Hello!
Today we have both bad and good news. The bad news first:
This story from GL explains the current asbestos situation on Smith Street:
"Public Place Asbestos Removal Spurs Concern, Anger" Link
July 29th, 2008 · 
"The Public Place project has led to new concerns in Carroll Gardens. Yesterday, we got a flurry of emails from several people about asbestos removal work that’s been going on a 455 Smith Street, which is a huge warehouse that was quietly added to the Public Place project after a development team to build Gowanus Green was selected, doubling the size of the project.....(edit) .... the new concerns are about asbestos removal. One email we got, from someone who is a member of the Community Board 6 Environment and Public Safety Committee said in part:
Demo work has starting at the Abody warehouse portion of the Public Place site. Last week they removed 125,000 square feet of asbestos contaminated roofing in the open air with no DOB permits and no community awareness. As a nearby resident with a small child I feel at risk! What is going on here?…The work is clearly visible from the subway platform, and the cutting and sawing if the hazardous materials are introducing micro particles into the air- exactly the concern when dealing with asbestos. It is of extreme concern that this work is being conducted adjacent to a children’s park in open air with no protection and no community awareness.
The writer also raised a broader community issue, asking, “If we can't trust that the custodians of the public place process are able to handle this small example of construction and remediation, how and why should we trust that the larger project would be appropriate for our community?” ....(edit) See the Gowanus Lounge blog today for the complete story.....
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The good news now:
Channel News12 Brooklyn (Cable Channel 156) is STILL! presently featuring (since 5:30 PM Monday evening) a segment on our beloved neighborhood, including our new zoning text amendment, the giant grassroots movement that brought this about, our future plans to downzone Carroll Gardens, and our Councilman DeBlasio's solid support of our cause. Some very familiar faces are being featured........
CORD
