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Counting Down The Top 10 BK Reader Stories of 2024

Here's a look back at some of your favorite original stories published in BK Reader this year.
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As the year comes to a close, let's take a look back at the top 10 original stories that readers enjoyed the most. Topics ranged from the sudden opening of an emergency shelter for asylum seekers, to the demolition of a local jail and the opening of a new Lebanese taco joint on Atlantic Avenue.

1. Second Migrant Shelter Quietly Opens in Clinton Hill, Next to One of Brooklyn's Largest

As asylum seekers flooded New York City, the city scrambled to assemble temporary housing, which included erecting tent complexes and converting hotels and empty commercial buildings into emergency shelters. Residents in Clinton Hill were already up in arms with the influx of thousands of migrants living at 47 Hall St., when the city opened up another shelter just a block away in April.

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The new shelter at 29 Ryerson Street. . Photo: Kaya Laterman for BK Reader

2. Beloved Prospect Heights Eatery Fears Closure Due to Open Streets Program

The pandemic brought a lot of changes to the city, including the adoption of the Open Streets program, where vehicular traffic is stopped for several blocks and turned into a public space. Although many Brooklynites loved this additional space to stretch out, many did not. On Vanderbilt Street in Prospect Heights, residents are still at odds. 

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Prospect Heights community members rally to save Mitchell's Soul Food. . Photo: Christopher Edwards for BK Reader.

3. Brooklyn Gets 7 New Schools, Including Dyker Heights Elementary Named After Slain Detective

Education is always a hot topic, and the city added many new schools in the borough. 

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The exteriors of P.S. 331 The Detective Wenjian Liu School of Civics and Entrepreneurship. Photo: Megan McGibney for BK Reader

4. Atlantic Avenue Jail Demolition Rattles Residents

As the city tries to reconfigure its jail system, a lot of the focus is on the largest and most problematic complex: Rikers Island. But there's a huge city jail smack in the middle of Downtown Brooklyn, where the demolition of the old building irked residents for months. 

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The Brooklyn Detention Center on Atlantic Avenue on March 1. . Photo: Kaya Laterman for BK Reader

5. Atlantic Avenue's Newest Entry Serves up Lebanese Tacos

It's hard to keep up with all of the new restaurants and bars that open up, but its uplifting to know that the culinary scene continues to shine in Kings County. Readers loved a restaurant review of El Cedro on Atlantic Avenue, which melds Lebanese and Mexican cuisine.

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Lamb kamounia torta ahogada at El Cedro. Photo by Hannah Berman for BK Reader

6. Brooklyn High School Scores Bittersweet Basketball Championship After Eligibility Controversy

For Brooklynites who follow high school sports, the Public School Athletics League seemed to suddenly enforce grade qualifications for a variety of teams this year, including basketball.

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Eagle Academy Brooklyn was named 2024 PSAL Boys Basketball Champions. . Photo: twitter/nycpsal

7. Maimonides Set to Evict Workers from Hospital-Provided Housing

After years of working for the Borough Park hospital, almost two dozen employees from Maimonides Medical Center faced eviction from housing controlled by the hospital.

8. City Declares War on Illegal Evictions

A BK Reader writer followed city employees as they knocked on doors to spread the word about the city's outreach effort to educate and support renters at risk of illegal eviction.

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A Tenant Support Specialist from the Public Engagement Unit hands out a flyer to an East New York resident. . Photo: Christopher Edwards for BK Reader.

9. Flatbush Avenue Buses Remain a Nightmare For Many

Everyone hates the B41 bus!

10. Battle Lines Drawn Over Mount Prospect Park's Proposed Skatepark

Local skaters and concerned residents clashed in Crown Heights over the proposed Brooklyn Skate Garden in Mount Prospect Park. 

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. Photo: Emily Davis for BK Reader

 



Kaya Laterman

About the Author: Kaya Laterman

Kaya Laterman is a long-time news reporter and editor based in Brooklyn.
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