtown Brooklyn, and it’s going to be absolutely amazing. The NYC Parks Department is currently accepting proposals from businesses interested in setting up shop in the circa 1950s concrete maintenance building near Cadman Plaza West and Tillary Street.

Gage & Tollner now open for pickup & delivery!

Sat, 20 Feb 2021 15:01:08 +0000

Gage & Tollner was one of the sadder Downtown Brooklyn stories, with the grand re-opening scheduled for just days after the city shut down due to the Coronavirus in March 2020. Seriously: March 12th was my (and many other’s) last day working in an office, and their opening was scheduled for March 15th. Oof.

Local Businesses Take the Bait in Underage Alcohol Sting

Sat, 12 May 2018 12:56:57 +0000

The New York State Liquor Authority recently sent underage decoys to retail establishments holding liquor licenses to ferret out those that illegally sell to underage persons. The underage decoys went to 756 businesses where they attempted to buy alcoholic beverages.

Of the 756 businesses State-wide, 200 sold alcoholic beverages to the underage decoys, including a few in Downtown Brooklyn. The Downtown Brooklyn offenders included a 7 Eleven at 395 Flatbush Avenue Extension, the Brooklyn Deli at 115 Willoughby Street, and Khim’s Millennium Market at 111 Lawrence Street.

CB 2 Votes to Reject the Contentious 80 Flatbush Skyscraper

Fri, 11 May 2018 11:47:43 +0000

80 Flatbush, rendering by Alloy Development

With a vote of 32-1 on Wednesday night, the Community Board 2 rejected the 80 Flatbush project. This vote by the full board follows the vote by the CB2’s Land-Use Committee which also voted against the project.
These votes are part of the ULURP rezoning process for the development for 80 Flatbush which includes residential, office and retail space in a 74-story building and a 38-story tower. It doesn’t bode well for the multi-use project that boasts bringing an additional 700 market-rate apartments and 200 affordable apartments.
What’s next? Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams needs to issue his recommendation on the project. (Adams held a public hearing late last month. Then the NYC Planning Commission will review the project and and the process ends with a vote by the New York City Council.

Fancy Soap Shop Rain to Open in City Point for Your Self-Care Needs

Mon, 07 May 2018 11:53:49 +0000

Rain, a sustainable South African soap and skincare shop comes to City Point Brooklyn.

Soon you’ll be able to get all the artisanal soaps your heart desires at City Point. Rain, an au naturale soap, skincare, and fragrance company is opening up their first Brooklyn storefront in July.

Borough President’s Hearing for 80 Flatbush Towers

Tue, 01 May 2018 19:32:44 +0000

Despite the rain yesterday evening, a couple hundred folks lined up in Brooklyn Borough Hall to voice their opinions on the controversial 80 Flatbush Towers. It’s been a heated subject among residents of Boerum Hill, Fort Greene, Brooklyn Heights, Carroll Gardens and Cobble Hill.

Hello, Gothamist. Welcome back.

Thu, 26 Apr 2018 13:39:55 +0000

Have you heard the news? Gothamist is back!

Last year, after a vote to unionize, they were shut down. Apparently, that made WNYC sad, so WNYC brought them back. They launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise money and rally the troops. And today, they’re officially back.

I couldn’t be happier. I missed them. I know this isn’t directly related to Downtown Brooklyn, but Gothamist is a fantastic resource for all New Yorkers. So I had to celebrate here.

Brooklyn Alamo Drafthouse to get fancy new HDR projectors

Thu, 19 Apr 2018 18:53:32 +0000

The Alamo Drafthouse in Brooklyn is one of ten locations of the chain to be getting HDR (high dynamic range) Projectors, according to The Hollywood Reporter. This fancy new projection technology makes for whiter whites and blacker blacks, which I’m sure all the film-o-philes will love. They’re partnering with CinemaNext to get these new projectors in theaters.

Attempted robbery at Vivi Bubble Tea, armed with a glue gun

Tue, 17 Apr 2018 20:24:32 +0000

Image via Google Maps

After a tip to police, a believed serial robber was arrested in Vivi Bubble Tea at 113 Court St on Monday.

From Pix11:

The employee began to put money in the bag when two officers entered the store and confronted Price, police said.

Scaffolding on Starbucks collapses, injuring three

Mon, 16 Apr 2018 13:02:49 +0000

_Photo by _Eugene Zemlyanskiy

Scaffolding at a Starbucks on Court Street and Joralemon collapsed on Saturday, April 14th. Three people were sent to the hospital with minor injuries — fortunately nothing more. The NY Post has the full story.

I recently downloaded the Citizen mobile app, which sent me an alert shortly after it happened. A user had submitted a picture of the scene, but unfortunately I didn’t have the foresight to capture it for this website. I’m finding Citizen pretty useful though. It reminds me of Gothamist’s (now-defunct) Maps, but with much better UI.

A couple of award-winning buildings in our hood

Fri, 13 Apr 2018 21:33:53 +0000

The Urban Land Institute New York (ULI NY) award ceremony was on April 10th, and a few of our very own buildings were among the winners (emphasis theirs):

Some of this year’s winners from Brooklyn included Dumbo-based Two Trees Development, which nabbed the Excellence in Market-Rate Housing Development award for their breathtaking 300 Ashland building, which is already being regarded as iconic as part of the BAM Cultural District.