DailyHeights

wexlerglazer (Newbie) asks on the Park Slope Message Board:

Any suggestions for where to meet someone for our first date?

I was thinking Bar Toto (on 6th Ave. @ 11th), as I’ve done that before. But I figured I’d open the question to everyone here…

Basically, I’m thinking a restaurant that’s somewhat moderately priced (no more than $15 or so per entree), quiet, and cozy.

How about:

1. Cocotte at 5th Ave. and 4th St.: Romantic (possibly too romantic?)

2. Chip Shop

3. Long Tan

4. And… Check out more First Date Suggestions on the Park Slope Message Board

Innocent X writes about the Stop sign at Carlton and Prospect Place on the Prospect Heights Message Board:
“Sometime soon, some pedestrian is gonna get killed crossing here. Because half the cars don’t stop. They just roll through it quickly. Disaster waiting to happen.”

True… The same thing happens at the corner of Eastern Parkway and Washington. quig writes: “I call it ‘stoptional’. If the police would ticket people who don’t stop, we would have enough in the budget to fix a lot.”

HELP US COMPILE THE LIST: raulism is VP of the Prospect Place Block Association… he’s willing to go to the 77th Precinct office and shake some action on this.
READ MORE: Stop sign at Carlton and Prospect Place on the Prospect Heights Message Board

lulu’s momma writes on the Prospect Heights Message Board:

Was walking down Park Place between Underhill and Vanderbilt just now, and saw a crowd of people around a car. I of course rubber-necked it on my way by, and saw a brand new Infiniti SUV up on milkcrates; all four tires were missing. When I asked the cop what happened he told me someone had stolen the tires.

Man, I have’t seen a car on crates (or bricks) since the 80s! Retro Ghetto!

Make sure you put your club on both your driving and road wheels!

Go! Decry gentrification on the Prospect Heights Message Board

THIS IS THE SCHEDULE! we will attempt to keep to it.
Hope to see y’all somewhere.

all times are approximate. bring lots of cash as many places are cash only.

7 p.m. – Soda (Vanderbilt between Prospect and St. Marks) their happy hour is great, and they have food. no fighting allowed!

8:30 p.m. – Sepia (Underhill between Lincoln Pl. and St. Johns)

—– finally we’re heading into CH!

9:30 p.m. – Ripple (Washington between St. Johns and Sterling)

10:30 p.m. – Brooklyn Exposure (Bedford at St. Marks)

11:30 p.m. – Secrets (Nostrand between Prospect and Park)

GET MORE INFO and COMMENT on the Prospect Heights Message Board

mosquito=terrorist, originally uploaded by brainware3000.

How many bites have you endured so far this January? izisharp writes on the Prospect Heights Message Board: “I killed 5 more last night!… 4 of them in my bedroom throughout the night. Damn this balmy weather!!!”

izi is not alone… far from it. Reports from all across the neighborhood indicate that the mild weather has given rise to a fresh crop of mosquitos. Or did they ever go away?

Enjoy the novelty – with weather weirdness kicking into overdrive, we’ll give it just a few more seasons before winter mosquitoes are as unremarkable as the new “riverfront” condos springing up along 4th Avenue. Goodbye Coney Island… hello Gowanus Bay!

Mosquito Reports: Read all about it on the Prospect Heights Message Board

I Totally Dig AirTrain, originally uploaded by tangentialism.

whereisscott asks on the Prospect Heights Message Board: “I don’t think that I’ve ever had a cabbie that knew how to get from Prospect Heights from JFK. This discovery usually leads to some pretty crap directions involving the Belt Parkway and the BQE, and $50 later, I’m at home.”

“Anyone have any better directions to get to PH from JFK that won’t cost me an arm and a leg?”

1. The standard: “Belt Pkwy West bound to N. Conduit. Take the Conduit to the Atlantic Ave. merge. Atlantic Ave. to whatever your cross streets are and make a left.” -Idlewild
2. The road less traveled: N. Conduit –> Linden –> Right Turn onto Rockaway Pkwy which becomes Buffalo —> Left on Eastern Pkwy. This is controversial, but ugarte says that Linden is faster than Atlantic.
3. Cheap, and maybe not as slow as you think: AirTrain to the 2/3. meganthelibrarian says: “It might be 25% slower overall (1 hour vs 40-45 minutes), but it’s so much less stressful. I know what the transit cost will be ($20 RT a person, versus $65-75 plus tip for a car service RT), the ‘drivers’ never deviate from the route, and I don’t have to make any annoying small talk. Absolute heaven.”

More travel tips on the Prospect Heights Message Board

The Russian Cabbie Who Loved America, originally uploaded by The Klaus Kinski of Kamerafones.

