Opossums and Other Critters Find Home in Kensington Vacant Lot

In what Kensington residents say has been a nuisance, if not a danger, for years, a vacant lot has become a home to feral cats, rodents, and even an opossum, while the trash and other debris continue to pile up.
The lot is located on Ocean Parkway between Cortelyou Road and Ditmas Avenue, making life unpleasant for the neighbors that live close by. The residents have been complaining for years about the trash, dead trees coming dangerously close to power lines, and dropping branches which can become fire hazards if left un-tended.

The residents say the city has never taken responsibility for the mess in the lot, although they have passed the buck on to others.

Tim Fitzgerald lives directly behind the property in question.

“We [always] get the same answer: call this other agency or office or precinct,” said Fitzgerald, the owner of a condo on E. Seventh Street. “It’s a slap in the face.”

The city has, however taken action in the past. In 2008 the city fined the owner of the lot $150,000 for several violations, including not properly fencing in the area; dangerous construction conditions; illegal advertising on the plywood walls, and non-compliance with previous violations.

However, the health department insists there are no health hazards associated with the trash and debris on the property.

“How is this not a health hazard? There’s garbage everywhere,” exclaimed Michele Israel, who lives in an adjacent condo overlooking the lot.

Kensington Woman Falls to Death from 10th Floor Apartment

In a tragic accident an 86-year-old woman fell to her death from her 10^th-floor window as she struggled to close it.

Police and witnesses said that the elderly woman, whose identity was not immediately released, was closing the window inside her apartment on Ocean Parkway not far from Cortelyou Road when she suddenly plunged out the window and down to the sidewalk 10 stories below. 

The doorman of the building discovered the body after a tenant informed him that there was a woman asleep in the front garden of the building. The woman died at the scene of the accident.

"She was an old woman - so sweet and always happy," said neighbor Yvonne Giudice. "She would smile all the time."

The woman lived together with her husband, daughter and grandchildren in the apartment.

"I cried when I first heard the news," Giudice said. "I just couldn't believe it."

The woman was well known for her kindness and lovely temperament. 

"She was a sweet lady," said one neighbor, who declined to give her name. "She was just a beautiful lady."

"Dunkin’ Donuts and Starbucks Should Stay Away"

The real estate broker that helped turn the sleepy Ditmas Park street into a haven for coffee aficionados is discouraging two coffee giants, Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts, from  opening shops on this section of Cortelyou Road.

Jan Rosenberg, honored last week for her role in the remarkable face lift of Cortelyou Road by the Brooklyn Independent Democrats, stated clearly that Dunkin’ Donuts and Starbucks should stay away from this newly revitalized strip. Right now there are successful mom-and-pop shops adding character to the area. Rosenberg suggested that they move instead to Foster Avenue, only three blocks away, a street with no other competition at the moment for coffee shops.

“I don’t think it’s a good thing for the strip,” Rosenberg said. “I’d much rather see them on Foster Avenue. There is no cafe to draw people there.”

Unfortunately it may already be too late for such a sensible approach to opening their businesses, since Dunkin’ Donuts already has a shop under construction on Cortelyou between Marlborough Road and the train station. And on Thursday night, at the ceremony which honored Rosenberg, the Brooklyn Borough President Markowitz mentioned that Starbucks is also planning to open a branch on that strip.

From Pizza to Heroes

Two Brooklyn police officers, Sgt. Edward Kraemer and Officer Timothy Stines stopped off for a couple of slices of pizza on Cortelyou Road in Kensington when they suddenly heard a woman crying for help.

Kraemer explained that, “A bunch of people started screaming that there was a fire," so they raced outside to see a building with smoke pouring out of the third floor.

They rushed into the apartment building and together helped a woman and her one-year-old baby out of the building and to safety, according to the police.