by Jennifer Stokes, Program Manager, Myrtle Avenue Brooklyn Partnership

There is increasingly more green activity on Myrtle Avenue.

There are businesses that by mission and/or nature of their products are green. Examples are Green in BKLYN, the one stop eco-friendly shop for products and information; Green Pets, the eco-friendly pet daycare spa and pet grooming store; RePOP, the popular vintage furniture store and of course, Bikes on Myrtle.

There are also companies that do not market themselves as green but in business practice or special “lines” are so. Examples of these are Karen’s Body Beauty, the spa and hair, bath and body shop that uses natural and earth-friendly products; the Polish Bar of Brooklyn’s ‘Green Gals Beauty’, which offers greener product and service options and Gnarly Vines, the wine store that has quite diverse wine offerings and includes a focus on small-production, sustainable or stricter wines. Additionally, Brooklyn Junior, the kiddie clothing and toy store, prints all of their onesies and tees with water-based and eco-friendly non-toxic inks and the PrattSTORE has a rental center for various art supplies, such as drills, easels and airbrushes and a buyback program for unused art supplies. Also, one can return excess plastic bags at both Associated and Bravo on Myrtle Avenue and can return hangers at many of the dry cleaners on the Avenue, including Yes Cleaners and Fantastic Cleaners.

Business build-outs have also been increasingly green. The latest is Myrtle Hall, Pratt Institute’s building which houses its Digital Arts Department and several offices. Myrtle Hall is expected to meet the United States Green Council standards for LEED Gold certification based on its eco-features, which include exterior sun shades and solar photo-voltaic panels that generate on-site electricity. Many small businesses have also extensively preserved, reused or repurposed in the build-out process, including Chez Lola (including using mattress springs found in the restaurant as a wine rack), Root Stock & Quade, (including gravel used to promote drainage, low odor and low VOC paints and wallpapers from almost another era still on walls) and Green in BKLYN (including reusing fittings, such as lights, fan, storage shelves from the former doctors’ office and buying from a closing business).

The Myrtle Avenue Brooklyn Partnership operates a Farm Stand from July thru October where the focus is on selling local produce which both reduces the carbon footprint with its focus on ‘local’ produce and addresses the limited access to fresh produce on the western end of the Avenue.

Also, the Myrtle Avenue Brooklyn Partnership (MyrtleBags) as well as a few local businesses such as Green in BKLYN, Barking Brown and Byme Brooklyn sell reusable shopping bags in hopes of building a critical mass of earth-friendly shoppers on the Avenue.

Lastly, the majority of food establishments on the Avenue (more than 30) are signed on for free grease recycling through the Doe Fund’s Resource Recovery Program or Tri-state Biodiesel and other companies.

Please visit the Myrtle Avenue Partnership at www.myrtleavenue.org for additional eco-info. Also look for a more extensive Earth Day blog post on Myrtle’s green activities.

The Fort Greene Association (FGA) sources daily news about Fort Greene and the surrounding neighborhoods to keep you up to speed on what’s going on in our neighborhood and to highlight what makes our neighborhood so special and unique. If you are interested in receiving immediate daily updates please become a Fan of the Fort Greene Association on Facebook or Follow us on Twitter

Here are This Week’s Top
FGA Facebook and Twitter stories:

1. Confirmed: Atlantic Yards is Toxic
2. Parents React to Sean Keaton’s Acquittal
3. Portrait of a Changing Neighborhood: Bob Marchesano
4. New Countdown Clock at Flatbush and Fulton
5. Pair of Petitions Surface in Support of F + S Tires
6. In Fort Greene, a Charter School Surrenders in a Space Fight
7. Families Turn Up En Masse to Support PPW Bike Lane
8. Crackdown! City Hitting Cyclists with Twice as Many Tickets
9. Big Things Happening in Small Museums
10. Police Athletic League Needs Volunteers

Magnet for the Masses: When Theater was PARAMOUNT in Brooklyn - Free and Open to the Public

An all-day conference featuring panels and performances that celebrate the history of the legendary Paramount theater and other grand theaters in Brooklyn in the early 20th Century. The event is free and open to the public.

The legendary Brooklyn Paramount Theater at Long Island University’s Brooklyn Campus, along with other grand theaters in Brooklyn, will be celebrated during a one-day conference at the Campus on April 15, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

“Magnet for the Masses: When Theater was Paramount in Brooklyn” — a free event that is open to the public — will feature musical performances and a star-studded cast of panelists that includes radio and television personality Joe Franklin and famous Hollywood movie maker Norman Steinberg, who helped write the screenplay for the Mel Brooks classic “Blazing Saddles.”

