Is the Gowanus Canal Sponge-Worthy?

From the Boerum Hill Blog:

This New Fire Commissioner Sounds Like a Real Guy

Carroll Gardens' own Salvatore Cassano, the new FDNY Commissioner, has been giving some interviews lately where he details his early life, before he made the (regrettable) decision to move to Staten Island. From the New York Times:

Born on Jan. 22, 1945, as the second son in an Italian-American family, he was named after the father of his mother, Madeline. The Cassanos lived in South Brooklyn, in a walk-up on First Place in Carroll Gardens.

“Radiator bursting away,” he said. “There were six of us in a six-room apartment. We shared a bed. I didn’t have my own bed until I got married.”

His father’s family came from Ischia, Italy, in 1909; his mother’s family came from Naples. His grandfather worked as a day laborer; his father, Angelo, was a longshoreman on the docks in Red Hook, where he rose to become a boss of loading and unloading the trucks.

“He was very well-respected,” he said. “He was a tough boss, but he was fair, so I had a good role model to follow.”

As a boy, young Sal went to Public School 142 and Brooklyn Tech and then Boys High School, where he bowled. His parents took their four children to Roman Catholic Mass each Sunday, at St. Mary Star of the Sea. 

“My mom and dad taught us all about family life and how important your family is,” he said.
At 10, he landed his first job, working for his brother-in-law delivering crates of soda in glass bottles, sometimes walking them up six flights on his shoulder.

He rooted for the Dodgers. His godfather was single and had season tickets to Ebbets Field.
“I used to go there three or four times a week when they were home,” he said. The shortstop Pee Wee Reese was his favorite, so he wore his number, 1, on his jersey in baseball and softball leagues he played in.

After school, he worked with his dad on the waterfront, then found work in a bank.

Does that sound like someone who knows what it REALLY means to be from Carroll Gardens, or what?

Third and Bond: Not That Bad?

Large developments seem to take a lot of flack in this neighborhood, and, rightfully so. For the most part, large developments need to maximize square footage to make their investors happy and keep the books in the black, and the built environments in Brownstone Brooklyn are altered by these glass and steel monsters. Basically, you can't make much money building brownstones or row houses today.

Or, to put it more accurately, you can't make as MUCH money as you can by maximizing your FAR. And I don't think that any rationale person would tell someone else that they shouldn't make the most money that they can, which is why cohesive regulations are needed, not protests based on each individual proposed development.

But I digress. The point here is just to point out a development that I feel is fairly neutral for the neighborhood: Third and Bond. Located on (guess!) Third and Bond Streets, this development is not great for the built environment, but doesn't destroy it either. Sure, the buildings are on the lot line, as opposed to set back ten feet, and, sure, they're taller than the surrounding environment. And wow, red paneling, really?

But the scale isn't horrible, they include outdoor space, they are at the lowest point of the neighborhood, so they don't really obstruct any views, and their brick work isn't bad. Definitely area for improvement, and lord knows they took long enough to build, but all in all, I'd grade it a "Not That Bad" for Carroll Gardens.