If you've been home sick watching the daytime marathon of Spongebob Squarepants any time recently (we're not ashamed), you have seen the ad for Pillow Pets, which always reminded us of that old Shimmer Floor Wax SNL bit. The toy's name is pretty self-explanatory, but if you need clarification check out the video below. Anyway, CJ Products want to make sure they have the only Pillow Pets on the market, so U.S. Marshals have seized thousands of counterfeit pillows from a Flushing Avenue warehouse used by Concord Toys International. Brooklyn Federal Judge Eric Vitaliano said, "This is particularly troubling given the potential that [Concord's] products may pose a potential public health risk." more ›

The bike ride along the East River between north and south Brooklyn just got a lot less treacherous. Having installed separated bike paths almost all the way from Greenpoint to downtown Brooklyn, the DOT has finally turned its attention to the last unfriendly piece of the puzzle: Flushing Avenue along the Brooklyn Navy Yards. What was formerly the only hairy section of an otherwise pleasant bike route is getting some big improvements this week, with bike lanes stretching all the way from Williamsburg Street West to Navy Street. more ›

As promised, the DOT is going ahead with the last piece of the bike lane puzzle connecting downtown Brooklyn to Greenpoint. This morning workers began buffing out the median divider on busy Flushing Avenue, and painting in the bike lanes. To recap, this first phase will create bike lanes on Flushing Avenue between Kent and Navy as an interim solution to the hazardous conditions. (The DOT had originally proposed changing Flushing to one-way and installing a dedicated two-way bike path, but the community board shot it down.) more ›

In March the DOT unveiled plans to install a two-way, protected path along Flushing Avenue, which would have been the last piece of the puzzle giving cyclists a safe bike route, completely separated from traffic, all the way from Greenpoint to DUMBO. But local residents and businesses raised objections about the DOT's intention to change Flushing into a one-way avenue for cars between Kent Avenue and Navy Street. Now the DOT has drafted a compromise, which has won the approval of the local community board transportation committee. While it's a step in the right direction, the new plan will take years to fully implement. more ›

Earlier this morning, a tractor trailer overturned on the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway. The tractor trailer's cargo - an assortment of live chickens - spilled onto the highway and broke open, leaving crews to chase a lot of fowl for hours during clean-up (a worker estimated there were 500!). It's unclear whether all the chickens were retrieved, so if you live near Flushing Avenue and see a feathered friend more suited to a coop than a tree, you'll know why. more ›

Let's paraphrase what we wrote yesterday: How is it again, with Deputy Mayor Dan Doctoroff and Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan riding their bikes, that NYC remains a bike-unfriendly city? Yesterday, two bicyclists died in separate incidents in Brooklyn and the Bronx. At 9AM, 18-year-old Luis Ramos was biking to his job at George's Spanish and American Restaurant when a woman opened her car door in his path on Flushing Avenue near Beaver Street. The Post describes that "Ramos slammed into the door, flew over his handlebars and fell into traffic, where a school bus ran over him." Ramos' brother Lucas had been biking about two blocks behind him and saw the police at the scene. He said, "I ran over to him to hug him. But the cops told me not to touch him." Ramos was pronounced dead at Woodhull Hospital and the police did not issue any summons. more ›

Following the announcement earlier this week that Pfizer is closing their Brooklyn plant, the Times has a virtual paean to the company and how they've played a role in the community for the past century-and-a-half. Founded in 1849, the company's first best-selling drug was an intestinal-worm remedy called antonin, Pfizer's headquarters remained on Flushing Avenue until 1961, when it moved to Manhattan. more ›

As part of cutbacks planned for the whole company, pharmaceutical giant Pfizer is closing its Brooklyn plant over the next two years. Six hundred jobs will be eliminated, starting with 90 between now and March 31. The plant's site leader Bill Barberich told the NY Times, "Colleagues were shocked and disappointed by the news, but acted very maturely. It's a very bad day for a lot of people." Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce interim president Mark Kessler said, "This is a major loss for Brooklyn and its residents," and the Mayor's office said they would help laid-off Pfizer employees find new jobs. Pfizer is eliminating a total of 10,000 jobs, as well as closing three research sites in Michigan and another manufacturing plant in Omaha, as it faces tougher competition. more ›

Developer Joshua Guttman was in Brooklyn court yesterday, but not for anything related to the Greenpoint Terminal Market fire or any of the other arson cases at buildings he's owns (he's never been charged with arson). Actually, this case is about a tenant, a basement, and some missing equipment. According to the NY Times, tenant Onias Pacheco had been moving out of a Guttman building, and Guttman agreed to store Pacheco's screening equipment in the basement at 70 Flushing Avenue in Brooklyn. But after sixteen months of attempts, Pachceo sued Guttman for not allowing him access to the building, to the tune of $175,000 ($25K for the equipment, $150K for damages). Guttman's lawyer offered $17,500 to settle, while Pacheco was looking for $100,000... or $40,000 but then he got talked down to $20,000. That is some dealmaking. more ›

The NYPD just put out a radio alert that Moses Teitelbaum, Grand Rebbe of the Satmar sect of Hasidism, died at Mount Sinai Hospital. Teitelbaum was 91, and had been suffering from spinal cancer. He had been the head of the sect since 1979. Thousands of people are expected to throng the streets of Williamsburg once this announcement gets out-- and things could turn violent, as Teitelbaum's two sons are feuding over who will succeed him, and their followers have gotten physical a number of times in the past year. more ›

Callalillie has posted some new pictures to her Officer's Row photoset on Flickr. Over the summer, someone posted an incredibly detailed message in painting-tape on the stone wall along Flushing Street. In part, it reads: "admirals row not death row-- a reprieve, they're innocent!" It'd be a shame to lose these buildings-- they should really be turned into a museum, or at least redeveloped into housing-- that side of Flushing Avenue is totally barren right now. Anyone know what's going on with the redevelopment plans? more ›