While all of New York City is worthwhile in our eyes, there’s one that stands out among the rest right now.

Last year, we named Fort Greene as the coolest neighborhood in NYC for its family-friendly atmosphere, slew of mom-and-pop shops and cultural hot spots. This year, we’re choosing Flatbush (dubbed Little Caribbean) for its many cultural shops, fantastic restaurants and bars and the community vibes its residents and business owners uphold and celebrate. 

RECOMMENDED: The coolest neighborhoods in the world

To come up with the final ranking, our global network of local editors narrowed down the selections by considering community and social ventures, access to open and green space, and thriving street life. Flatbush landed the top spot as the coolest neighborhood in NYC and the 17th coolest in the world (out of 38).

“Yes, you’ll find some of those international hallmarks of ‘cool’. But in every neighborhood on this list there’s something you won’t find anywhere else,” Time Out’s Travel Editor Grace Beard says. “When communities fiercely support and rally around their local businesses, even the most eccentric ideas can become a reality. And that, in our eyes, is what makes a neighborhood truly cool.”

So, why did we choose Flatbush?

South and east of Brooklyn’s leafy Prospect Park, Flatbush has its own gravitational pull. The neighborhood’s bevy of Black-owned businesses—from popular watering holes to restaurants that slap—its perfect proximity to arguably the city’s best park and its rich cultural landscape all play into why it’s the coolest neighborhood.

Rooted along Flatbush, Nostrand, Church and Utica Avenues, Flatbush is home to the largest and most diverse Caribbean-American-Latinx community outside of the West Indies, according to Caribbeing, a cultural organization celebrates and supports this Little Caribbean and its artists, business owners, creators and residents. You see this community thriving in spots like Peppa’s Jerk Chicken, Lips Cafe and Bodega Lounge and, most overtly, at the annual West Indian Day Parade that dances up Eastern Parkway every Labor Day weekend. Its tree-lined streets were once home to icons like Joey Bada$$, Busta Rhymes and Barbra Streisand and still pull big names, especially to its historic Kings Theatre.

Here’s how to have the perfect day in the neighborhood

Wake up in your beautiful VRBO in the neighborhood’s enclave Prospect Lefferts Gardens and make a beeline to Allan’s Bakery to beat the crowd waiting for its flaky currant rolls. Get your coffee a few blocks down at Ciao Bella before a walk in the park, which hosts a Greenmarket on Saturday mornings and the home of the Lefferts Historic House. 

Do some shopping at Flatbush Central, the new Little Caribbean’s Duty Free at 1399 Nostrand and Marche de Rue from Cae Rue Dix, a French and Senegalese restaurant, grab a fresh sorrel at Hibiscus Brew, stop by African Record Centre for a new vinyl and Photo Life for your camera needs.

Do lunch or dinner at Aunts et Uncles and Peppa’s, because it’d be a missed opportunity not to, then drinks at Bodega Lounge, which regularly hosts events from wine tastings to mixers, or Miss Barbs, which does coffee and wine.

Here’s our video tour of a “food vacation” in Flatbush. 

Here’s when to plan your day there

Make sure to visit for Labor Day weekend, when the whole community is out to celebrate the West Indian Day Parade—a joyful gathering of thousands of residents who dance and showcase their incredible regalia down Eastern Parkway.

See the full list of Time Out’s Coolest Neighborhoods in the world, along with details from Time Out’s local experts on why they have made the grade at timeout.com/coolestneighbourhoods.

* This article was originally published here

New York State Assembly Member Al Taylor will sponsor an FDNY Recruitment Day event this Thursday, September 26 from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. at 2541 Adam Clayton Powell Blvd (on 7th Avenue).

Assembly Member Al Taylor is sponsoring the event in partnership with the FDNY and Council Member Yusef Salaam.

This in-person recruitment event is designed to answer all questions about joining the New York City Fire Department, help guide applicants through the process, and give them information about upcoming testing. The FDNY test happens once every four years, so be sure to take advantage of this information session. Participants must attend the event in person.

The post FDNY recruitment day appeared first on New York Amsterdam News.

* This article was originally published here

The massive redevelopment of the old Domino Sugar Refinery on the Williamsburg waterfront is progressing with the debut of Domino Square, a new one-acre park designed for public programming. 

The egg-shaped plaza in the middle of the space will be used as an ice skating rink (the first-ever in the area) in the winter starting this November.

In the warmer months, the section of the park will be turned into a stage of sorts. Theater-like seat options frame the area, overlooking the Manhattan skyline and the East River, effectively turning the destination into one of the most beautiful open-concept theaters in the city.

Not many details have yet been released regarding the types of events that will be hosted on site, but officials have mentioned salsa nights and farmers’ markets to start with, plus movie screenings and more.

Another exciting prospect: the retail spaces that will frame the street edges of the park and create entry points into the space. The structures will house food vendors and other retail concepts.

Domino Square is the penultimate portion of the redevelopment effort, one that follows the debut of an incredible indoor vertical farm boasting over 15 different 30-foot-tall trees weighing 10,000 pounds each. 

Officials are still working on the construction of a new residential building on Kent Avenue, the very last part of the project.

“Domino Square will enhance everyone’s life in south Williamsburg,” said Jed Walentas, the principal at Two Trees, the company behind the redevelopment, in an official statement about the development. “We are really proud of what we have built and excited to see its potential as it evolves.”

* This article was originally published here