🌱 Sunset Park Daily: Green-Wood Cemetery Rain Garden + Mask Off

Good morning, Sunset Park! Diane Witek here with everything you need to know to get this Saturday started. Here's everything going on today in town.

First, today's weather:

Some sun, then clouds. High: 45, low: 42.

Here are the top stories today in Sunset Park:

1. In order to prevent hundreds of gallons of stormwater from entering its surrounding communities, Green-Wood Cemetery is constructing over 22,000 square feet of rain gardens on their grounds — the largest of its kind. Brooklyn’s 44-acre cemetery was issued $1.7 million in water quality funding to construct 30 to 40 rain gardens on their grounds over the next decade. (Brownstoner)
2. Mayor Eric Adams said Friday, New York City is ending its proof-of-vaccine mandates for venues like restaurants, bars and concert halls — and lifting a requirement for masking in the public schools. Citing the low positivity rate, 1.8 percent averaged over seven days in New York City, the Mayor said the rules go away starting Monday. And students and staff can still wear masks if they want, Adams said. But the rule, in place since 2020, will be rescinded. (Subscription: Newsday)
3. The South Brooklyn Marine Terminal (SBMT) will be turned into an offshore wind energy port facility, Mayor Eric Adams announced on Thursday. The current space will be transformed into an operations and maintenance hub for offshore wind farms. The city has committed $ 191 million to offshore wind projects — including $ 57 million for the SBMT transition. Currently, there are five offshore wind projects in development, which are expected to power more than 2.4 million NY homes and bring a combined economic impact of $ 12.1 billion to the state. (Brooklyn Paper)
4. An unidentified woman's torso was found in a garbage bag in a shopping cart at a Brooklyn intersection early Thursday morning. A pedestrian walking by the intersection of Pennsylvania and Atlantic avenues at about 1:45 a.m. made the discovery and called 911. Officials are trying to use DNA to identify the victim and are doing an extensive search for surveillance footage in the area. (NBC New York)

From my notebook:

• Sunset Park 5th Avenue BID: "New store coming. This is where the previous sushi/bubble tea store that burned down in the fall." (Facebook)
• Sunset Park BID: "If you were wondering about the trailer by the park. It’s a COVID-19 testing site. This is not a city-run site, even though it has similar colors to the city-run sites." (Instagram)
• Sunset Park BID: "Repost from @brooklynsbdc • You don't want to miss this!📌 NYS MWBE Certification Made Easy, March 4, 10 a.m. RSVP." (Instagram)
• 72nd Precinct Community Council: "Please join us for our Community Council Meeting next Tuesday. Topic: 72 Precinct March Community Council Meeting Time: Mar ch8, 7:30 p.m. EST. Join ZoomGov Meeting https://www.zoomgov.com/j/1617794054?pwd=d25nRXR5U..." (Facebook)
• Fifth Avenue Committee: "Find a free COVID-19 test by visiting NYC.Gov/COVIDTest or text 'COVID TEST' to 855-48 and find a test site near you." (Facebook)
• Fifth Avenue Committee: "Be considered for funding if additional funds become available. Apply for the Emergency Rental Assistance Program! Apply Today." (Facebook)

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Thanks for following along and staying informed! I'll be back in your inbox tomorrow morning with another update.

— Diane Witek

About me: Impassioned Writer, Website Designer, Social Media Marketer and newly proclaimed Baker. Lover of nature and animals of all kinds.