The conference will take place in the historic theater located at 1 University Plaza (at DeKalb and Flatbush Avenues in Downtown Brooklyn). Reservations are required and can be made by calling (718) 488-1185 or sending an email to [email protected].

Other panelists scheduled to take part in the morning panel discussions are Joseph Boskin, author of “Rebellious Laughter;” performer Mary Favia; David Harmon of Harmony Productions; singer/comedienne “Dr. Sue” Horowitz; screenwriter Ron Hutchinson of “The Vitaphone Project;” theater historian Craig Morrison; producer Richie “O” of “The Joe Franklin Show;” Don K. Reed of WCBS FM’s “The Doo Wop Shop;” Brooklyn historian Ron Schweiger; vaudeville historian Travis Stewart; and architecture and theater engineering expert Peter Tymus, an administrator at the Brooklyn Campus.

Registration begins at 8 a.m., followed by panel discussions from 9 a.m. until noon. Topics will include “Bright for Day: Theatrical Lights, Show Business and The Transformation of American Popular Culture in Brooklyn” and “Performers and Audiences: The Making of New Americans and The Remaking of America in the Brooklyn Paramount and Other Theaters in Our Borough.”

Performances by Joe Amato on the Paramount’s “Mighty Wurlitzer,” the Sammy Saxx Doo Wop Group, vaudeville performer Travis Stewart, and The Giacomo Gates Quintet featuring Sam Newsome, Greg Lewis, Carlos de Rosa, Eric Wyatt will follow the morning discussions, from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.

About the Paramount Theater

Designed by the storied Chicago firm of Rapp & Rapp, the Brooklyn Paramount Theater opened in 1928 as a showpiece for its namesake studio. Considered a “proletarian palace,” the rococo-designed theater had approximately 4,000 seats covered in red velvet. Its sky-blue ceiling featured painted clouds, and the decor included extensive Renaissance-imitated statuaries and sculptures. The 60-foot stage curtains were decorated with satin embroidered pheasants and in the lobby were huge chandeliers and fountains with goldfish. In addition to moving pictures, the theater also offered great vaudeville performers, and later, major stars like Bing Crosby and Ethel Merman. In the 1950’s, the Paramount created a sensation with Alan Freed’s famous Rock ‘N’ Roll show with Chuck Berry, Fats Domino and others musicals stars. The Paramount was also a central place for jazz in New York. Duke Ellington, Charlie Parker, Ella Fitzgerald and Miles Davis are just some of the legends that performed on the stage.

After the Paramount building was sold to Long Island University in 1950, it continued to function as a theater for two more decades. Gradually, the structure was converted into college administrative offices and a gymnasium. Still, many signs of the theater’s decor are intact, as its legendary nine-story auditorium and the magnificent lobby. The “Mighty Wurlitzer,” second in size only to the organ at Radio City Music Hall is still operational and features more than 2,000 pipes and 257 stops that imitate a variety of sounds: a brass brand, percussion instruments, train whistles, bird calls, horse hoofs and all the sounds necessary to allow the organist to accompany a movie.

“Magnet for the Masses” has been organized by Brooklyn Campus Professors Michael Hittman (Anthropology) and Joseph Dorinson (History). It is co-sponsored by the Theatre Museum Project (Helen Marie Guditis, Director), The New York City Council for the Humanities and the John P. McGrath Fund with support from the Long Island University Brooklyn Campus Anthropology, Sociology, Journalism, Media Arts and Social Work departments.

Lafayette Avenue Presbyterian Church, 85 S. Oxford Street (corner of S. Oxford & Lafayette Ave.)
Lecture Room, entrance on South Oxford Street

• Show Your Kids Their Greenest Summer Yet
• It’s not Easy Being Green
• Revitalizing Fort Greene’s Waterfront
• Fort Greene Schools-The Greene Hill School
• Spring Greening - Online
• Newscenes and Farewells
• Cntrl-Alt-Del Reboot Your Life

And and mark your calendars for our:

Next Fort Greene Association
Neighborhood Mixer & Meeting:
Monday, May 2, 7PM

Topic: Lights, Camera, Jobs!

The arts scene is alive in Fort Greene but behind the scenes are the many well-paying jobs that keep this industry running. Come to our next meeting to get a look into the Arts all happening in Fort Greene and the careers waiting for you in Fort Greene.

Arrive early to join us for our Neighborhood Mixer sponsored by National “Fort Greene’s inexpensive, authentic Thai food in a hip, chic environment from the boys who brought you Joya and Song.”

Please visit www.HistoricFortGreene.org for meeting detail updates.

