 The Sixth Sense |
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Greetings!
Welcome to The Sixth Sense - the monthly email newsletter of Brooklyn Community Board 6, serving the neighborhoods of Carroll Gardens/ South Brooklyn, Cobble Hill, Columbia Street Waterfront, Gowanus, Park Slope and Red Hook.
"HOW ARE WE DOING?"
When we switched over to a newsletter format at the beginning of the year we said we were doing it 1) because we wanted to reduce our impact on the environment by cutting back on the number of monthly hard copy mailings we sent out, 2) to invite and involve more people in the work of their local community board, and 3) to reduce our operating expenses. We're six months into this new format and it's a good time to take an honest look at how we're meeting our goals.
1) Reducing environmental impact. Switching to an electronic delivery system has enabled us to shift most of our monthly communications from hand-assembled hard copy mailings to this newsletter. Each assembled piece consumed, on average, one 9x12 envelope, 11 sheets of paper, one mailing label, two staples, and some red ink to display the postage. We cut our monthly mailing back from 967 pieces a month to 344.
On a yearly basis, that means we have reduced our office supply consump-tion by: 7,476 envelopes (7.5 cases), 82,236 sheets of copy paper (165 reams or 16.5 cases), 7,476 mailing labels (2.5 boxes), 14,952 staples (3 boxes), and several ounces of red ink for postage. Imagine that? A City agency using less red ink!
2) Involving more people. When we started building our email list in December 2009 we were immediately able to reduce our monthly mailing from 967 to 344 because we had the 623 email addresses on file. Since we have been sending out more and more email over the last few years, we were also able to accumulate roughly 2,000 additional email addresses of residents, businesses, service providers and other stakeholders who take an interest in what we do.
So when we started on January 1st we had 2,654 subscribers in our initial email news-letter mailing. Now we have 3,196 sub-scribers. That's a 20.4% increase in subscribers over our first 6 months in publication, many of whom are self-subscribers. (Thanks for subscribing, Tell a friend!)
We're also reaching out to 3,540 people individually on a month-ly basis (3,196 subscribers + 344 hard copy mailings = 3,540 people) as compared to 967 per month in 2009. Basically, nearly four times as many people are receiving our monthly general meeting agenda and minutes, alerts of upcoming meetings and events, and other information about the many programs, projects and policies that affect daily life in the district.
3) Reducing operating costs. Using the figures from item 1, we're saving in one year in materials alone: $235.58 in envelopes + $524.70 in paper + $28.68 in labels = $788.96 in consumable office supplies. Add to that the amount of postage we save on a monthly basis, using $0.262 as our average unit cost per piece, means a savings of $163.226 per month, or $1,958.71 in postage savings a year. All tolled, that means in consumable materials and postage, we save $2,747.67 from our Brooklyn Community Board 6 city budget.
Of course, our newsletter delivery system isn't free. We've incurred a new annual cost of $764.04 for the use of Constant Contact, which permits us to grow up to 5,000 email addresses before we will have to move to the next higher usage bracket. But since the newsletter is a project of our non-profit organization, Friends of Brooklyn Community Board, Inc., this new cost isn't being charged against our very limited city budget dollars.
How are we doing? You tell us. We think we're off to a good start.
Get involved. Stay active!
Please enjoy our newsletter and do let us know what you would like to see in future editions.
P.S. If you like what you see here, please use the "Forward email to a friend" link at the bottom of the page to pass this email along to a friend or two. There are over 104,000 residents and thousands of businesses in our district. We'd love it if they would all sign up! Click here for links to archived newsletters. |
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Recession-Busting Tips 2: Doing More with Less!
In last month's issue we shared some ideas for how you can weather the economic downturn a bit easier. The link we provided to the State Comptroller's website proved to be the most popular link to date. We've included it again below (item #3). Help spread the word to your family, friends and neighbors. It's your money!
Here's a couple more quick and simple ideas...
1) Protect Your Money. The Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA) has created an Office of Financial Empowerment, the first local government initiative in the nation aimed expressly at educating, empowering, and protecting those with low incomes, so they can build assets and make the most of their financial resources. You don't have to have a low income to benefit from the information and advice posted on their website. DCA provides many free programs and services, including safe bank accounts and one-on-one financial counseling, that can help you learn how to manage your money and build for your family's future. Read about how you can take control and Protect Your Money.
