What’s Inside:

• Our BMT Community Forum, 11/17/2025
• No-Cost Mammograms, 11/20/2025
• Carroll Street Bridge Updates
• City BMT Hearing
• Flooding Resources
• ESD to Host Atlantic Yards Workshops
• Wegman’s Bus Trips for Older Adults
• DEC’s Soil Testing in Gowanus
• Amended Brownfield Cleanup Agreement in Gowanus
• Transit Updates
• Increase in Unemployment Benefits
• Updates to SNAP Benefits
• AG Federal Action Reporting Form
• RFP: Behavioral Health Crisis Response Pilots
• Community News & Events

So, what’s going on with the Brooklyn Marine Terminal? We have you covered. Join us for a community forum as we review the City’s BMT plan and what happens next. You can write comments or make remarks on the plan - and we will discuss how best to do that. Your feedback and questions are important because the City must respond to them in the next phase of the plan’s environmental review process. 

RSVP here for our Community BMT Forum. Monday, Nov. 17, 6:30-8:30pm. Cabrini Hall of Sacred Hearts Church, 125 Summit St, Brooklyn (enter on Hicks).

Impacted communities: Columbia Street Waterfront, Cobble Hill, Carroll Gardens, Red Hook, & the surrounding areas. 

Hosts: Assemblymembers Jo Anne Simon & Marcela Mitaynes, and Council Members Alexa Avilés & Shahana Hanif - along with Voices of the Waterfront & Columbia Street Waterfront Association.

Sincerely, 

PS: No Trash, Curbside Composting or Recycling Collection on Veterans Day, Tuesday, November 11, 2025. 

No-Cost Mammograms, Nov. 20th. I am once again partnering with the American-Italian Cancer Foundation to offer no-cost mammogram screenings at our office at 341 Smith Street on Thursday, Nov. 20, from 9am - 4:30pm. Adults 40-79 who live in NYC and haven’t had a mammogram in the past 12 months are eligible. No insurance required. Call our office at 718-246-4889 or email us at [email protected] to schedule your appointment.

Carroll Street Bridge Updates: Bridge construction began in April and is currently underway. The bridge is expected to be reopened in Spring 2026. The Gowanus Remediation Team (GRT) continues to collaborate with the NYC DOT and the EPA to repair the eastern abutment of the bridge. Beginning Monday, November 10th, through Friday, November 14th, construction on the bridge will start at 4:00 AM because the work has to take place during low tide. See more information on this notice, or email [email protected], or call their hotline at 718-569-5762.

Thank you to our Veterans!

City BMT Hearing. The EDC is holding one more public hearing on the Draft Scope of Work (DSOW) for the project's Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The City is also accepting public comments. (Our Nov. 17th community forum will help you prepare for this).

• Scoping Hearing #3: Mon. 12/1, 6pm, 125 Summit St. Register Here. 
• Send public comments by Thursday, Dec. 11 to [email protected] (Emily Spokowski, Mayor’s Office of Environmental Coordination, 212-788-5245) & [email protected] (Brooke Tango, EDC, 718-510-6405). 

Flooding Resources: The City recently experienced heavy rainfall, resulting in major flooding. If your building or business was impacted by flooding, please use the Housing Recovery Office’s Report Damage Portal. You should also file a 311 service request for specific conditions that require a city response. This includes basement flooding, sewer backups, street flooding, water leaks, power outages, structural concerns, fallen trees, blocked catch basins, mold, broken sidewalks, and heat or hot water outages.

The City Sponge has compiled a comprehensive post-flood recovery guide, which can be accessed here.

Atlantic Yards ESD Public Workshops. Last month, the NY State Empire Development Corporation (ESD) and Brooklyn Ascending Land Co. reached a new agreement to develop Atlantic Yards. The developers have until the end of March 2026 to produce a detailed proposal for the development site, which will require them to construct a platform over the railyard before building residential towers. This has prompted a new round of community engagement on the project. ESD is hosting two workshops on this project:

• Tues. November 18th, 6 PM, 140 Flatbush Ave. Register here.
• Mon. December 8th, 6 PM, Design Works HS (29 6th Ave). More details are coming. 

For an overview of this project, check out the AY Blog by Norman Oder. 

Wegmans Bus Trip for Older Adults: Following last year’s success, we are again partnering with Council Member Lincoln Restler to provide free ADA-accessible bus trips every other Tuesday for seniors to shop at Wegmans in the Brooklyn Navy Yard. The next Wegmans trip will be hosted on Tuesday, November 18th. If you are an older adult in Brooklyn Heights, you can sign up here through Council Member Restler’s office or email [email protected] with questions. 

DEC Encourages Gowanus Residents to Sign up for Soil Vapor Testing. The NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and the NYS Department of Health (DOH) recently held a community meeting on their investigation and cleanup activities at dozens of sites in NY’s Brownfield and Superfund cleanup programs. They discussed the sampling that was already performed, as well as their plan for this year's round of testing. You can view the meeting slides here. 

Soil Vapor Intrusion (SVI) testing is a process to ensure that no contaminated vapors are infiltrating homes and to facilitate remediation when necessary. I urge all property owners who have received a testing request from DEC to authorize the agency to do the testing. This step will contribute to a safer and cleaner community. 

It takes about two days for DEC to collect the necessary samples, and then up to two months for DEC to review their findings and share the results with the property owner. If mitigation is needed, it will be performed at no cost by DEC. If you have questions, please email Aaron Fischer at [email protected] or Scarlett Messier-McLaughlin at [email protected].

