Short notice, yes, but its a lovely day and you should go get your tipico on in Sunset Park. It starts at noon, runs until 6 p.m., and I have full faith that someone will be able to carry the festivities forward. Boriqua festival next week. Stay tuned.

*Cutbacks at the MTA are mixing up bus routes through Sunset Park—the B37 and B70 will diverge from their well-known paths, and many aren’t happy about it, the Brooklyn Eagle reports.

*The Eagle takes a look back at “Operation Blockbuster,” the big South Brooklyn crack bust of 2008

*Legit or scam? The diet product Herbalife has carved out a firm foothold among immigration groups. Feet in Two Worlds reports.

*Mayor Michael Bloomberg at the end of May announced a huge biotech facility will go into the Brooklyn Army Terminal in Sunset Park. The Wall Street Journal gives some additional background on the mayor’s startup projects.

*In case you haven’t found your spot yet, the Brooklyn Eagle has links to suggestions for the best spots to watch the World Cup.

Sunset Park peddles in hot tacos. Photo by Carnade, from Flickr

Annnnd, we’re back. After a long absence, there’s lots to catch up on. Here are some of the highlights:

Recent(ish)ly in the news:

*New York Mag did a long piece on domestic workers in New York City, many of whom live in Sunset Park. The piece on “nannies” (I’ve just never really liked that term) featured Domestic Workers United.

*The American Prospect also had a piece on the domestic workers’ legislation up in Albany.

*City Limits yesterday wrote on how churches are fighting on immigrants’ side, lending a hand in defense and immigration proceedings. An organization tied to Our Lady of Perpetual Help manages 3,000 cases at a time.

*And before we leave this topic, the Supreme Court just handed down a ruling that automatic deportation of those with drug charges was meant for traffickers, not petty possession. It’s still unclear how this will play out, but it could have a huge impact on a lot of lives.

*Dennis Holt puts in his two cents about the Future of Fourth Avenue plan at the Brooklyn Eagle.

*I love the “skate kid” shot at Sunset Park Stills. I was just wondering the other day what looks will define this era (which is one of my favorite pastimes in Sunset Park.) This is one for the look-book.

Those of you who have come across stinky tofu know it’s not for the faint of heart. The intrepid Sarah DiGregorio jumps in head first for the Village Voice.

More to come, so stay tuned…

photo by vee

*Tabula Raza gallery will on June 16 open “Rock Paper Scissors,” a show with a conceptual bent examining the shifting elements that go into each work of art (rock=physicality, paper=communication and scissors=tools).  The opening reception is Wednesday, June 16 at the gallery, 24 48th Street, Brooklyn, NY, 11220.

*Vee has been up and about, with typically lush images of Sunset Park. Stop by Sunset Park Stills and take a look.

*One of the most mouthwatering shots at Stills comes from the folks over at Buendia Productions. You can check out their Flickr page, or go strait to the (web)source.

*You should note that Buendia is having an exhibit (more here) on June 17 at Chashama’s space in the Brooklyn Army Terminal.

*It’s been a while since he visited Sunset Park, but sometime-neighborhood photographer Evan Sklar has been busy in New York and nearby states. Check out his blog…maybe we can woo him back for some summertime pics.

Know of art news that got left out? Drop a note to sunsetparkchron@gmail.com, or leave it in the comments…

*The only man convicted of Malcolm X’s shooting was released from prison this week and went home to Sunset Park, The Brooklyn Eagle reports.

*This blog did a piece about “going green” in low-income communities. Elizabeth Yeampierre of UPROSE spoke about some of the problems that crop up in Sunset Park.

Local Eats:

*Folks at Time Out New York got hungry, and, armed with a dollar, came to Sunset Park to get its fill.

*In other foodie news, a “chowhounder” (yes, I said it) tells us that if you time it right, you can see those dim-sum rice noodles made down on Eighth and 61st.

City News:

*The MTA is looking to make some major cuts, the Daily News reported, cutting about 750 jobs, mostly from the bus division.

*The Bloomberg administration has announced plans to overhaul the city’s special education system. The plan hopes to downscale the number of special education classrooms, shifting from a decades-long approach that separated children with learning disabilities into their own programs.

*This follows the recent Daily News story on the long waiting list at P.S. 105.

*Things are happening in Sunset Park proper. The Community Board last week announced plans to revamp the “big slab” that serves as a baseball/soccer field. Stay tuned for a more detailed post this week.

*The Times last week also chronicled one of more than one hundred Latino evangelical Christians who appear to have been scammed by a Red Hook pastor.

*Sarah DiGregorio of the Village Voice has been on the eat again. Check out her piece on the new hand-cut noodle shop in Sunset Park.

