Starting Monday, alternate-side-of-the-street parking will be suspended on residential streets in Park Slope until further notice. The parking reprieve is being granted while the city changes all the signage to reflect a big change in the alternate-side parking rules: On street cleaning days, the duration of the “No Parking” times will be cut from three hours to 90 minutes in Park Slope. This also means that until all the new signs are in place –......

Pictured: Jon Crow entering Union Hall; from surveillance video. Before the big meeting tomorrow at Borough Hall, the Brooklyn Paper weighs in on the great Union Hall debate of Aught Eight. Recently some neighbors, led by Jon Crow, rallied together to stop the renewal of the establishment's liquor license at the end of the month; one neighbor, who has since moved, told us, "This place had a serious impact on my life, on my......

Today, in the wake of the CB6 meeting that took place last night, Eugene Mirman tells us what he really thinks of his nagging neighbors; sentiments that are surely being echoed from his speech last night. Put in some earplugs and read carefully Crow & Co.I feel bad that some people are genuinely bothered by the noise outside the bar — and Union Hall has done a lot to remedy the situation. I don’t live......

Pictured L-R: Anti-Union Hallers Roberta Lehrner and Jon "Old Man" Crow -- and their laundry list of complaints. Late last month some residents of Park Slope secured themselves a Community Board meeting with CB6 to air their complaints about Union Hall, and attempt to stop their liquor license from getting renewed. The meeting took place last night, lasted more than two hours, and to everyone's surprise -- the board voted against Union Hall. The......

Like No Impact Man before him, Brooklyn resident Scott Ballum embarked last month on a year long mission to radically examine his own patterns of consumption. He’s calling it the Consume®econnection Project, and his plan sounds simple yet exhausting: The Mission: A year-long effort to meet the laborers and craftsmen who build what I buy – and put a human face on consumption. For every transaction, there must be a personal connection with someone along......

Is Park Slope ready for its close up? The Post is reporting that the 'nabe may be getting the Star treatment, that is...the Darren Star treatment. He's "teamed with Sony and NBC for a proposed series about a group of affluent characters who live in the upscale Brooklyn neighborhood." The same execs of the yet-to-be-titled show also brought Sex and the City to the small screen, a series that Brooklyn-bashed throughout its lifespan. Post-Carrie Bradshaw,......

As if Brooklyn music venues aren't suffering enough right now, residents are currently rising up against what they call a "nuisance bar" in Park Slope. That bar is Union Hall. Jon Crow, one of those spearheading the campaign to shut the venue down, emailed us about an upcoming public hearing regarding the renewal of Union Hall's liquor license, admitting, "those of us fighting this nuisance bar are fully aware this hearing won't close it down."......

Erstwhile principal and school founder Debbie Almontaser made the front page of The New York Times today. The article is about how a woman who attempted to found a school based on cultural and religious understanding was forced from her position as the principal thanks to the resistance of spirited opponents. Almontaser founded the Khalil Gibran International Academy, which she envisioned as a dual language --English and Arabic--school that emphasized the cultural accomplishments of Middle......

Wildwood: Pit master “Big Lou” Elrose has come a long way from his Ozone Park lunch wagon; the 6’4 Brooklyn-born behemoth has now transferred from Hill Country to this new Park Avenue South barbecue restaurant, part of the B.R. Guest empire. The atmosphere is urban industrial and reclaimed rustic, with high ceilings and a 50-foot-long bar. Big Lou’s famous ribs, pork brisket, pulled pork and smoked chicken can be paired with such sides as Cast......

Photo by Dave Surgan. This past Sunday Brooklyn was host to a Robot Parade. Why? Some residents put one together and marched their metallic legs from Park Slope to Prospect Park, "just for fun." Check out more photos of their journey, here.......

