In Bed-Stuy News This Week

Here's a chance to catch up on all the news highlights you may have missed throughout the week. To follow is a quick recap of what made the headlines on Bed-Stuy Patch. Even if you recognize some of the stories, feel free to review and share your feedback.

1. Lawmakers and New York City residents, including hundreds of seniors, canvassed the steps of City Hall today and gave an emotional plea to Cuomo’s administration against possible senior center closings resulting from the governor’s proposed budget cuts. See the full story and video .

2. Local union workers are outraged over developer Bruce Ratner’s acknowledgement that the first residential building at the Atlantic Yards site may be prefabricated — a move that would cut costs, as well as hundreds of union jobs. The revelation, reported by The New York Times, would cut construction costs in half by requiring a smaller workforce making significantly less money. Click to read the full story.

3. Colvin Grannum, president and CEO of The Bedford-Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation (BSRC), writes in his bimonthly column that preventing the achievement gap starts at birth and at home with the NYC Imagination Library Initiative. He outlines a plan for making Bedford-Stuyvesant one of the most literate communities in New York City. To read the column, click .

4. The right renovation efforts can go a long way towards increasing the value of your home. However, what works for the rest of America may be the wrong move in a brownstone neighborhood. Our real estate columnist Mtkalla Keaton offers the “Seven Best Renovations for Your Money” .

5. 12-year-old football sensation, Ramell Redd is helping lead his team, the Brooklyn Pitbulls, to the Pop Warner Championship. He is so talented, he hopes his football skills may be his ticket out of poverty. But before he will be considered by the best high schools for football, he has to score one last goal: Improve his grades. Read for the full story.