Cute Animal Alert: New Brooklyn Animal Rescue Center!

We got this email, like, ten minutes ago and immediately knew what we had to do. There’s a new animal rescue storefront in Kensington. The animals are killer cute. It’s located at 155 East Third Street, right at Fort Hamilton Parkway, not far from McDonald Avenue and very close to the Fort Hamilton Parkway F Train station. Here’s the email:

Did you know that we have another animal rescue store front in our borough? Sean Casey Animal Rescue opened at 155 East 3rd street. You can go into the store, play with pups, kitties, snakes, bunnies, and take one home if they touch your heart. Or help socialize the animals, come pet and walk the little critters. They will fit better in their new homes if you do. The store also has great quality pet foods and toys. Stay tuned for the big opening party:

Sean Casey Animal Rescue
155 East 3rd Street
Brooklyn, NY 11218
718.436.5163

A huge welcome!!!

Brookyule #2: Kensington Trees

Kensington, Brooklyn
[Photo courtesy of Flatbush Gardener/flicker]

Bklink: Kensington Holiday Gift Guide

We love the fact that so many Brooklyn neighborhoods are getting holiday gifts guides this year. Here are a dozen suggestions for doing your holiday shopping locally in Kensington. There’s everything from jewelry from a local designer to artisan goods.–Kensington (Brooklyn)

Bklink: Astoria Federal Tells Kensington to Shove the Trees

Kensington residents petitioned Astoria Federal to plant some trees, but the bank has told the neighborhood to drop dead. “AF said don’t want to water them and they don’t have the “resources” to clean the garbage in the tree planters if and when it collects. They just have ‘no interest in that at all.’ Neat.–Kensington Brooklyn

Kensington Tenant Being Evicted for Complaining About Heat?

This email was circulated yesterday via the Park Slope Parents group and sent along to us by a reader along with a couple of responses. It is written by a Kensington resident, occupying an apartment on a month-to-month basis, who may be losing her place. She says her landlord would like to evict her from her apartment, possibly because she complained about “inconsistency of heat.” The email carried the subject line “I’m being evicted with no reason – and I have a baby – I need help.” Here it is:

I’ve been living in Kensington in the same apartment for 3 years, the same apartment where my husband has been at for 7 years, and we just received an eviction notice from our landlords. I need to find out what are our rights.

We live on the top floor of a 2-family home, our landlord lives downstairs. We don’t have a lease, it has been a month to month agreement, and we have never skipped on the rent. We have been sharing satellite tv, internet, it has been a very good relationship so far.

Last week, we had to leave the landlord a letter because of the inconsistency of heat in the apartment. I was very worried that my 6-month old son would get sick in what traditionally has been a pretty cold environment in winter.

I do not know if my landlords are being vindictive, but it came as a surprise that 5 days after we told them we needed more heat, they came to our apartment on Friday the 16th at night, and told us that we have until January 15th to move out because they have some family members moving in.

Can anyone help us? It really hurts that they’re doing this right before holidays season, and they know that we take a 2-week vacation out of the country, which will make it hard for us to get a place. Thank you in advance for anyone who can assist me.

A follow-up email indicated that per New York regulations, a month-to-month tenancy can be terminated with 30 days notice, although any eviction can be challenged in court and, likely, be delayed for a few months. A PDF of frequently asked tenants rights questions and answers from the Department of Housing Preservation and Development is available by clicking here (WARNING PDF). It’s a little off the mark in terms of this specific question, but an interesting document nonetheless, that provides authoritative answers to a number of questions.

Check Out "Kensington, Brooklyn Heartland" on Forgotten NY

Forgotten New York takes a long and interesting look at Kensington this week. Webmaster Kevin Walsh, who consistently produces one of the most compelling websites detailing New York neighborhoods, delves into Kensington’s past and present. Here’s a sample tidbit:

Some Kensingtonians may wonder why Church Avenue becomes a 6-lane behemoth between East 5th and East 7th Street, crossing Ocean Parkway. I had originally thought, several years ago, that it was in order to accommodate the extra traffic from the Prospect Expressway, which begins, or ends, depending on your POV, at Church Avenue. The real answer is because Church Avenue widened here to accommodate a trolley tunnel that conveniently ran cars under the busy parkway. Church Avenue’s trolley, the #8, later the #35, was one of the last remaining Brooklyn trolleys, hanging in there till 1956.

Definitely read up on Kensington.