New Year, New Laws for Electronic Waste

If you unwrapped new TVs and iPhones this holiday season, be careful before just discarding your old ones in the trash. Effective January 1st, 2015 it will be illegal to dispose of electronics in with household trash. This is not meant to be a burden, but rather a simple way to avoid toxic materials from entering our waste streams. This change is actually the handiwork of our area's former City Councilman and current Mayor Bill de Blasio. He worked on this issue way back in 2008 and helped get the Lower East Side Ecology Center to do more recycling events in our area as a way to increase education on the topic before enacting policy changes.

If you cannot make it to one of the LESEC's many e-waste events this month, take advantage of their drop off center nearby in the Gowanus area. Laziness is no excuse for adding more pollutants and toxins to the trash.

For more on the sanitation change, check out WNYC.

Citibike Expansion to Cobble Hill

In late October, the NYC Department of Transportation announced the expansion of its bike sharing system. Citibike is slated to come to Cobble Hill in the 2nd phase of the expansion, approximately 2017. Though DOT has already come to our local community to seek input for locations of potential bike share stations, it has now launched an online map that allows more New Yorkers to weigh in and give feedback. If you haven't done so already, please visit the web portal and provide your own thoughts.

http://nycbikeshare.herokuapp.com/

Cobble Hill Holiday Tree Recycling

With the holiday season upon us, there will soon be many Christmas trees to discard. Don't toss them out with the trash, bring them over to Cobble Hill Park for the Tree Fund's annual recycling event in cooperation with the Brooklyn Parks and Recreation Department.

Saturday, January 3

Cobble Hill Park  9:30 am – 1:30 pm

Press conference for the Local Input in Community Healthcare (LICH) Act

This just in from our local electeds...

SIMON, SQUADRON, STRINGER ANNOUNCE BILL FOR GREATER COMMUNITY VOICE AND THOROUGH HEALTH CARE ASSESSMENT IN PROPOSED HOSPITAL CLOSURES

  

Would Require Improved State Process in Wake of LICH Closure

Simon-Squadron Bill Based on Longstanding Stringer Proposal

BROOKLYN – Tomorrow, Tuesday, December 16, at 11 a.m. elected officials, patients, community members, and healthcare workers will announce the Local Input in Community Healthcare (LICH) Act.

WHO: Comptroller Scott Stringer; State Senator Daniel Squadron; Assemblymember-elect Jo Anne Simon; Public Advocate Letitia James; Borough President Eric Adams; representatives from SEIU 1199 and NYSNA; Jim Walden; community members.

WHAT: Announce the Local Input in Community Healthcare (LICH) Act

WHERE: LICH Playground (Henry Street between Amity & Pacific Streets)

WHEN: Tuesday, December 16, 2014, 11 a.m.

New Tree to Honor an Old Friend

The Cobble Hill Association is happy to announce 4 new tree plantings in the neighborhood. Courtesy of the Cobble Hill Tree Fund, new Silver Linden trees have been placed in restored tree pits on both Warren Street and Congress Street. The Warren Street additions are near the corner of Court Street while the Congress Street addition is beside the Cobble Hill Health Center's newly landscaped perimeter.

We appreciate seeing all the new trees that keep our streets beautiful and our air clean, but we are most especially grateful to see the Silver Linden on Congress Street between Henry and Hicks. The Association made a request to plant this tree here in honor of our dearly departed friend, former Cobble Hill Association president Murray Adams. He offered tireless service to better the community and was especially focused on improving health care in Cobble Hill. With that in mind, we wanted to situate this new tree near the Cobble Hill Health Center, a source of remedy and rehab for so many lives in the neighborhood.

Town Hall on Government Reform

This week, State Senator Squadron is hosting a town hall focused on ways to make our state government work better. His email blast suggested "There are a whole lot of ways that improving the system — whether reigning in unlimited campaign contributions, closing gaps in ethics laws, or making it easier to vote — can improve people's lives."

You can RSVP here or by calling his office at 212-298-5565.

Thursday, December 11th at 6:30pm
Forchelli Conference Center (22nd Floor)
Brooklyn Law School
205 State Street (between Boerum Pl and Court St)
Brooklyn, NY 11201

Sunday: Eat Pie & Shop at PS 29

Eat Pie and Shop at Brooklyn’s PS 29 

Sunday, December 7th 11a-4p
425 Henry Street, between Baltic and Kane

www.eatpieandshop.org

• Pie Social: Taste delicious homemade and premium pies for $5 a slice or 5 for $20. Both sweet and salty options, so come for lunch and desert. 
• Celebrity-judged pie contest:  At 2pm, Gail Simmons, judge of “Top Chef,” Melissa Clark, food columnist for the New York Times, Kelsey Nixon, Host of Kelsey’s Essentials, Paulette Goto, host of The Cooking Channel'sf Unique Sweets and other kitchen pros will name the best pie of the pie contest. Taste the winning pie. 

• Artisan Holiday Gift Fair: Take care of your holiday shopping while the kids do crafts. More than 30 of Brooklyn’s best artisans are selling their wares, including jewelry, clothing and beautiful paper products as well as books and classic toys from fork + pencil.
• Children's Crafts and Activities: Face painting, crafts and a Kids Choice pie contest of kid baked pies. Your kids will have a blast!

• Professional Portrait Studio: You can get a beautiful portrait of your child/children taken during the event. $30 for one high-resolution image which you can print, email, gift to grandparents, etc. 
• Toys for Tots:  U.S. Marines will be on hand to pick up all donations of holiday gifts. 

All proceeds go to PS 29 programs. For more information, contact ps29eatpieandshop@gmail.com or visit www.eatpieandshop.org.