Radio Free Bay Ridge

Announcement

It's true - Radio Free Bay Ridge merch!

If you’ve been following us on Twitter, you may have noticed a link to a CafePress account claiming to be selling authorized Radio Free Bay Ridge swag. Your eyes do not deceive you – our holiday merch shop is live! It includes a bunch of fun stuff, including things we’ve been using for the past year but have been previously been only available to our volunteers and guests, like t-shirts and studio mugs!

So for a limited time only – probably till the end of December, though you never know – we’re giving YOU – our listeners and neighbors – the chance to take a tiny piece of the podcast with you in your daily life.

We’d like to be clear: this is not a fundraiser. We’re not making more than a couple bucks (tops) on each sale. Any money we receive from the sale of this merch will be put towards offsetting some of the costs encountered by our all-volunteer staff in the production of this podcast.

Also, a new mailing list!

We’re also announcing the launch of our Radio Free Bay Ridge Mailing List! Sign up so we can send Radio Free Bay Ridge community update emails straight to your inbox!

Episode 18

Owl's Head Park Walking Tour

At A Glance

Our first audio walking tour.
Subscribe to the podcast with a mobile device and listen to this episode in Owl’s Head Park
Start at 67th Street and Colonial Road.

Why the heck is it actually called Owl’s Head? Find out! Today we partnered with Hey Ridge editor and local historian Henry Stewart to bring you an Owl’s Head Park walking tour. In fact, we think it’s actually the first audio walking tour of Bay Ridge… ever! This 15-minute guided episode is meant to be played on-site at Owl’s Head, at the entrance on 67th Street and Colonial Road. You’ll explore the history of the park, from the pre-colonial era up until today.

We’ll separate the myth from the fact about the name “Owl’s Head”, of course. But did you know the origins of the nearby street names? Do you know who exactly Senator Street named after? Together we’ll walk past where once a grand mansion and castle-like tower once stood, as well as learn about the odd tastes of the man who occupied the grounds. There’s weapons arsenals, gangland shootings, tragic deaths, and development deals gone sour. Henry will also discuss the original designs for the park and what was lost to time. Most importantly, we’ll be out enjoying one of Bay Ridge’s most beautiful parks!

Let us know what you think about the episode, and whether we should do more of them! And in case you don’t get Radio Free Bay Ridge on your phone, be sure to check out the subscription links below.

Subscribe to Radio Free Bay Ridge: iTunes / Google Play / Stitcher / Pocket Casts / Radio Public / Podbean / Castbox

Election Night Live

SD22 Election Night Live Results

About The Results

Thanks for joining us! We’ve stopped updating our results tonight. The results are accurate to the unofficial Board of Elections results.
Golden is demanding a count of absentees, though we don’t see a scenario where they will break in his favor. Congratulations to Senator Elect Gounardes.
If you have problems viewing the map, you can view the map here as well.

Credits
Today’s live election coverage is being handled by Daniel Hetteix (data entry) and Erik Shell (social media) from Radio Free Bay Ridge’s studio in beautiful Bay Ridge, Brooklyn.

Episode 17

The Art of the Gerrymander

At A Glance

Fight Back Bay Ridge’s first fundraiser brought together the local art and activist communities.
The art auction was filled with creative interpretations of Senate District 22’s gerrymandered boundaries.”
We interviewed guests and attendees to ask about the intersection of art and politics.

On October 22nd, local activist group Fight Back Bay Ridge held their first fundraiser. Unlike many other groups, which focus on three-hundred-dollar-a-plate dinners or a cheesy speech, they did something both creative and community-building. They sent out a call to the Bay Ridge arts community, including Stand 4 Gallery and many more.

They challenged local artists to create artwork they’d be willing to donate for a silent auction. The theme was to raise awareness and creatively interpret the gerrymandered boundaries of Bay Ridge’s state senate district, SD22. The resulting gallery show brought together the activist and artistic communities of Bay Ridge for one of the first times. Our co-host Rachel Brody interviewed people at the event, discussing how they felt about art, politics, and their community.

Episode 16

Fact Check: Golden vs Gounardes

At A Glance

We’re bringing you Live Audio and Fact Checks.
Golden took credit for many things the state did as a whole.
Post-debate spin by the Conservative Party doesn’t hold water.
Gounardes kept answers short and to the point. Golden took up the majority of speaking time.
There were some fireworks moments near the end.

