13th Street, 1982

Here's a film worth seeing. In tandem with the Undesign the Redline interactive installation currently at the Art Mobile in Thomas Green Park, the Fifth Avenue Committee will be showing the 1982 Erik Lewis documentary Where Can I Live - A Story of Gentrification on October 26th. The film examines the harassment and displacement of working-class Black and Brown Park Slope tenants in the early 1980s. Its main focus is on a group of 13th Street residents fighting to protect their homes and their community. The film was shot just as the Ansonia Clock Factory was being redeveloped as co-operative housing, as were a number of smaller multi-family rental buildings, and as landlords & developers were emptying buildings as fast as they could to maximize rents & property conversions.

Where Can I Live reminds us of just how much more diverse Park Slope used to be - both racially & economically.  A neighborhood that loses that diversity is always a diminished one.

The film will be shown at 12:30 at 621 Degraw Street, home of the Fifth Avenue Committee. You can also watch it online, on Vimeo.  A word of warning: the online film has a very uneven sound quality, making some parts of it inaudible.  I imagine the screening at FAC will have overcome those issues.
         


Where Can I Live - A Story of Gentrification from Erik Lewis on Vimeo.

Wycoff Street

Susan Gardner

Lot

Couch (23rd)

Early Fall at 6/15 Green

Closed

I noticed these signs at the Lopez Bistro last week.  The Lopez bakery appeared in the neighborhood at Fifth & 8th back in 2005, and moved down to Fifth and 19th five years later, expanding to offer restaurant food as well as baked goods.  It became a well-loved local staple, with more of a cafe/diner feel than a bistro. Checking on the dates of their arrival/move surprised me a bit - it felt like they'd been around much longer.  They'll be missed.

34th Street

Los Colibríes Community Garden

Raylicious

At the Pier, Coney Island

Architectural Grille