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<\/p>\nBrooklyn\u2019s biggest stories this week: Record-breaking NYC Half, two Oscars for a Prospect Heights songwriter, the 51st St. Patrick\u2019s Day Parade, Tom Brady\u2019s surprise school visit and new sports card store, a $37.5 million Prospect Park groundbreaking, 15 mph school slow zones, SeltzerFest sold out, Lidl in Crown Heights, and more trouble for Dumbo Heights. Read on for the latest!<\/p>\n
Events & Entertainment<\/p>\n
Park Slope Went Green<\/p>\n
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The 51st Annual Brooklyn St. Patrick\u2019s Day Parade returned to Park Slope on Sunday, March 15. The parade \u2014 led by Grand Marshal and PIX11 reporter Magee Hickey \u2014 started at Bartel-Pritchard Square and marched down 15th Street to Seventh Avenue with bands, Irish dancers, antique cars, and face painting for kids. The annual Bay Ridge St. Patrick\u2019s Day Parade followed on Saturday, March 22. If you missed the fun, no worries: the Gerritsen Beach parade is coming up on March 28.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
30,000 Runners, One Bridge, One New Record<\/p>\n
The United Airlines NYC Half on Sunday, March 15 set a record as the largest half marathon in New York Road Runners history, with 30,229 finishers crossing the line. Kenya\u2019s Hellen Obiri won the women\u2019s open division in a course-record 1:06:33, smashing the old mark by 30 seconds. South Africa\u2019s Adriaan Wildschutt took the men\u2019s title in 59:30 in his NYRR debut. The pro field included 26 Olympians and Paralympians. Among the 30,000-plus finishers: Broadway stage manager Brandon Allmon-Jackson, who ran while undergoing chemotherapy for stage 4 colon cancer, and Safiatu Diagana, a Queens-based first-time half marathoner who ran while fasting for Ramadan.<\/p>\n
Brooklyn\u2019s Own Took Home Two Oscars<\/p>\n
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Netflix\u2019s \u201cKPop Demon Hunters\u201d won Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song at the 98th Academy Awards on Sunday, March 15. Songwriter Kim \u201cEjae\u201d Eun-jae, a Prospect Heights resident and the singing voice of Rumi, the film\u2019s main character, delivered an emotional acceptance speech for the hit song \u201cGolden,\u201d which became the first K-pop track to win an Oscar. \u201cGrowing up, people made fun of me for liking K-pop,\u201d she said. \u201cBut now everyone\u2019s singing our song.\u201d<\/p>\n
SeltzerFest Sold Out (Again)<\/p>\n
The second annual Brooklyn SeltzerFest took over Industry City on Sunday, drawing a sold-out crowd for a full day of fizzy nostalgia. Hosted by the Brooklyn Seltzer Museum \u2014 which operates out of the borough\u2019s last classic seltzer factory \u2014 the festival featured seltzer tastings from around the world, live klezmer music, comedy from Jackie Hoffman and Anna Roisman, and the Third National Egg Cream Invitational. Topo Chico won the People\u2019s Choice Award for Fan Favorite Seltzer; upstart brand Seltzie took Best Seltzer from the judges\u2019 panel. BBP\u2019s own Corey was on the scene.<\/p>\n
Schools & Safety<\/p>\n
15 MPH Slow Zones Coming to 800 Schools<\/p>\n
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Mayor Mamdani announced on Monday that the city will reduce speed limits to 15 mph outside more than 800 schools this year, the largest expansion of Sammy\u2019s Law to date. The law, named for 12-year-old Sammy Cohen Eckstein who was killed by a speeding driver in Brooklyn in 2013, gives the city authority to lower speed limits on individual streets. About 500 schools already have 15 mph zones; by year\u2019s end, the total will hit 1,300, with every eligible school location covered by the end of Mamdani\u2019s first term. In neighborhoods where speeds were previously lowered to 20 mph, vehicle crashes dropped 14% and car-related injuries fell 31%.<\/p>\n
Real Estate & Development<\/p>\n
Prospect Park Breaks Ground on $37.5 Million Restoration<\/p>\n
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City officials broke ground Monday on the restoration of the Vale, an eight-acre stretch in Prospect Park\u2019s northeast corner that hasn\u2019t been touched in more than 50 years. The $37.5 million project \u2014 the single largest capital investment in the park since Lakeside \u2014 will restore the historic Children\u2019s Pool, transform a former rose garden into a pollinator meadow and nature exploration area, and add a small pavilion with composting restrooms. The design came out of years of community input, with more than 2,000 residents weighing in. Completion is expected in 2027.<\/p>\n