Photo courtesy Gothamist reader Heather D. One Park Slope resident emailed us to describe a surprising scene unfolding this morning on 4th Street between 6th and 7th Avenues.I went out for my coffee around 10am and there were 4 white undercover SUVs, an NYPD emergency truck and a large, black DEP/HAZMAT truck/mobile unit parked on my street! When I came back from my coffee run I saw a Fire Dept. SUV parked at the 6th......

Ricky Kenig, owner of Ricky's (you've probably bought a Halloween costume there before), is leaving his Brooklyn home at 409 Eighth Street. Just last fall it was reported that he'd be expanding his chain to the neighborhood after purchasing a $1.3 million home there; he was said to be "enamored" with the borough. Now, less than a year later, the 19-foot-wide town house (circa 1899) has undergone a $1 million facelift and will be back......

Few residents of Park Slope, Brooklyn are probably aware that they share their neighborhood with a firearms company that has operated in the borough for almost a century. The Henry Repeating Arms Co. is garnering some unwelcome attention this week, however, after it was revealed that the company shipped four of its lever-action rifles with live rounds inside. The company produces around 100,000 rifles annually. The incident where loaded weapons were shipped has to do......

Last month The Brooklyn Eagle had a report on how Brooklyn has been sucking the creative lifeblood right out of Manhattan. In recent years Brooklyn has experienced a 33.2 percent increase in the number of self-employed creatives, while Manhattan’s growth during the same period was a mere 6.5 percent. On Wednesday the Center for an Urban Future held a forum addressing the impact of Brooklyn’s growing cluster of self-employed creative freelancers on the borough’s economy.......

It seems like every other weekend, Brooklyn is home to some kind of homestyle cooking competition, with a constant rotation of cupcake-offs, chili massacres, a big jerk-off, and probably some vegan tofu spread-a-thons somewhere. Prizes at these things are typically anything from homely trophies to a few cans of PBR, but the just-announced, upcoming inaugural Risotto Challenge is something special indeed: The prizes are going to be very nice. More on that below. On April......

CONTEST ALERT: Tomorrow night the indie-elite will gather at Terminal 5 for The Plug Awards -- featuring Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, St. Vincent, José Gonzalez, Dizzee Rascal, The Forms, DiVinci and more. Tickets are sold out, so you can either watch the show here, or you can win tickets from us! We're giving away 5 pairs, starting now. Just email GothamistContest@gmail.com and tell us why you want to go. MUSIC: White Williams,......

The NY Post spoke to two Park Slope residents before declaring the new Babeland sex toy shop would be giving off some bad vibes to the locals when it moved into their 'hood. But NYMag points out the Park Slope parents, if the Brooklynian message board is any indication, are rather delighted by their future neighbor. One stroller pusher declared, "How silly of the Post. Where do they think all the babies come from?" Well,......

Mini Butterfly, by j_bary at flickrToday on the Gothamis Newsmap: a bank robbery on 40th St. and 7th Ave. in Manhattan, a stabbing on Morris Ave. and East 190th St. in the Bronx, and a sinkhole on 68th St. and Madison Ave. in Manhattan. The original and exisiting Coney Island boardwalk originated from wood chopped down from the Amazon rainforest. The new and improved CI boardwalk will be made of plastic, made from oil.......

It all started with a NY Times reporter-blogger's ride on the DC Metro. The Times' Jennifer 8. Lee spied a poster in a Metro subway car, showing a rat along with the copy (emphasis is ours): "Unlike some subway systems (which will remain nameless), you don’t see rats the size of house cats roaming the Metro. Why not? Because we are so strict about eating and drinking in the system. So help us keep......

Frozen Coney, by MurphyZero at flickrToday on the Gothamist Newsmap: a bank robbery on Livingston St. in Brooklyn, another bank robbery on 2nd Ave. in Manhattan, and a third bank robbery on 71-41 Main St. in Queens. Even diamonds can get family members riled up and stabbing this way and that. Something Into Plowshares: behold the transformed Park Slope Armory. Toys in Babeland coming to family-friendly Park Slope. The Pink Pussycat Boutique, which operates......

