Court, Context, Meetings, More

At Brooklyn Community Board 6 (CB6), our first of ten 2026 full board meetings was on Wednesday, January 14th, in-person thanks to our ever-gracious hosts at the Van Alen Institute and virtually via Zoom, courtesy of the marvel that is the…

At Brooklyn Community Board 6 (CB6), our first of ten 2026 full board meetings was on Wednesday, January 14th, in-person thanks to our ever-gracious hosts at the Van Alen Institute and virtually via Zoom, courtesy of the marvel that is the internet.

We were joined by representatives from various levels of government, including city and state legislators (Assembly Member Carroll, Council Members Avilés & Hanif) and city agency representatives. Brad Lander, a former CB6 member, Councilmember, and Comptroller, also joined us. Brad offered a brief overview of the city's finances and thanked us, CB6, for supporting the Court Street bike lane.

Our support for the bike lane, to make a dangerous street much safer, was reinforced earlier in the week, when the court challenge to the project was dismissed. You can read the decision here. The judge dismissed the opponents' concerns as anecdotal, lacking data or context. I've said it in this space before: correlation doesn't mean causation. I'm glad the judge saw that. For more context, check out some "rational" coverage and crashcount.nyc.

Back to our full board meeting, the voting agenda for the evening included four liquor license applications and one land use item. The Business Affairs and Permits portion of the agenda included four liquor license applications, all of which were approved: 520 Henry Street for Bar Bruno, a longstanding Mexican restaurant in Carroll Gardens where a change in ownership required a new license; 424 Van Brunt Street for Pony's NYC, a new cocktail bar with small plates in Red Hook in the former Practice Yoga space; 291 Nevins Street for Hidden Rivers BK, a Gowanus bar featuring a rotating weekly brewery spotlight in the former Tuned/Honey Wheel Bike Shop location; and 56 5th Avenue for Drums & Flats, a wing bar from the owners of Uncle Barry's in Park Slope, replacing the former Alchemy space.

The Land Use item was a Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP) application for 46 Nelson Street in Red Hook, proposing a rezoning to allow a mixed-use building with Mandatory Inclusionary Housing(MIH). The application was overwhelmingly approved, subject to the project being built as presented, except for incorporating setbacks or shifts in bulk to reduce massing at the street wall, and to fewer studios in favor of more two- and three-bedroom units. Because the site is in Red Hook, it falls within the district of Council Member Alexa Avilés, who joined us earlier in the meeting and noted her support for the application. The proposal now advances to the next stage of ULURP, which means it goes to Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso for review.

Our next Full Board meeting will take place at 6:30 PM on Wednesday, February 11, and, just like the January meeting, it will be in person at the Van Alen Institute, with a virtual option via Zoom.

But before that, in the near term, specifically next week, Monday, January 19, is Martin Luther King Jr. Day. In observance of the holiday, alternate-side parking and mail delivery will be suspended, and schools and government offices will be closed. There will also be events honoring Dr. King's life and legacy. Also, next week, in CB6's immediate orbit, we've got three meetings, all starting at 6:30 PM. First, on Tuesday, January 20, the Youth, Human Services, and Environmental Protection Committee will meet at Principles Café for the Youth Mental Health Workshop. On Wednesday, January 21, the Transportation Committee will meet at MS 51 to discuss the Fifth Avenue Vision Plan. Then, on Thursday evening, January 22, the Landmarks Committee will meet virtually via Zoom.

I'll leave you here and recommend you read the rest of this email, which includes tax preparation resources, some thoughts on a new office, additional meetings, and more.

Whether you read the rest or stop scrolling, I wish you the best.

This is the web archive of a newsletter originally sent by email to Brooklyn Community Board 6 subscribers on Saturday, January 17, 2026. The email edition may contain additional event listings and links.