Brooklyn Heights is about to get way less trashy
The trash revolution is coming to the neighborhood. Plus: All in One Deli closes, Borough Hall's $106 million glow-up and more.
Giant trash containers are coming to the streets of Brooklyn Heights this fall.
The city is rolling out more Empire Bins, roughly 6-foot-long gray boxes that sit on the street, to limit piles of trash bags and continue former Mayor Eric Adams’ plan for a “trash revolution.”
Brooklyn Community District 2, which includes Downtown Brooklyn, Boerum Hill, Brooklyn Heights, Dumbo, Fort Greene, Clinton Hill and Brooklyn Navy Yard, will be the second district to be fully containerized.
Empire Bins will be required for buildings with 31 or more residential units, while buildings with 10 to 30 residential units can opt in. They’ll be serviced by automated side-loading trucks and secured with an electronic lock. Only building staff and Sanitation Department workers will have access cards to open them.
The bins are currently in use in West Harlem, where residents say rat sightings have gone down, but parking has gotten harder. Some schools in Fort Greene and Clinton Hill also have the containers.
Adams kicked off the fight against trash in 2022 by paying McKinsey & Company $1.6 million to conduct a study of the city’s trash needs. The following year, the consulting giant and the Department of Sanitation concluded that trash bags should be placed in sealed containers, not left on the street.
In July 2024, Adams ceremoniously unveiled New York City’s first official trash bin by rolling the wheelie bin outside Gracie Mansion and tossing a trash bag into it, as “Empire State of Mind” blasted in the background.
The Empire Bins take the wheelie bins a step further. The containers, manufactured by Spanish company Contenur, hold roughly four cubic yards of trash — about 25 large garbage bags. The containerization strategy is modeled on European cities like Barcelona, Paris and Amsterdam.
In New York, where DSNY collects 24 million pounds of residential waste each day, trash piles are “an all-you-can-eat buffet for rats,” as then-Sanitation Commissioner Jessica Tisch said.
In June, Brooklyn Community District 2 produced 3,137 tons of refuse, according to DSNY, though it’s a relatively low-volume district. Queens Community District 7, the city’s highest that month, produced nearly 9,400 tons of refuse.
While a reduction in rat sightings will be a welcome change, some residents are worried about losing parking spots.
In Brooklyn Community District 2, the Empire Bins are expected to take up 15,349 linear feet of curb. That’s just shy of three miles, or 768 parking spaces.
“There will be a loss of parking that comes with this, because they will be taking up space in the street,” said Richard Day, a DSNY employee who led a July 28 public information session. “But we think it’s well worth it.”
Heights Happenings
Speaking of trash, Councilmember Lincoln Restler’s office said they’ve been receiving complaints about missing public trash cans. In response, his office launched a new interactive platform where residents can report missing trash cans in the neighborhood.
All in One Deli Mart (aka Peas N’ Pickles, aka 79 Green Apple) has closed after 30 years. Customers gathered at the store, located at the corner of Henry Street and Pineapple Walk, to say their goodbyes to owner Minki Lee over the weekend, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported.
Twice Desired is hosting a pop-up shopping event at Café Brume on Aug. 5 from 5 to 7:30 p.m. The event will have a curated mix of vintage jewelry, designer finds and home decor.
Art of Play, the curiosity shop at 69 Atlantic Ave., will be closed until Sept. 3 for renovations, including “major upgrades” to its theatrical lighting for shows in its theater. The shop also has a new neon sign out front.
“Clueless” director Amy Heckerling will join New York Times editor Veronica Chambers for a conversation about the film before its screening at Movies With A View in Brooklyn Bridge Park on July 30 at 6 p.m.
The MTA finished its $106 million renovation of Borough Hall station, one of New York City’s oldest subway stations. Borough Hall is now fully ADA accessible, with three new elevators. The transit agency also added flood mitigation measures and fixed the crumbling ceiling, which partially collapsed onto a woman in 2018.
Nearby News
Titán in Dumbo will start serving brunch every Saturday and Sunday beginning Aug. 1.
Muddy Paws Rescue is hosting an adoption event at Randolph Beer at 77 Sands St. from 6 to 8 p.m. on July 30. Dogs welcome!
Someday Bar at 364 Atlantic Ave. in Boerum Hill is throwing an anniversary party on July 31, starting at 7 p.m. It’ll have a shotgun Vegas wedding and Elvis contest — the theme is Chapel Chic + Casino Glam.
June Wine Bar in Cobble Hill is hosting Poetry and Pours: A Wine and Poetry Tasting on Aug. 13 from 7 to 9 p.m. Tickets include a flight of five wines and two hours of guided tasting with live reading.
There’s a 45-square-foot museum in Carroll Gardens dedicated to Leonardo da Vinci’s “Salvator Mundi.” The painting is the most expensive artwork ever sold at public auction, going for $450.3 million at Christie’s in 2017.
NYCEDC is hosting another public information session on the Brooklyn Marine Terminal project on Aug. 5 at 6:30 p.m. The content will be the same as the July 14 session.
Good there’s mad rats in that part of town! And never enough bins per building