*Police at the 72^nd Precinct think they may have caught the burglar who has been targeting and stealing from Chinese residents who live the 40s and 50s, and driving up the burglary rate, Inspector Jesus Raul Pintos said last week.

*The lack of Brooklyn-bound toll on the Verrazano has some people worked up, including local owners who have trouble parking in Sunset Park, the Eagle reported.

*The weekly park sweeps at Lets Clean Sunset Park! are back up and running. Want to join in? Check out the website to keep up to date.

*Thanks to the Brooklyn DA, Haitians in need of clothing after the earthquake will soon be sporting a load of designer knockoffs confiscated last year from a Sunset Park storage facility, according to the Post.

*Councilwoman Gonzalez held a leadership summit last week, the Eagle reports. She also brought together a group to talk about the somewhat contentious issue of legislation on vendors along Fifth Avenue. Details on that to come.

*Mayor Bloomberg and City Council Speaker Quinn last week announced the New York City Waterfront Vision and Enhancement Strategy (WAVES), “a citywide initiative that will create a new sustainable blueprint for the City’s 578 miles of shoreline.” Sunset Park obviously has a good bit of that waterfront. I haven’t had a chance to look through it carefully, but I’ll report back on the details of the plan.

*Picturing Sunset Park: Check out a kind of unusual shot I stumbled upon here, and good shot of Chinatown here.

*Frank of The Sunset Park Blog noted a couple of new Italian places in the neighborhood, and made a well-deserved plug for staying in (the neighborhood) when going out to eat.

*Things have been cooking, sprouting and…shopping…over at Sunset Parkour. Take a look out how her seedlings are progressing, and her note on Sunset Park’s recent meh ranking in NYMag’s list of “most livable” New York neighborhoods. Eh, they can keep Park Slope.

*Got any other news? Send it along…

Melody Lanes Bowling Alley in Sunset Park, image by Robin Ainger

Local resident/musician Robin Aigner sent this over–it’s one of several images I’ll roll out over the next few days. Do you have any nice shots of Sunset Park? Send an email! sunsetparkchron@gmail.com

*The Brooklyn Eagle ran a dance event today to celebrate Immigrant Heritage Week today.

*There was a dust-up about bikes ( and an aside about a gaff by Boro Prez Marty Markowitz) recently in the news, and the impending Brooklyn Greenway featured, as Sunset Park’s rep Nydia Velazquez.

*Questions have also been raised about what Mayor Bloomberg’s  announcement this week regarding a “citywide initiative that will create a new sustainable blueprint for the city’s 578 miles of shoreline” and what “sustainable development” means for the western edge of Sunset park.

*The Village Voice’s Running Scared blog has a shot and description of a yolked suspect who allegedly robbed On the Run Mobile convenience store at 875 4th Avenue. The police alert says he had a gun. It may be just me, but it looks like he was also mid-smoke? Odd. Anyway, take a look.

*The New York Times published an article yesterday about the people who make up the immigrant workforce—many of which are highly skilled workers. I thought it was an interesting piece, a look  at on ongoing conversation that obviously involves Sunset Park.

*There was some serious gossip going in the coffee/foodie circle this week when the employees at Gorilla Coffee in Park Slope walked out. The Brooklyn Paper reports despite the mini-scandal, the owners are still churning out beans at their roastery in Sunset Park.

*Speaking of churning, Sunset Park Stills continues to post beautiful photographs, including a moody shot of the basilica. Take a look.

*The story of Michael Romero, 32, who was shot and killed by plainclothes police after a struggle over a gun, continues. Police now say they identified themselves as NYPD before Romero took out a gun. (He apparently said “You want to see my ID? Here’s my ID!” before taking out his silver .357 Rossi). Romero’s aunt says her nephew was “good” but “sick,” Gothamist reports. Romero was shot in the shoulder, and pronounced dead on arrival Lutheran hospital. Police found a second gun and a large bag of marijuana in the possession of the ex-con, who had 34 arrests on his record.

*The Sunset Park Rec Center has free baseball and softball leagues this summer. You can find more information here.

*State Senator Eric Adams cares about you—and your pants. The former NYPD captain has started a “stop the sag” campaign, advising those who rock their waistbands low to “raise your pants! Raise your image!” Indy Posted seemed like a fan, but kids in Crown Heights, where most of the billboards have gone up, were skeptical. Thoughts?

*Those of you rushing to the theater to see the new Liam Neeson movie After.Life but have an eerie feeling of déjà vu—Green-Wood Cemetery has a cameo in the drama that takes on age old theme of the the-not-quite-dead from the inside of a mortuary.

*The Village Voice’s Sarah DiGregorio chowed down at Wong Wong Noodles.

*Sunset Park Stills made good use of the recent night weather—there are some lovely new shots of the neighborhood on the blog.