BW01122020 - Page 10

10 BROOKLYN WEEKLY, JANUARY 12, 2020 WOODLAND plaints, the brunch deal was scaled back to two hours, but the drunkenness continued. When state liquor honchos fi rst started debating the future of the popular spot’s license to sell hooch over the summer, the bar’s owner claimed his business was being targeted because it attracted a predominantly black clientele to a mostly white neighborhood, and a lobbyist hired to represent the bar at a State Liquor Authority hearing accused neighbors of racism. Local leaders shot back, saying the bar’s owner Akiva Ofshtein, who is white, was making life miserable for neighbors and looking to shift the blame away from his failure to manage his clientele. “The complaints here have everything to do with the persistent refusal of the owner to be a good neighbor,” Councilman Brad Lander (D—Park Slope), said over the summer. “Other establishments nearby operate bottomless brunches responsibly and do not receive similar complaints.” Supporters of the bar say neighbors’ complaints are overblown, and that most of the supposed incidents they’ve complained about are unreported and unproved. “Unfortunately once you make enough noise about an issue it can take the place of truth,” said Morgan Flores a community organizer with The Black Institute who The SLA shutdown Woodland following a series of complaints. Photo by Caleb Caldwell had supported the bar during their licensing hearing. Flores said the closing has devastated those who used to gather at Woodland for brunch. “Everyone has their spot and Woodland was the spot for a lot of people,” she said. Flores added that a judged ruled against the restaurant without giving Ofshtein a chance to make his case formally before the state. This isn’t the fi rst time Woodland’s liquor license has come under threat. In June the license was revoked after the state liquor authority held an emergency hearing, but was quickly reinstated when a judge lifted the emergency order of suspension, leading to the fi ght that resulted in the license being revoked once and for all in January. Ofshtein could not be immediately reached for comment. Continued from page 1 B44 to ticket bus blockers BY BEN VERDE Stay in your lane! Motorists caught blocking the B44 select bus service lane became subject to violations on Dec. 30, after a 60 day grace period following the installation of bus-mounted cameras came to an end. “Our message is loud and clear, bus lanes are for buses,” said Craig Cipriano, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s bus czar. Motorists caught on bus mounted cameras blocking Brooklyn’s fi rst dedicated bus lane will receive a $50 fi ne for their fi rst violation, with the penalty increasing by $50 up to $250 for recidivist scoffl aws who are caught multiple times during a 12-month period. Since bus mounted cameras were fi rst activated at the start of the 60 day grace period, B44 cameras captured over 7,000 violations in the lane that runs up Nostrand Avenue from Sheepshead Bay through East Flatbush and Crown Heights to Williamsburg. Bus speeds have increased up to 17 percent in sections of the route since automated enforcement began, and that was before drivers were even issued fi nes. Cameras will work to capture vehicles that drive in bus lanes without taking the next available right turn, and those that remain parked in lanes for Authorities will ticket cars that block the B44 bus lane. Photo by Stefano Giovannini extended periods of time — cars captured by two separate bus cameras in the same position will be ticketed. The B44 is Brooklyn’s second-busiest bus route after the B46, and the fi rst in the borough to get the dedicated bus lane treatment. When the lane was fi rst implemented back in 2013, commute times were cut by up to 20 percent in some areas, despite initial concerns from local electeds over congestion. Speeding up buses is a key component of New York City Transit bigwig Andy Byford’s Fast Forward plan which aims to modernize the city’s aging transit infrastructure. ��