*Do charter schools mirror the city? The New York Times found that Latinos are underrepresented in charter schools as compared to their presence in public schools citywide. Given the raging battle over charter schools, you could see that as good or bad…thoughts? (P.S. Don’t miss the interactive map.)

*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…

We talked a while ago about Borough President Marty Markowitz’s vision for a better, brighter Fourth Avenue. This morning, you can get a preview of what that might look like. The collaboration with students from NYU’s Wagner School show green medians, bike racks and remarkably traffic-free streets. Some of those commenting on Curbed seemed skeptical. Thoughts?

*The Daily News reported that P.S. 150 has the longest wait list in the city, due largely to demand from Chinese families who have moved into Sunset Park in recent years.

*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…

Well, things are rather behind over here at Sunset Park Chronicled. Many apologies. Here are a few things that have been happening of late:

*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.

View Sunset Park Murders 2010 in a larger map
Click on the map above to see details of this year’s murders in Sunset Park

This story has received a ton of coverage in the local papers, including Crazed ex-con shot dead by NYPD officer Tara Hayes pulled trigger to shoot her partner first: police in the Daily News and Pistol-packing Brooklyn thug tried shooting at police before hero cop shot him in the Post. As you can probably tell from the headlines, the dailies have dug into the story of the gun-wielding Michael Romero, an ex-con who yesterday threatened three plainclothes officers with a .357 pistol and was ultimately to death by NYPD Officer Tara Hayes on the edge of Green-Wood Cemetery in Sunset Park. Sunset Park Chronicled’s original coverage is below, but rather than try to update the story with all of the details appearing in local papers, I’ve linked to them. In addition to its print coverage, the Post has video of the scene, as does NY1 (interesting that one of the men interviewed by NY1 said their were multiple shots. The NYPD said Hayes’ shot was the only one fired).

Police shot and killed a man in Sunset Park after he approached a car of plainclothes officers and waved a gun, according to Inspector Jesus Raul Pintos of Brooklyn’s 72nd precinct.

The shooting happened April 1 around 2:15pm as three plainclothes officers from the Brooklyn Anti-Crime Unit patrolled the area near Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn looking for a suspect in a robbery investigation.

The officers were driving near 33rd and Fifth Avenue yesterday when they spotted a man who fit the description of a robbery suspect, police said. As they pulled the car over, the man, identified as Michael Romero,32 30, approached the driver’s side window with what was later discovered to be a loaded silver .357 Rossi pistol, according to police and the New York Times. When the male officer in the driver’s seat began to struggle with the man for the gun, the female officer in the passenger seat got out of the car and fired one shot, hitting the man in the shoulder, according to the Times.

The bullet traveled through his shoulder into his chest, according to the Daily News.

Romero was rushed to Lutheran hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival. Police say they recovered the pistol that sparked the struggle at the scene. The man was also in possession had a loadedHe had in his backpack a loaded .44 revolver and a gallon-sized of marijuana and “two wallets stuffed with cash,” according to the New York Post. police said, though it is still unclear if these were on his person when he was shot yesterday.

Police have not said if the man killed was the same who they had been seeking in connection with the robbery.

A bit belated, but here’s another piece of community news that came my way. Sunset Park Community Supported Agriculture is now accepting new members. Below find a little info on what a CSA is, and how exactly you might go about joining the neighborhood group if this strikes your fancy. I know several people in the neighborhood have, including Sunset Parkour. From the press release:

CSA’s have been popping up in neighborhoods around the city recently and Sunset Park is no exception.  Last year a handful of neighborhood residents got together and worked with Just Food to establish a CSA right here in Sunset Park.  After a great first year with MimoMex farms the Sunset Park CSA is ready for their second year and is now selling shares for the 2010 season.

The Sunset Park CSA runs for 22 weeks from mid-June through early November.  Members can choose either a Weekly or an Every-Other-Week vegetable share.  Members pick up their shares on Wednesday’s from 5 to 7:30 at St. Michael’s Church on 4^th Avenue between 42^nd and 43^rd Streets.  The Sunset Park CSA is a volunteer organization and the members also set up and break down the distribution site each week.

Here are the share prices for the 2010 season.  Note that there are two different pricing options based on household income – Plan A and Plan B – for the vegetable share.

More questions? You can shoot an email to SunsetParkCSA@yahoo.com.

This landed in my inbox this week, and I thought, especially in these strapped times, it worth passing along. Most of the jobs are for the “enumerator” position, I’ve been told, which pays $18.75 an hour and offers flexible scheduling, including nights and weekends. The local district also covers Cobble Hill, Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn Heights, Ft Greene, Boerum Hill, Borough Park, and Park Slope. Job applicants take a basic 28-question multiple choice test with basic math, map reading, and literacy skills. No computer skills needed, and there are local testing sites right in the neighborhood. Brokelyn’s checked it out.

From the people who walk the streets to the sidewalks themselves, Sunset Park has serious texture. Out shooting the other day, I couldn’t help but notice the odd and fascinating variety of doors–oddly high from the ground, camouflaged in walls of color, and a bright spot in a field of gray. So here are a couple of shots with a common theme: unusual apertures.

Have any good “wallscapes” from Sunset Park? Send them along to sunsetparkchron@gmail.com with a note saying when you found it, where and the name you want to use as credit. I’ll put together a sideshow of some of the best looking shots.