On October 3rd, 2018 we had one of the long-standing Bay Ridge debates occur under the auspices of our local Interagency Council on Aging. Held this year at the Fort Hamilton Senior Center with longtime moderator Peter Killen. The event was a whos-who of local politicians and included debates between every local candidate running in this year’s midterm elections. Today, however, we are focusing on just one: Golden vs Gounardes.

After the #BRForum debates, we asked our listeners what we should do with the audio. A majority of you said we should fact-check the debate… so we did! Today, co-host Dan will be breaking in between questions to provide context and fact-checks.

Whadd'ya think, #BayRidge? What'd you like us to do with the #BRForum candidate forum audio?
— Radio Free Bay Ridge (@RadioFreeBR) October 3, 2018

We’ll hear questions on a wide range of issues, much of it focusing on children. While this may seem jarring for a senior center debate, remember that older adults often have child safety as a top priority, especially as grandkids come along. So sit back and enjoy!

Note: We’ll also be posting the audio for the other debates that day! The include Mathylde Frontus vs Steve Saperstein, Adam Baumel vs Nicole Malliotakis, and Max Rose vs Dan Donovan. They will be available in the show notes below shortly.

Episode 15

The State of Bay Ridge Transit

An antique map of South Brooklyn subway stops, focusing on Bay Ride's 4th Avenue Line.

At A Glance

Weekday R Train ridership city-wide declined 1%, but Bay Ridge was twice as bad, at 2%.
Weekend R Train ridership dropped over 20%. Last year, R Train service was cancelled on weekends about 20% of the time.
Local bus routes that parallel the R Train increased, but not enough to offset the R train declines. Uber and Lyft picked up slack, but some neighbors may simply be staying home.
Good news: The B70 had major ridership increases on weekdays, suggesting more job opportunities along the Sunset Park waterfront for people living in Bay Ridge.

Bay Ridge is luckier than most outer borough neighborhoods. Residents have multiple transit options, from trains to bikes to buses to ferries. However, last year’s transit situation was so bad that it was known city-wide as the “Summer of Hell”. Bay Ridge Avenue was closed for six months as part of a new “Enhanced Station Initiative”. This upgrade was spearheaded by our local State Senator Marty Golden, who sits on the MTA Capital Review Board. However, as cosmetic upgrades were being installed, service worsened across the board with little relief. Today we dig into the numbers and analyze 2017’s transit numbers, and what they mean for Bay Ridge.

We were happy to sit down with our transportation correspondent, Brian Hedden in this episode. We focus on the subways and buses, but also cover all aspects of Bay Ridge transit, including tolls, biking, and ferries.

Episode 14

A Million Dollar Question

In today’s episode, Dan and Mary discuss Bay Ridge’s first Participatory Budgeting cycle. During last year’s city council race, every single candidate vowed to bring the experimental budgeting process into our district. This year, it’s finally happening! Our district will be getting a million dollars that will be spent entirely through grassroots democratic outreach, organized by and for local residents.

Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights, Bath Beach, and parts of Bensonhurst will get a million dollars spend on ideas it’s own residents come up with. The money can be used for construction and built things only (capital projects), but beyond that, it’s a very flexible system. Our co-host Dan is actually on the fifteen-person committee of local residents that will be helping to nurture and shepherd these ideas to buildable, votable ballot items. Listen in as we discuss what Participatory Budgeting means for Bay Ridge and how to get involved.

Submit An Idea!

Interactive Map

Analysis of the 2018 SD22 Democratic Primary

At A Glance

Turnout across the district increased, especially in Marine Park and Bay Ridge.
Ross Barkan drove turnout for Cynthia Nixon.
Andrew Gounardes has strong base support across the entire district.
Certain conservative turnout strategies are showing hints of reduced effect.

Episode 13

Welcome To Bay Ridge

Today on the podcast, we’re doing something a bit different. We are welcoming our newest neighbors! In what we hope to be a yearly series, we are providing an overview of the neighborhood entirely geared for the newest Bay Ridgeites. If you spent this summer unpacking and exploring your new neighborhood, our contributors Mary and Erik, both new residents themselves, will fill you in. We’ll give you our personal food favorites and good drinking spots to meet up with other local progressives. We’ll let you know our favorite little Bay Ridge moments and things to do. Plus, we’ll fill you in on local politics and help hook you up with activist groups that happen to be around!

Welcome, Bay Ridge class of 2018! Don’t be a stranger.

Short Stories About Bay Ridge

Diana

This summer we sat down with fellow neighbors at various local strolls, street festivals, and block parties. They were kind enough to tell us their favorite memories of Bay Ridge. This is Diana’s story about a case of mistaken identity, an unexpected tragedy, and an astounding revelation.