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Park Slope

By Michael Ewing 2/08 4:40pm

THERE GOES THE NEIGHBORHOOD

Still smilin'. (Getty)

Park Slope Is Alive and Kicking Bourgie Booty

Is Park Slope dead? Yes, Eustace Tilley, of course it is. It died years ago. But washed ashore on the East River's bay in Brooklyn, the old Park Slope decomposed and fertilized the neighborhood that it has become today. It is merely the circle of life: reborn with a silver spoon, a stroller, and Caribbean nanny.

Just as Fifth Avenue in Manhattan garnered prosperity and luxury at the turn of the 20th century, Fifth Avenue in Brooklyn is doing the same at the turn of the 21st century. National chains—Barnes and Noble and Starbucks—have spread to the neighborhood, but so have yoga shops, children's stores, and some Brooklyn favorites: Beacon's Closet, Bird, Gorilla Coffee and the Chocolate Room. Read More

By Drew Grant 10/20/11 10:52am

Crimes

Joshua Flecha, released on molestation charges

Suspect In Park Slope Serial Molestations Beats It

On Tuesday, we reported that the NYPD had arrested a second man in relation to the +20 sexual attacks in the Park Slope/Sunset Park area since March. The 32-year-old Midtown bartender Joshua Flecha was caught trying to break into a car...or at least that's what detectives thought until they realized that he was actually looking at a pornography on his phone and pleasuring himself. One correct identification by a witness relating to a May 7th attack, and it looked like between Mr. Flecha and Adolfo Martinez (the first man arrested last week, who has already confessed to a groping), the case might be shut.

Except...

Read More

21 By Matt Chaban 8/22/11 1:27pm

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Organic democracy. (BKLYN GUY/Flickr)

In Defense of the Park Slope Food Co-op’s Israel Boycott

On the progressive blog Waging Nonviolence, Kiera Feldman mounts a vociferous defense of the Park Slope Co-op's right to boycott Israeli goods, should its members feel so inclined. It is in large part a 1,600-word critique of The Observer's recent series on the BDS debate that has swept the brownstone bastion in recent months. We considered grabbing a few paragraphs for a "smug" blockquote commentary of our own, but instead, we're giving the subject a full airing here, republished with permission. Read More

7 By Matt Chaban 8/03/11 1:39pm

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Is that a bomb-sniffing dog? (wonderyyort/Flickr)

The Night The Observer Almost Blew Up the Co-op

With world leaders taking sides in the debate over a boycott of Israeli products at the Park Slope Food Co-op, what do the members, those who are not leading the fight, think? Outside 782 Union  Street on Monday night, the signature green-and-red neon sign buzzing overhead, The Observer encountered the kind of zealous ambivalence and shoulder-shrugging apathy so often associated with Brownstone Brooklyn.

"Why are they boycotting Israel? What about China? It's stupid," said Andrew Sepulveda. "You know, we've got these water bottles that say 'Designed in America,' but they're made in China. And sometimes you open them up and there are little notes inside and it says, 'Help me. They've got a gun to my head.' What are we doing about that?" Read More

67 By Matt Chaban 8/03/11 12:01am

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Co-Op Grocer Model Proves Wildly Successful For Brooklyn Food Co-Op

Soy Vey! Could a Hummus Fight Kill the Co-op?

Israel and the Park Slope Food Co-op have a lot in common. Both were founded in part by Jewish socialists. Both are governed by a raucous democracy with laws and rituals to rival the Talmud. Both have a soft spot for hummus and couscous.

And now both are plagued by the Palestinian question. Read More

15 By Matt Chaban 8/03/11 12:00am

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First They Came for the Penises: Dershowitz Fears BroBos’ Circumcision Boycott

In this week's issue, The Observer talked to Alan Dershowitz, Harvard law professor and maybe the staunchest defender of Israel on the planet, about a proposal for a boycott of Israeli goods at the Park Slope Food Co-op. In his typically brazen style, Mr. Dershowitz compared pro-boycott co-op members to bear-baiting-hating Puritans and vowed to shut the BroBo institution down if a boycott went through. "You have to fight fire with fire," he said. Soy veyzmeir, but these were some of his tamer declarations. Read More