Happy Father's Day! For those of you who have dads, are dads, or know dads, this one's for you, from all of us at the Gothamist network." more ›

A year ago, the Fire Department was trying to put out the massive ten-alarm blaze at the Greenpoint Terminal Warehouse. It took a day and a half for the FDNY to control the fire. A homeless man, Leszek Kuczera, apparently started the blaze while trying to burn insulation off copper wire, only for him to get off with a plea agreement. more ›

They say New York is home to a million stories, and so far this year, we've published 7021 of them here on Gothamist. So in case you missed any of those, let's take a little stroll back in time, and review the most significant stories the past 12 months, shall we? Here's part one of a semi-chronological look at 2006; part two will go up tomorrow: more ›

In June, it was determined the massive Greenpoint Terminal Warehouse fire in May had been set by homeless men looking for copper wire to sell, and Polish immigrant Leszek Kuczera was charged with arson. Though there had been some questions about whether Kuczera was involved, his case is being heard in court. The NY Times reports that deals have been discussed and, more unusually, the judge in the case took time to speak with the 59 year old defendant:

State Supreme Court in Brooklyn is no place to look for sympathy, but Mr. Kuczera has found it there. At a hearing yesterday, the judge overseeing his case conducted a long, private conference with the lawyers, then left the bench in full dress robes, walked across the courtroom and sat beside Mr. Kuczera at the defense table. more ›

A five-alarm fire at the abandoned Greenpoint Terminal Warehouse/Market is being fought this morning in dramatic fashion: News choppers show that the FDNY's marine units are at work - the warehouse occupie a 200' by 600' lot along the East River. (WNBC's Vivian Lee, on location, said the fire was making it feel like a 100 degree day even 50 yards away.) Last year, Tien visited the terminal market last year and found a description of it from the Greenpoint-Williamsburg Environmental Impact Study:

The Greenpoint Terminal Market site occupies over three blocks of land along the East River between Greenpoint Avenue and Oak Street. This site, which is largely vacant, includes six industrial buildings ranging in height from one to seven stories, several of which are severely deteriorated. Immediately south of the Greenpoint Terminal Market is a now vacant piece of land formerly occupied by Consolidated Freight, a national freight forwarding company that declared bankruptcy in August 2002.