EVENT: The Greenwich Village Antiquarian Book Sale is going on all weekend, so now is the time to go searching for that first edition you've been wanting on your bookshelf. You'll also find out of print books, maps and much more! Friday through Sunday // P.S. 3 [490 Hudson St] // Three-day pass $12 ART: Monday's interviewee, James Top, shows off his work tonight at the opening of his first solo NYC show, titled......

Tonight is the last chance until December 2010 to witness a total lunar eclipse. This is the third such eclipse in the past year. With any luck the weather will cooperate. It looks like there will be breaks in the clouds over the city, which should make for dramatic views. Break out the tripods and cameras! A lunar eclipse occurs when the earth wedges itself between the sun and moon, casting its shadow on the......

LEARN: It's that special time again when hipsters gather round to discuss home-buying. The informational event clues in those looking for new digs about the logistics of purchasing their very own pad. Learn from Licensed Real Estate agents, Mortgage Brokers and Real Estate Attorneys whilst you sip on a cocktail or two. 6:30pm // Huckleberry Bar [588 Grand St, Williamsburg] // Free EVENT: It's like a never-ending President's Day this week; tonight enjoy a......

Glowing eyes peering down from trees and from behind gravestones, the night creatures are disrupting the eternal sleep of the dead and driving the living to distraction. Raccoons have proliferated at the famous Green-Wood Cemetery, digging up the grass over graves, eating the flowers left by mourners, and even invading crypts to scavenge for food. The animals have always been attracted to the oasis of green in Sunset Park and were regularly trapped and removed.......

Another Park Slope blogger is pushing the stroller feud even further with a post on stroller rules (featuring illustrations!). This particular "prammer" states: "there are enough jerks out there to give us all a bad name. To combat these sidewalk simpletons, I propose the following pramming penalties be implemented immediately." There's the sidewalk blocker, the "nannyjam," and the multitasking stroller pusher (also seen on this sign). The latter is perhaps the most dangerous of......

Another slice of Park Slope life from Only the Blog Knows Brooklyn. Upon leaving a showing of Definitely, Maybe at the Park Slope movie theater, the Pavilion, OTBKB and fellow moviegoers spied a white teenaged girl "sitting on a bench [in the second floor concession area] icing an injury on her face just below her right eye." Then downstairs, OTBKB saw "a Hispanic woman" - who had three children with her - "wearing hand-cuffs" taken......

MUSIC: Of course we're going to recommend you come hang out with us tonight at our 5 year anniversary show. Come on by and check out Pattern is Movement and The Forms, along with a special guest band at midnight. On top of all that, you'll get Craig Wedren deejaying between sets. What more could you ask for? Buy tickets here. Friday // 9pm // Union Hall [702 Union St, Park Slope] // $10......

Photo by Jack McFadden. This photo, taken on 5th & Union, pretty much sums up the war going on in Brooklyn. The fictional (but not really) "Slope Trail" includes a doggie bakery, luxury condos, a gentrified playground and spot to procure pricey Brooklyn T's. Everything you'd expect on an urban hike. The stencil even includes a "controversial" stroller being pushed by a parent (or nanny!) who is clearly holding a Starbucks coffee. We just......

Last we checked in on Gwyneth Paltrow she was being wheeled into Mount Sinai Hospital for what ended up being a "gastrointestinal situation." Bouncing back quickly, she was at a UNICEF event last week where she dropped the bomb about a new bambino:“People who have a lot also often feel like they have a lot to give. I have a good friend who always says that if you’re a person of means at all, then......

The Lost Beach, by vanshnookenraggen at fark Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: Falling debris at East 11th St. and Ave. C in Manhattan, a propane truck explosion in the area of 172nd St. and Townsend Ave. in the Bronx, and a water rescue at 96th St. and the FDR Drive off Manhattan (brrr!). The Javits Center is only 21 years old, but it leaks like a sieve. So in addition to the expansion of......