Bed-Stuy Gateway and the Fulton-Nostrand Revitalization Project

4th Annual Bed-Stuy Alive! Community Festival

Chase Your Dreams - an evening of financial empowerment and wealth creation tips for the whole family

On November 15, 2006, JPMorgan Chase, Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation and the Coalition for the Improvement of Bedford-Stuyvesant will host a free evening of financial empowerment and wealth creation tips geared for the whole family. JPMorgan Chase and community groups will be on hand to provide information on services and programs to help you to achieve your financial goals.

With special guest, former New York Knicks star Jerome Williams.

RSVP no later than November 13, 2006 by calling (718) 636-6998 or email execsecretary@restorationplaza.org

Sign up for the Bed-Stuy Gateway Revitalization Volunteer Corps

• Ever wish you could see more of your favorite stores or services right in your own neighborhood?
• Are you interested in urban revitalization and community development at the grassroots level?
• Have you wondered how you could contribute to the future development of Bed-Stuy?

Sign up to be a Bed-Stuy Gateway Revitalization Volunteer and take part in one of Brooklyn's most exciting grassroots community renewal efforts.
The Fulton-Nostrand Revitalization Project has experienced some success in the last year, but we want to take the project to the next level. The talents, skills, energy and enthusiasm of the people in the community that use the Bed-Stuy Gateway Business District will be the key.

To be a volunteer, e-mail info@bedstuygateway.com and type "volunteer" in the subject line of your email. Please include in the body of your email your complete contact information and indicate any particular skill(s) that you think we should know about. We'll make sure you get on our email newsletter and will get in contact with you to let you know what volunteer opportunities will be available.

Need a low-cost small business loan? Try the Restoration Capital Fund.

Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation’s Restoration Capital Fund is available to any small business entrepreneur with a business enterprise based in the borough of Brooklyn, NY. These low-interest loans, available either for working capital or fixed assets, provide an low-cost source of financing for small business entrepreneurs who are unable to obtain or do not yet qualify for financing from traditional financial institutions, or who need an additional loan to bridge a funding gap.

Conditions for Elibility

New York State Residents.

Business must be independently owned and based in the New York City borough of Brooklyn.

Business must have a reasonable probability of repaying the loan and have the capacity to create jobs.

Applicants are required to present a business plan at application, or must prepare a plan prior to consideration for a loan.

Loan Terms

Working capital maximum loan amount of $35,000 for a 3-year term

Fixed asset maximum loan amount of $50,000 limited to the useful life of the property and/or equipment, term not to exceed 5 years

Loans require collateralization

2% administrative fee at closing

Interest rate is currently set at the Prime interest rate +2% on the day of loan closing and fixed for the life of the loan.

For more information about Restoration’s Restoration Capital Fund, contact Ms. Bernice McRae at (718) 636-6924 or bmcrae@restorationplaza.org

Special Screening of "Bullets in the Hood"

We at Bed-Stuy Gateway have been feeling really "Bed-Stuy and Proud of It" in recent days. The review of our neighborhood by that charming UK couple-turned Bed-Stuy residents in The Times of London made us feel really warm and fuzzy about our brownstoned neighborhood. This past weekend, we also caught a showing of Dave Chappelle's Block Party, which was largely filmed just a few blocks away at Quincy and Downing Streets, and which featured great music and lots of love for "The Stuy" from the likes of Kanye West, Mos Def, the Roots and assorted concertgoers.

We've even started to feel nostalgic for the good old days of the Bed-Stuy ca.1982 that Chris Rock inhabits in "Everybody Hates Chris", but we quickly realized that our neighborhood does indeed contain traces of a downtrodden and violent recent past that don't really convey in "Everybody Hates Chris".

Nothing reminds us of this more than the independent film "Bullets in the Hood" which chronicles the tense hours and days after 19-year old Timothy Stansbury was shot and killed by a police officer in Bed-Stuy in January 2004. This documentary film, which was created by Terrence Fisher, a friend of Timothy Stansbury, and fellow teen filmmaker Daniel Howard, was honored with a "Special Jury Prize for Short Filmmaking" at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival and has gone on to screenings at the San Francisco International Film Festival, Tribeca Film Festival and American Black Film Festival.

Today we received a flyer letting us know that Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation is hosting a special screening of "Bullets in the Hood" and discussion with the two young filmmakers and the mother of the late Timothy Stansbury. The screening is open to the public, but space is limited. Here are the details.

• Monday, March 20, 2006 - 7pm Sharp. Arrive early, space is limited
• Suggested donation of $5 to support the Timothy Stansbury Memorial Foundation
• Location: The Billie Holiday Theater at Restoration Plaza, 1368 Fulton Street, Brooklyn, NY

Link: 'Dave Chappelle's Block Party' - Salon
Link: Review: Dave Chappell's Block Party - New York Newsday
Previously: The British Are Coming! The British Are Coming! - BedStuyGateway

Free Tax Help - Come Claim Your Money

Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation has partnered with Community Food Resource Center to provide you with FREE Quality tax assistance.

Beginning January 24, 2006 through April 15, 2006, make an appointment to be pre-screened by the Single Stop program at Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation.  Depending on your tax situation, you could receive as much as $5,805 back from the government for you and your family. 

*To qualify for this free tax assistance service, you must meet the following income limits: $40,000 and below with dependents; $20,000 and below without dependents.

Contact: Single Stop at Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation @ (718) 636.6996 for more information or go to 1368 Fulton Street and ask for the Single Stop Program at the security desk.

Update: Why is Fulton Street in the Dark?

Back in October, a couple of street lights on Fulton Street in the vicinity of Verona Street and New York Avenue were still not working after two years of darkness.  A week ago, the two remaining non-working street lights were finally turned on and as of November 16, 2005, all of the streetlights on Fulton Street and Nostrand Avenue in the business district now shine brightly. 

At left is a photo of a ConEdison worker hooking up the light pole to the electricity.

Link: Bed-Stuy Gateway: Why is Fulton Street in the Dark?.

Why is Fulton Street in the Dark?

For the past two years, businesses and residents located on the block of Fulton Street between Nostrand Avenue and New York Avenue have been kept in the dark, literally, by a lack of coordination between the Department of Transportation and Con Edison. 

Three years ago, Councilmember Al Vann secured funding to replace the standard issue "cobra head" light poles with the historic style "M-poles" that now grace Fulton Street.  Most of the light poles work and they look very nice.

On this particular block of Fulton Street however, three lightpoles in a row had failed to emit any kind of illumination since they were installed more than three years ago, keeping this stretch of the street blanketed in total darkness.  One of the poles finally got fixed in June, but the two neighboring poles still don't work to this day despite the numerous 311 calls, pleas for action from the Councilman's Office, Community Board #3, the Merchant's Association, the Mayor's Community Assistance Unit, local businesses on the block, practically everyone under the Bed-Stuy sun.  DOT and Con Edison,  can we just finally get these light poles working and not keep Fulton Street in the dark any longer?