2) Rediscover Your Kitchen. Did you know that each day you make around 200 choices about what you eat? When we fail to plan or feel stressed, we don't always make the best choices. Look around your kitchen. Does it serve you? Is it inviting or daunting? Make it your's. Preparing your own food can prove to be a less expensive lifestyle choice. Cooking couldn't be easier to learn, practice or master. Take a cooking class. Become the master of your domain. Eat more fresh foods, especially fruits and veggies. Visit your local greenmarket. Go locavore! Drink more tap water. New York City drinking water is considered to be among the tastiest. Save money, and live longer and healthier lives.
3) Claim what's yours. Government is holding onto billions of dollars that doesn't belong to it. Money from old bank accounts, safe deposit boxes, stock sales, utility deposits, insurance accounts, inheritances, and other odd sources that were turned over to the government by someone else. The NYS Comptroller's Office has a wonderful online database that you can use to search for money that might be yours. Search for friends, family, neighbors, or anyone you might know. Need access to a compu-ter with Internet access? You can always use your local library. And if you're not sure what to do with any found money, you can always consider making a tax-deductible contribution to Friends of Brooklyn Community Board 6, Inc.
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On The Waterfront: Happenings in the Blue Space 
PortSide New York was founded to energize and shape a major movement of our time - the plan-ning of NYC's waterfront. Their mission is to bring the blue space to life. Climb onboard the Mary A. Whalen and learn more about the movement at a special funraising event from 6:00-8:30pm on Saturday, July 3 at Pier 11. (Discounted tickets now available.)
Visit the Urban Divers Estuary Conservancy's Enviromedia Mobile - the amazing travelling nature and maritime museum on wheels - on one of their upcoming Family Fun weekends at IKEA/Erie Basin Park from 1:00-5:00pm on Saturday, July 17; Sunday, August 15; or Sunday, September 12. The Family Fun Weekend is a monthly summer series in waterfront recreation and environmental awareness. This unique state-of-the-art mobile museum is a project of UDEC, a community based not-for-profit environmental and cultural organizations that serves our community, now going on its 11th year.
Check out Brooklyn's newest waterfront park - Pier 6 at Brooklyn Bridge Park. Pier 6 features a 1.6-acre destination playground with water play, swings, slides and other innovative play equip-ment, a dog run located on the uplands near the Atlantic Avenue park entrance, and a pedestrian promenade leads from the play-ground onto the Pier and provides views of lower Manhattan and the New York Harbor. And while you're there, hop the free ferry to Governors Island from the newest ferry stop in Brooklyn. Gover-nors Island is open every Friday through Sunday, from June 5 through October 10. Ferries depart Brooklyn's Pier 6 every 10 minutes on Saturdays and Sundays from 11:00am to 5:20pm.
On the horizon, make sure to catch The Waterfront Museum and Showboat Barge's 2010 Tug & Barge Tour. The tour will feature tug rides, exhibits that showcase the use of tugs and barges as efficient and effective means of transport and commerce, authentic Showboat performances for locals and tourists alike, and low-cost kids educational programs. From August 26 to September 1 the tour will dock at Brooklyn Bridge Park, Pier 6. |
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Celebrating Community!
Thank you Friends of Carroll Park and Council Member Brad Lander for sponsoring an upcoming electronic waste recycling event from 10:00am to 4:00pm on Saturday, July 31, at Carroll Park, Smith Street between President and Union Streets. The event will be held rain or shine and the following items are acceptable: Working and non-working computers, monitors, printers, scanners, keyboards, mice, cable, TVs, VCRs, DVD players, phones, audio-visual equipment and PDAs. Be sure to check out Friends of Carroll Park's schedule of upcoming events!Congrats to Deputy Inspector Kenneth Corey, Commanding Officer of the 76th Precinct, who was recently promoted from Captain to the prestigious rank of Deputy Inspector at a promotion ceremony at One Police Plaza!
Congrats to Congregation Beth Elohim, who will be receiving the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce's Tenth Annual Building Brooklyn Awards in the category of Historic Preservation (Exterior Restoration) at a ceremony on July 15, 2010.
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Friends of Brooklyn Community Board 6, Inc. (Federal EIN 04-3780020) was established in 2003 to support the work of Brooklyn Community Board 6 in improving the quality of life in the district. Friends seeks to provide planning, advocacy, research and administrative resources to supplement the limited capacities and budget of the Community Board, thus enabling it to properly carry out its City Charter mandated tasks of evaluating the needs of the district and advocating on behalf of its communities.