Submit Comments on the Brownfield Cleanup Agreement, Gowanus: DEC invites the public to comment on an application to amend the Brownfield Cleanup Agreement (BCA) with The Brooklyn Union Gas Company, the City of New York, Gowanus Green Partners LLC, and Gowanus Green Building A LLC. This site is located at 5th Street & Smith Street, next to the Gowanus Canal. This is the former manufactured gas plant (MGP) site, and the application seeks to subdivide the existing area. This is a highly polluted area with affordable housing and a school slated to be built nearby, so it is important that we get this done right. Submit comments by December 5. Read through the amended application here.

Transit Updates: 

Updated E-Bike Speed Limits. A 15-mile-per-hour speed limit is now in effect for e-bikes, electric scooters, and pedal-assist commercial bicycles. This rule change ensures that speed limits are applied consistently across all e-mobility devices. The City will focus on education outreach as the new limit is rolled out. You can learn more about the rule change here.

Automated Camera Enforcement (ACE). On November 10, the ACE program went into effect for the B11 and B63 bus routes. ACE uses a bus-mounted camera system to issue violations to vehicles improperly using bus lanes and busways, as well as to vehicles that are double-parked along bus corridors or blocking bus stops. Vehicles blocking bus stops or illegally double-parked will receive warning notices in the mail for an initial period of 60 days; summonses will be issued after the 60-day period. This new enforcement mechanism will make bus service faster and more reliable by keeping bus lanes and bus stops clear.

Accessible Transportation Open House, Thurs. Nov. 20th. Join the MTA, Access-a-Ride, DOT and more to learn about accessible transportation options. This forum will be from 5-7PM and will take place over both over zoom and at the Brooklyn Heights Library (286 Cadman Plaza West). More details here. 

Inter-Borough Express (IBX) Scoping meetings. The MTA has started the environmental review process and project design for the IBX. You can join them at an upcoming scoping meeting where you will be able to learn more about the process and provide testimony on the plan. Please join the MTA on November 12, 10:00am -12:00pm and 6:00 - 8:00pm on Zoom. RSVP here.

Increase in Unemployment Benefits: The Unemployment Insurance maximum rates have gone up for New Yorkers, effective October 6th, 2025. While the minimum rate remains unchanged, the maximum rate has increased to $869 a week. This has applied automatically to all eligible claims; you do not need to refile a claim. NYers can use the DOL’s online calculator here to estimate their Weekly Benefits Rate. The increase is due to the state paying off the Unemployment Insurance (UI) Trust Fund loan in last year’s budget.

Update to SNAP Benefits: A new federal law is taking effect on November 1 that affects the eligibility of able-bodied adults without dependents (ABAWD) receiving SNAP benefits. These new updates establish work requirements for ABAWD’s who fall within certain categories. You will receive a letter if someone in your household is subject to ABAWD. Learn more about the new requirement here.  

NYS AG’s Federal Action Reporting Form: The Office of Attorney General (AG) Tish James collects information regarding federal government actions in New York State. The AG’s office is encouraging New York residents to share photos and videos of federal immigration enforcement actions across the state. Fill out the form here. 

Funding Opportunity –  Behavioral Health Crisis Response Pilot (RFP): The NYS Office of Mental Health (OMH) released an RFP for mental health organizations interested in implementing Daniel’s Law Crisis Response Pilot Programs. This will establish at least three pilot programs, one each in an urban, suburban, and rural area.  A Bidders Conference will be held on November 12, 2025, and proposals are due by 2:00 pm on January 12, 2026. All submissions must be made through the Statewide Financial System (SFS). 

All questions should be directed to Carol Swiderski ([email protected]) by November 21, 2025.  For more information on the RFP process, please visit this link.  

Community Events & News:

• Give your Feedback on this CB6 Survey. Carroll Gardens, Cobble Hill, Columbia Street Waterfront, Gowanus, Park Slope and Red Hook. Every Community Board prepares an annual Community District Needs Statement to identify its top funding priorities.
• Brooklyn Heights Library Teen Care Period Convention, Fri. Nov. 14th, 6PM: Join the Brooklyn Heights Library (286 Cadman Plaza) and CARE Cycle Alliance for a convention to promote menstrual equity. Teens aged 13-18 are welcome. Learn more here. 
• Free In-Person English Classes: The Fifth Avenue Committee is now accepting registrations for free intermediate and advanced-level English classes. Learn more and register here.  
• Albee Square Holiday Lights, Tues. Nov. 25th, 6-7PM: Join the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership as they light up the town for the holiday season. Enjoy performances from DJs, roller boogie, and compete in the Ugly Sweater Contest. Learn more here. 
• Public Benefit Center Relocating: DSS-HRA’s program offices located at 88 3rd Avenue, aka 275 Bergen Street in Brooklyn, was relocated on October 31, 2025, to a new nearby DSS-HRA facility located at 2400 Fulton Street in Brooklyn.
• New LockerNYC Installation: In the coming weeks, a new shared-use locker will be installed at 336 Butler Street at Devpooja Deli Grocery Inc. This locker will be available for the public to use free of charge, 24/7. 
• Prospect Park Introduction to Birdwatching, Sat. Nov. 15th, 10 AM: Whether you’re just starting out or already have experience in birding, join the Prospect Park Alliance and Brooklyn Bird Club for an introductory walk. Meeting at Prospect Park Bathhouse & Audubon Center. Learn more here.