Thanks to our April 2011 Newsletter Underwriters:
Fort Greene Artisan Market
Jerry Minsky - Prudential Douglas Elliman Real Estate
The Society for Clinton Hill

We Ride the Lanes!
Prospect Park West Family Bike Ride

Here are this week’s top FGA Facebook and Twitter stories:

Last month the Fort Greene Assocaition [FGA] brought you a Free Tree Give Away as a warm-up to what we’re calling “Earth Month.”

This month the FGA will feature articles bursting with information about being Green in Fort Greene and Clinton Hill. We’ll turn Earth Day into Earth Month. Doesn’t Mother Earth deserve it?

Fort Greene Greenmarket: One-Stop Shop for Sustainability
By Amanda Gentile

At the Fort Greene Greenmarket shoppers have their pick of fresh, healthy, seasonal and flavorful food produced by local growers. Food dollars spent on fruit, vegetables, meat and dairy here directly support family farms and sustainable growing practices.

Residents can return weekly with fruit and vegetable scraps, which can be dropped off at the Greenmarket compost stand between 8am-3pm. Material collected will be transported to a compost facility where it will be turned into a fertile soil amendment. Previously managed by volunteers the Fort Green Compost Project, GrowNYC has taken over the collection to expand the hours and offer drop-off points at 6 additional markets. Food comprises about 17% of NYC’s waste stream, but when diverted from landfills through composting, becomes a useful product that adds nutrients and improves the quality of soil for street trees, gardens and more.

In addition to greening your kitchen, this Greenmarket will take care of your closet too. A shocking 6% of NYC trash is comprised of clothing and textiles, but this material need not go to waste. GrowNYC’s weekly textile collection, operated in partnership with Wearable Collections, accepts shirts, shoes, towels, sheets and more that will be sorted for reuse or get recycled into other items such as rags and non-toxic insulation. To-date, GrowNYC has diverted nearly 1,000,000 pounds of textiles from the landfill.

Call this trifecta a “sustainability center,” set in a bustling community that thrives with farmers, neighbors, free recipes, cooking demonstrations, and more.

For more information, or get involved visit www.grownyc.org

Fort Greene Happenings

Your Fort Greene Weekend Staycation starts today! Visit our event calendar to learn what’s going on in and around Fort Greene. While you are planning your weekend out on the town, be sure to take advantage of Dine in Brooklyn’s dining deals!

Do you have an event taking place in Fort Greene you want to announce to residents and visitors? Take advantage of our free event listing service on our website by submitting your events to http://historicfortgreene.org/submit-an-event/. Please allow 5 business days for your event to be posted to the FGA’s event calendar.

Transportation Updates

State Committeewoman / District Leader Olanike “Ola” Alabi announced yesterday the NYC Transit and the NYC Department of Transportation (DOT) B25 & B26 buses will now stop directly across from the Grace Agard Harewood (Fort Greene Senior) Center to accommodate the needs of the community; the paperwork is currently being processed.

Top Stories in and around Fort Greene

The Fort Greene Association (FGA) sources daily news about Fort Greene and the surrounding neighborhoods to keep you up to speed on what’s going on in our neighborhood and to highlight what makes our neighborhood so special and unique. If you are interested in receiving immediate daily updates please become a Fan of the Fort Greene Association on Facebook or Follow us on Twitter

Here are this week’s top FGA Facebook and Twitter stories:

1. Fire at Fort Greene Restaurant
2. Supermoon at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, 7:32PM, March 19, 2011
3. Hipster Trap Coming To Your ‘Hood?
4. Finally! Supermarket Coming Soon to Ashland
5. Fort Greene’s Cambodian Cuisine, Now on Wheels
6. Rosie Perez Hosts Fort Greene Festival Kick-Off Party
7. Upon the Burning of Our Store - Brooklyn Free Store
8. “That’s Brooklyn”: Starbucks CEO Dismisses Park Slope In Favor Of Bensonhurst
9. DeKalb Market Will Feature Incubator Farm, Food Vendors
10. Hawk Munches Pigeon on a Porch

Support the FGA Today!

The Fort Greene Association (FGA) is the clear strong voice of Fort Greene, getting our strength from our membership and the contributions you give. That strength gives the FGA a greater voice with elected officials and government agencies on behalf of your neighborhood concerns. Make your voice stronger by becoming a member of the Fort Greene Association today.

The FGA is an all-volunteer, non-profit organization that supports and works in concert with the many other fine organizations that make our community so special and vital. Please help the FGA become stronger with your time - volunteering on a FGA committee and your tax deductible donation that will bring a full year of benefits to you and your neighborhood.

Your donation matters, please be generous making your much needed tax deductible donation to the Fort Greene Association today. To learn more about the FGA and how you can make a donation please visit http://historicfortgreene.org/join-renew/ today!