by Greenpoint-Williamsburg Waterfront Task Force WHAT'S AT STAKE? In the spring of 2001, TransGas Energy Systems, L.L.C. (TGE) began steps to construct an 1100-megawatt power plant, the largest of its kind in New York City, on the nine-acre site between >

There's a problem is Brooklyn. I am not an unsympathetic sort, but I have many accumulated reasons to be writing. I know there are many woes in the world at the moment and this is minor among those, but I >

by Susan Kosor When I showed up to see what had been advertised on Bedford Avenue as an $800 studio, I found myself in the spare room of a rather disheveled two-bedroom apartment. There was no kitchen sink and no >

by Deborah Masters We've had some bad news today. The Judge dismissed our Summary Judgment - when we filed our lawsuit against DEC and the NISA Electric Barge, their lawyers filed a Summary Judgment against us- based on the idea >

by Cynthia Coxphoto by Sean Hammerle The sentinel elders are gone now. The Maspeth holder tanks are down, lying peacefully like two slain giants after a fierce battle. With magisterial grace and dignity, it seemed like they gently knelt down, >

by Richard Bainbridge Once again, Williamsburg has gotten all worked-up over false rumors about Starbuck’s opening in the neighborhood. Here we examine the making of an urban legend and ask the question: What’s so bad about Starbuck’s, anyway? If you >

by Dave Baldwin For many, the prospect of moving to Brooklyn means affordable rents, loft space and a thriving artist community. Being attacked, solicited for prostitution, and racially harassed isn’t supposed to be part of the deal. But as more >

by Grant Moser I remember when I saw the banners appear across Havemeyer St. The tower sat in the street by Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, waiting for the festivities to begin. Food carts and carnival games began setting up >

by Lindsay Hansen If you live in Williamsburg and own a car, prepare for a big hassle. The City of New York has many parking regulations and an endless supply of officers ready to enforce them. In my first two >

by James Jackson Toth Emandee Studios, an affordable analog recording studio on Berry Street in Williamsburg, has a bit of a ghost problem. Owned and operated by three-year Williamsburg resident Mark Ospovat, Emandee is more comfortable than your average recording >

by by William Powhida Benjamin Shih spent twelve year tending bars all over the world from LA to London. After helping others open bars, Benjamin decided it was time to open his own. He jumped on the space at 277 >

by Jeanne Storck Before the factories of Williamsburg became painter's lofts, before the working class diners were converted into stylish eateries, Williamsburg was a community of laborers and immigrants where artists were the exception rather than the norm. Artists who >

by Grant Moserphotos by Joel Dietz The art of tattooing is ancient; it was practiced in Egypt as far back as 2000 BC. The word tattoo is Polynesian in origin, and was introduced into the English language by European sailors >

by Kathleen Wereszynski Greenpoint, Williamsburg’s sleepy little sister to the north, is waking up. But the Point’s vibe is decidedly more laid-back than its better-known neighbor. Perhaps because its out-of-the-way locale keeps Manhattan’s curious at bay. Or maybe it’s because >

by Sarah Sundberg Once Upon a Time, a night out in Williamsburg meant you had a miserably small amount of choices in the bar department. Then there was Galapagos, the Diner and a handful of other places. Now we’re so >

by Ben Beshaw The labeling of an artistic movement or of a musical sound almost always brings about its downfall. There are way too many historical references to site so I'm not going to start, but I do intend to >

by Grant Moser According to Encarta, glassblowing originated in the Middle East along the Phoenician Coast in the 1st century B.C. The process of actually making glass had occurred in the Middle East as well, but dates to the 3rd >

by Lillie Jayne With the dense summer heat pressing you into submission as you wait for the delinquent subway or sweat your way along the unforgiving concrete, as exhaust and debris create a fine coat of grime on your drenched >

by Richard Bainbridge Whether you want blissful yoga, trance-inducing tai chi, some kick ass kung fu, a dreamy shiatsu massage, or even just a little feng shui to balance your life, we’ve got it all. Richard Baimbridge spent two weeks >

by Paul Kermizian When you think of bowling in New York City, you probably decide your choices are limited to Bowlmor, Chelsea Piers, and "that sketchy place in the basement of Port Authority". For Manhattanites, this is true. Bowlmor is >

by Fran Pado The finer shades of glamour are often absent from today's cool unisex hair salons. Predictable dance music, $100 aromatherapy cuts, and stylists who act like rock stars tire and confuse me. Not that these cut-o-ramas aren't exciting; >

by Michelle Stewart One day I was sitting on my tuckus feeling sorry for myself because I wanted to go out and do something fun for me for a change, and I felt like my mommy-hood was interfering with my >

by Meghan SutherlandPhotos by Jason Kempin Williamsburg is filled with buildings that seem out of place, empty, or just plain interesting. When I walk by them I always wonder who goes in there? What do they do in there? Can >

by Mindy Tucker It is a simple sport: to laugh at the sincere. The stance of a skeptic can be as comfortable a posture as the blessed assurance a Christian avows after salvation. To laugh at the earnest is the >

by Mindy TuckerPhotos by Rose Callahan In a project for the Brooklyn Animal Resource Coalition, Rose Callahan, a photographer, and Karen Heimann, a graphic designer, have put together a portfolio featuring Williamsburg's finest artists, performers, and men about town. Included >

by Ethan Pettit My family has a traditional Thanksgiving joke called pass the second joint." That's the joke. You say "pass the second joint," and everyone laughs. The second joint was my grandfather's favorite part of the turkey, and he >

by Razor Blade Shoe That night Mary was going out to see what was going on in Williamsburg where she lives. At first she was stunned, surfing the internet and getting emotionally caught in the dramatic noodles somewhere between a >

by Rob Cummings Jose Badillo sits outside the Kool Man garage on Grand Street in Brooklyn, eating a ham sandwich and drinking a diet Pepsi at 10 on a Friday morning. Between bites, Badillo stares at the sky. It's one >

by Robert CummingsGraffiti is not dead; it's just gone legit.The Metropolitan Transit Authority has nearly eradicated graffiti underground, but the wild, spray-paint characters that once decorated this city's subway trains have begun to surface in movies, murals, mainstream advertising and >

An independent village was established in 1664. Williamsburg remained a small farming community until the opening of the Erie Canal in 1825. Kings County, including Williamsburg, had the highest number of slaves per capita in New York until the abolition >

State Senator Patrick McCarren began introducing bills for the construction of a bridge to Manhattan in 1884. When local civic leaders organized in 1895, the bridge proposal finally went through and the Williamsburg Bridge opened in 1903. The opening of >

Williamsburg (spelled "Williamsburgh" at the time) became an independent city at just the moment when the New York area was set to become the most important port and financial center in the Western Hemisphere, just after the opening of the >

No one ethnicity has ever dominated Williamsburg as a whole. Norwegians, French Huguenots, Italians, Swedes and one free African family were among the original 23 families of Het Strand on the East River. Today the census says Williamsburg is 49% >

1638 The Keskaechquerem, or Canarsie, Indians of the Algonquin language family sell a swampy bog called Cripplebush (today Bushwick, Greenpoint and Williamsburg) to the Dutch West India Company. 1650s Unregulated squatting by farmers from Norway, France, Italy, Sweden, and both >

Ascenzi family Ascenzi square is at Metropolitan and North 4th Street, named for the Ascenzi family that lived at 262 North 6th Street. Four sons fought and two sons died in World War I. Bedford One theory suggests the name >