…and How to Make the Angry Yellow Cab Driver Go from Manhattan to Brooklyn, Despite Heavy Sighing, Muttered Profanity, Maniacal Driving, and General Rudeness, as reported by users of the Prospect Heights Message Board:

Q. HOW MUCH TO TIP A TAXI CAB DRIVER GOING FROM MANHATTAN TO PARK SLOPE/PROSPECT HEIGHTS?
A. “I give about 15% – 20%, or a minimum of $2-$3 if a short ride.” -VeggieQueen
A. “I tip at least $3 if they’re coming over the bridge from Downtown, more if it’s from midtown and up…” -daisyh
A. “If I take a yellow cab home from Manhattan I tip about 15%, depending on how the driver reacted when I told him I was going to Brooklyn…” -em
A. “I usually tip $2 to $4 unless it’s a really long trip.” -neene

Q. CAR SERVICE: CAN YOU SKIP THE TIP? Seems like a lot of people tend to tip cab drivers, but avoid tipping the car service drivers, on the rationale that they drive their own cars and don’t have to pay for a medallion. Apparently, some car services automatically add a gratuity (~10%) to the fare, according to kristina.
A. Magic 8 Ball says: Unclear. Shake again. From Idlewild (who is a former car service driver): “Not all car service drivers own their car, and even if they do, they are still paying hefty maintaince and tax costs.”

Q. WHAT IF THE DRIVER COMPLAINS/REFUSES TO TAKE ME BACK TO BROOKLYN? This used to be almost the rule, and now is becoming the exception. But it still happens. A lot. What’s more, some cabbies will refuse fares across Brooklyn if they deem yours not worthy enough. As far as we know, none of this is legal.
A. Legal or not: don’t even let it happen. Pre-empt it. Jump in the cab and slam the door before disclosing your destination. If the driver balks, remember this phrase: “You may not want to take me to Brooklyn, but you’re not getting another fare until you do, because I’m not getting out.” -Carnivore

Q. RUDE DRIVERS: SHOULD YOU GET REVENGE? And should you report the cabbie who won’t go to Brooklyn??
A. Don’t bother, unless you’re unemployed, or especially vindictive: “You can complain all you want, but to have any real action taken, you have to turn up to a TLC hearing in person, which usually means taking a day off work. What a shock! The TLC isn’t concerned about weeding out lame drivers, or serving the entire NYC populace.” -ANFIELD

Photo by: neene

Is it possible to get a fresh, affordable tree in this neighborhood?? Michelle76 writes on the Park Slope Message Board: “… I live around Garfield and 5th Ave, and I’ve bought trees at both the place on Flatbush/5th Ave, and the one in front of Key Food on 5th. Both have been disappointing in the past, with really, really dried out trees. I’m just trying to get a nice, healthy 3-footer … I really love Christmas trees, but these ones in Park Slope have been bumming me out.”

3-footer?? Okay, Charlie Brown. Here’s your quick list:

That place on Union between 6th and 7th Ave – “Vermont” something, just downhill from the Food Coop. They are nice and the trees are great. -pitu

The church at the corner of 7th and Carroll (Old First Reformed Church) has sold trees … Pretty good trees in the past. But they are large ones. Also, there’s the lot on Flatbush @ 5th Avenue that’ll be around until they build Ratnerville … nice Canadienne who sold me a tree last year … they have all sizes and probably have Charlie Brown-type trees too. -dw438

But don’t buy on recommendations alone – check the tree before you buy: Bend the needles to see if they snap. They’ll be flexible on a fresh tree … Unfortunately its probably near impossible to get a fresh affordable tree in the neighborhood. – Ando

Get more recommendations on the Park Slope Message Board

Photo: gregg snodgrass for PropertyShark.com

A panicked armchair_warrior wrote on the Prospect Heights Message Board about a –suspicious because he had no idea HIS property was on the market: “…and me nor my mom knows about this. We paid the building in full. So how the hell these realtors would put my building up for sale …”

“Only reason I even found out of this is ’cause its a hobby of mine, looking at buildings for sale, and also my relatives want to buy near me. And I found my own house for sale!!!”

Is there some nefarious plan afoot? Or did this real estate agent make an honest mistake and somehow list the wrong property? As doctorj notes, screwups are more common than conspiracies… Well, our friend armchair says he actually called the “listing agent” in question, and innocently asked if he could make an offer on his own property….

And the story continues on the Prospect Heights Message Board

Looks like Corcoran has listed Richard Meier’s One Prospect Park tower. A lot of time and effort has been spent to characterize this building as Brooklyn’s premiere address… and the sticker prices do bear that out. So, what do you get for the money? Could that $3 million, 2,125 sq ft, 3-bedroom condo look any more like an airport lobby, neene asks on the Prospect Heights Message Board? An airport lobby with a basement-esque 8.9-foot ceiling, alafairnadia adds?

Well, of course these issues are going to be an issue for you brownstone-entrenched PHers… But locals are not exactly the target demographic, now are they? Consider that One Prospect Park’s “sales gallery,” despite its 718 area code, is actually located in Tribeca.

Cheer up, naysayers… doctorj hypothesizes: “Maybe none of them will sell, nobody will want to live there at any price, an attempt at making it a hotel will fail, and the developer will end up in a bailout with the city to turn the building to a Section 8 tenement.”

More sour grapes on the Prospect Heights Message Board