I attended the Park Slope Civic Council’s brunch/meeting last Saturday. The PSCC is a publically supported organization with a membership of more than 700 families. The approximately 30 trustees are drawn from this membership. Organized as the South Brooklyn Board of Trade in 1896, the Council is one of the oldest civic associations in Brooklyn.

It was the first Civic Council meeting I’ve ever been to but I saw a lot of familiar faces, including Fonda Sara, Bernie Graham, Lumi Rolley, Eric McClure, Susan Fox, Dave Kenney aka Dope on the Slope, and many other people whose faces I know but not their names. I also met a few people for the first time like  Lydia Denworth, who leads the PSCC and was on the Park Slope 100, whose name I knew but didn’t know her face.

The special brunch was really a brainstorming session, a way to drum up ideas and initiatives for 2007. For me, the experience was an exciting and unusual exercise in local democracy. 

The group met in a social room on the roof of the 9th Street YMCA. I got there a little late but people were already seated at eight round tables where small group discussions were taking place.

I was intrigued by the process — the way the meeting worked. At each of the tables, people were asked to come up with 1 or 2 ways to improve the quality of life in Park Slope. Each person presented their idea(s) to the table.  Afterwards, the table voted and came up with the two most popular ideas to present to the room.

Then a spokesperson from each table presented the table’s ideas. Afterwards, the meeting moved outside on the roof, because it was a gorgeous day (ah, remember last Saturday?). The eight top ideas were written out on big pieces of paper and participants were asked to vote using dot stickers.

Thanks to Nica Lalli of the Brooklyn Paper, who was at the meeting, here are the seven initiatives for 2007 that came out of Saturday’s brainstorming session/ brunch. Atlantic  Yards, Whole Foods are on-going initiatives for the PSCC so they are not included here.

• Stop the transformation of Sixth and Seventh avenues
to one-way traffic, as proposed by the Department of Transportation.

• Identify locations for more bike racks.

• Host the first Annual “Stoop Night” on June 21 (to celebrate the summer solstice).

• Form a study group to investigate tax breaks and grants to encourage more “green” action in Park Slope.

• Clean up commercial areas.

• Sponsor a “Buy Local” campaign.

•
Install new newspaper kiosks to eliminate clutter on area street
corners.

The idea that excited me was the Summer Solstice Stoop Night on June 21. Stoop sales, music, food, celebration all over the Slope. That was a hands-down favorite.

If any of the
initiatives interest you, volunteer by calling the Park Slope Civic
Council at (718) 832-8227 or by emailing mail@parkslopeciviccouncil.org.