Kushner and RFR\u2019s Dumbo Headache Returns<\/p>\n
The Kushner-RFR four-building office portfolio in Dumbo Heights landed back in special servicing this week, Crain\u2019s reported. The landlords are staring down a $480 million mortgage and associated debt due in six months. Vacancy at the complex \u2014 which includes 117 Adams Street, 55 Prospect Street, 81 Prospect Street, and 77 Sands Street \u2014 has nearly doubled in the past year. The two firms narrowly avoided disaster in 2024 with a last-minute refinancing, but the buildings\u2019 declining occupancy and the looming debt suggest another white-knuckle stretch ahead.<\/p>\n
The Hotel Bossert Is Finally Waking Up<\/p>\n
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After more than a decade of broken promises, the Hotel Bossert at 98 Montague Street in Brooklyn Heights is finally under renovation. SomeraRoad, which bought the building for $100 million last year, began replacing the old scaffolding this week so that facade repairs can start. The 1909 landmark \u2014 once known as the \u201cWaldorf-Astoria of Brooklyn\u201d and the site of the Dodgers\u2019 1955 World Series celebration \u2014 will be converted into 60 to 70 condominiums. Interior demolition begins in April or May, with exterior restoration later this year. A new restaurant is planned for the ground floor, with SomeraRoad reportedly in talks with \u201cvery accomplished restaurateurs.\u201d Montague Street hasn\u2019t had this much to look forward to in a long time.<\/p>\n
Transit<\/p>\n
Park Slope\u2019s 7th Avenue Station Nears Finish Line<\/p>\n
The 7th Avenue F\/G station in Park Slope \u2014 which became fully accessible in 2023 after years of community advocacy and the installation of three new elevators \u2014 is nearing the end of a broader overhaul as part of a $700 million MTA initiative. Remaining work includes reconstructed platforms, a new canopy, and improved lighting, with the full project expected to wrap up this spring.<\/p>\n
Openings<\/p>\n
Tom Brady Surprised Downtown Brooklyn Students<\/p>\n
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Seven-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady paid a surprise visit to Prospect Schools\u2019 Downtown Campus this week, talking with 5th and 6th graders about sports and collecting before tossing out footballs and trading card packs. The visit marked the grand opening of CardVault by Tom Brady at 80 Flatbush Avenue, just steps from Barclays Center. It\u2019s the chain\u2019s 13th U.S. location and second in New York City, stocking brands like Topps, Panini, and Pok\u00e9mon. The first 25 customers received a branded hat, and one fan won a mini helmet signed by Eli Manning.<\/p>\n
Crown Heights Gets a Lidl<\/p>\n
Lidl opened its doors at 1730 Bedford Avenue in Crown Heights on Wednesday, March 18, bringing a 33,000-square-foot discount grocery store to a corner that residents have long called a food desert. The German chain\u2019s ribbon cutting was at 7:40 AM, with the first 100 customers scoring gift cards worth $5 to $100. The store is part of a new mixed-use complex at Bedford and Empire Boulevard that also includes 57 apartments \u2014 more groceries and more housing on the same block.<\/p>\n
Sports<\/p>\n
Brooklyn FC\u2019s First Home Game<\/p>\n
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Brooklyn FC hosted Hartford Athletic at Maimonides Park on Saturday, March 21 at 7 PM in the club\u2019s first-ever home match. The team entered riding high after their inaugural win on March 8 \u2014 a 1\u20130 victory over Indy Eleven, with Juan Carlos Obreg\u00f3n Jr. scoring the first goal in franchise history.<\/p>\n
On the Court<\/p>\n
It was a building week for the Nets at Barclays. Brooklyn fell to Portland 95\u2013114 on Monday, then hosted the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday for Women\u2019s Impact Night, losing 92\u2013121. The Nets close out the week Friday with a rivalry matchup against the Knicks at 7:30 PM \u2014 always a charged atmosphere at Barclays, and a good chance to turn things around heading into next week\u2019s West Coast road trip.<\/p>\n