Friends of Brooklyn Community Board 6, Inc. is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Donations are welcome and are tax-deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law. |
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For the Next Monthly General Board Meeting |  |
6:30pm, September 15
(Note: September's meeting was moved to the 3rd Wednesday due to the holiday conflict!)
Agenda for upcoming general meeting
(not available yet)
(Board members should respond with corrections to minutes.)
All posted Community Board meetings (general, committee, informational, etc.) are open to the public and we encourage you to attend; however, participation may be limited depending on the agenda. Contact the district office if further clarification is needed. |
| Ask the DM |  |
A media reporter fact-checker recently wanted to know:
"Your district is located in the northwest section of the borough of Brooklyn. So why is it sometimes referred to as 'South Brooklyn'?"
In the 1600's, when the Europeans began settling in what is now the New York City metropolitan area, they organized themselves into smaller villages. These early settlers did not venture too far inland at first. The earliest waves of European settlers were predominantly Dutch, then English, and their influences are still evident throughout the region.
What is now referred to as the borough of Brooklyn was originally a collection of 6 villages, namely, Gravesend, Breuckelen (Brooklyn), Nieuw Amersfoort (Flatlands), Midwout (Flatbush), Nieuw Utrecht, and Boswyck (Bushwick).
"Brooklyn", at the time, extended from Brooklyn Heights to the north, into central Brooklyn to the east, down to Sunset Park to the south. "South Brooklyn" collectively referred to the area that now gene-rally encompasses the neighbor-hoods of Sunset Park, Gowanus, Carroll Gardens, and Red Hook.
Red Hook, or Roode Hoek, was a nautical map descrip-tor assigned by the Dutch to note the prominent red clay soil whose projected coastline formed a hook-shaped land configuration.
The 6 villages eventually became organized under the British as Kings County on November 1, 1683. Kings County became a center of epic battles during the American Revolutionary War. It was crossed several times by General George Washington as he led the colonials to fight against British rule.
On August 27, 1776, the first major engagement between British soliders and colonials was fought at the Battle of Long Island, also called the Battle of Brooklyn, which took place within the Brooklyn CB6 district. The colonial army suffered incredible losses, but they enabled General Washington to escape across the harbor to reorganize his forces and ultimately defeat the British.
Each year, the Battle of Brooklyn is commemorated in the Green-wood Cemetery, which also offers tours and many interesting events and programs for visitors throughout the year.
In 1894 voters decided to consolidate the City of Brooklyn with Manhattan, Queens, the Bronx, and Richmond (Staten Island) to become the five boroughs of New York City. This referen-dum took effect in 1898.
"South Brooklyn", as old-timers still refer to it, is not the same as southern Brooklyn. Trust me. You really don't want to confuse the two.
Got a question?
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Who's Who at CB6
CB6 2010 Officers:
● Richard Bashner,
Chairperson
● Ray Lohier,
First Vice Chairperson
● Nica Lalli,
Second Vice Chairperson
● David Reiss,
Treasurer
● Elly Spicer,
Secretary
CB6 Chairs:
● Ben Atkins,
Housing
● Richard Bashner,
Executive
● James Bernard,
Youth Services, Co-Chair
● Stephen Burzio,
Community Development;
Transportation, Co-Chair ● Peter Fleming,
Land Use
● Mark Kolman,
Human Services
● Daniel Kummer,
Permits & Licenses ● Nica Lalli,
Parks/Recreation/Cultural Affairs
● Robert Levine,
● Ray Lohier,
Budget; Public Safety
● Rick Luftglass,
Economic Development, Co-Chair
● Thomas Miskel,
Transportation, Co-Chair ● Greg O'Connell,
Waterfront Development
● Gary Reilly,
Environmental Protection ● David Reiss,
Economic Development, Co-Chair
● Suzanne Turet,
Education
● Derrick C. Vito,
Youth Services, Co-Chair
District Office Staff:
● Craig Hammerman,
District Manager
● Leroy P. Branch, Jr.
Assistant District Manager
● Liza Santiago,
Office Manager
● Helena Miskel,
Office Volunteer
● Peter Katz,
Planning Fellow
● Maritza Lopez,
Clerical Worker
Newsletter Production:
● Craig Hammerman,
Editor |
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