Vines & Voices 037: ‘It’s Not the Water,’ Says My Favorite Neighborhood Sagittarius*
A public meeting about Gowanus Green's cleanup, Outline's modern woman of leisure and more.
Welcome to Vines & Voices, your weekly look at life across West Brooklyn. Curated by CSJ, this free newsletter brings together the local news and goings-on shaping our neighborhoods, plus a few extras worth knowing. Have a tip, a story idea or something you think deserves attention? Write to us at info@courtstreetjournal.com. Your voice helps shape the story.
On CSJ
Taqueria Ramírez, whose tacos cause lines to form outside its Greenpoint shop, is coming to Carroll Gardens. Co-owner Tania Apolinar told CSJ that she and Giovanni Cervantes are renovating 267 Smith Street, across from Bar Bête, with plans to open at the end of this year or early next. The new spot will have a charcoal base oven so she and Cervantes can make tacos al carbon. Read the full scoop here.
I first shared news about Taqueria Ramírez moving into the neighborhood in our paid subscriber chat last Friday. Join us there to be part of the conversation and catch news early.
Elsewhere
Did you know Michael Shannon is in an R.E.M. tribute band? Ward 6 covered this, the battle royale for the Brooklyn waterfront and more in their latest dispatch.
Lots of news about Gowanus this week. A public meeting about the cleanup of 459 Smith Street, a heavily polluted former fertilizer and manufactured gas plant site, focused on whether the project should be overseen through the Brownfield Cleanup Program or designated a state Superfund site, a decision that would determine who pays for the cleanup. The lot is next to the Smith - 9th Sts subway station and across from Brooklyn Granary & Mill. Developers continue to buy up sites and businesses are moving into the surrounding area faster than the State and National Grid, who’s currently overseeing the cleanup, can reach a resolution. And as luxury developments rise, locals are advocating that the Carroll Street Bridge, a historic landmark that will soon reopen after closing for repairs in 2021, be for pedestrians and cyclists only.
Strong Rope Brewery closed its Gowanus taproom, though the one in Red Hook remains.
An 11-year-old girl named Chloe passed away earlier this month from cardiac arrest related to hypoplastic left heart syndrome. Her family is raising money for funeral and hospital costs via GoFundMe, with about $16,000 more to go.
The body of a 15-year-old boy, Thomas Medlin from Long Island, was found in Red Hook waters earlier this month. He had been missing since January and was last seen on the Manhattan Bridge.
Brownstone gym District is hiring a part-time operations manager and member of the front desk team.
About 40 staffers at Downtown Brooklyn’s New York Transit Museum are moving to unionize.
A Brooklyn Paper op-ed says that nurses at The Brooklyn Hospital Center have gone more than 40 days without health insurance because management stopped contributing to their benefits fund.
Marchigiano restaurant Cremini’s, our first Index installment, has crafted a tasting menu of the signature dishes from Italy’s Le Marche region. They also recently introduced gluten-free pasta.
Outline’s Spring Summer 2026 Catalog is a gorgeous portrait of Gaby Hoffmann as a modern woman of leisure, building a life of hobbies and luxuriating in the space between obligations. I personally love the idea of a pilates teacher showing up to class wearing Cecilie Bahnsen and Issey Miyake Pleats Please. What a look!
While we’re talking about clothes, I am tickled by this moody little tomato cap and matching tiny tote. The Six Bells promoted these and other tomato-themed items in a newsletter called “Hang On, Moody Tomato,” a play on Pink Martini’s “Hang On Little Tomato” album.
Goings On
Women-owned, Brooklyn-based womenswear brand M.Patmos is having a sample and overstock sale today through Sunday, March 22 at The Delta, 210 Court Street.
Van Alen Institute’s upcoming programming includes a talk on designing homes for single people (March 26); a gallery tour of The House Transformed, the Princeton School of Architecture’s exhibition exploring modern domestic architecture (April 4); a talk by the exhibition’s curators on what matters most in home design (April 13); and a panel discussion on designing for caregiving (April 28).
Brooklyn Marine Terminal: A reminder that written commentary regarding anything you think should be further examined — flood protection, displacement, truck traffic jobs, as Voices of the Waterfront suggest — must be submitted by Tuesday, March 31 by emailing espokowski@moec.nyc.gov and HSemel@cityhall.nyc.gov.
Gowanus Current will screen at Nitehawk on April 13, one year after its release.
The Columbia Street Waterfront Association is hosting a community cleanup and scavenger hunt on April 18 from 10am to 12pm at 134 Sackett Street.
The Green-Wood Cemetery will unveil its greenhouse and education center at a grand opening on April 18. The greenhouse is meant to drive more traffic to the cemetery by offering exhibitions, workshops, research and events.
Tickets for Red Hook Initiative’s 19th Annual Taste of Red Hook, taking place April 30 at The Liberty Warehouse, are now on sale. The event features food and drink from local businesses in support of RHI’s youth and community development programs.
One Last Thing
It’s a good week when my favorite Sagittarius in the neighborhood* enters the chat. Mark Iacono shut down the “it’s the water” pizza theory on the Growing Up Italian podcast.
*who also makes pizza and owns 400 white T-shirts