Atlantic Avenue merchants have created a holiday trifecta: great green store windows, some of the best shopping in the entire city and a chance to meet Santa. The store windows encourage New Yorkers of all stripes to walk or train it to this famed half-mile stretch of Atlantic Avenue for a well-edited range of gifts to meet all their holiday shopping needs. Shoppers will reduce their carbon footprint and have the chance to buy a wide range of eco-friendly products.
Green Window Design Competition
The Annual Atlantic Avenue Green Holiday Window Design Competition is based on artistic merchandising and creative window display with a green twist this year. Awards, in various categories, are given to merchants for their aesthetic contribution to the neighborhoods of Brooklyn Heights, Cobble Hill, Downtown Brooklyn and Boerum Hill. To qualify, competitors must have their window designs installed by 6 p.m. on Wednesday, December 2, 2009, when the panel of judges will walk along the Avenue to view and judge individual store windows.
The Tree Lighting Ceremony & Activities
On Thursday, December 3, 2009 at 6:00 p.m., the Atlantic Avenue Local Development Corporation will host the Annual Atlantic Avenue Tree Lighting Ceremony at the Belarusan Church, corner of Atlantic Avenue and Bond Street, in downtown Brooklyn’s charming Boerum Hill neighborhood.
The annual tree lighting ceremony, sponsored by Marathon Bank, is a popular holiday event bringing people together from the neighborhoods of Brooklyn Heights, Cobble Hill, Downtown Brooklyn and Boerum Hill along and around the stretch of Atlantic Avenue running from Hicks Street to Fourth Avenue.
The Tree Lighting event is free and open to the public with complimentary holiday treats provided by local Atlantic Avenue restaurants and shops.
Atlantic Avenue’s annual tree lighting ceremony and activities will feature students from P.S. 38 and 261 who will lead guests with carols and performances. The children’s musical group, Rolie Polie Guacamole, will be a delightful addition. Santa Claus will also make a guest appearance to participate in the festivities, greet children and receive their Dear Santa letters. In keeping with tradition, Council Member David Yassky will again join the festivities to officiate the tree lighting.
A Sampling of Green Products Available at Atlantic Avenue Retailers
- Gumbo (493 Atlantic Avenue) Earrings made from recycled milk cartons ($25) Photo. Watches made in South America by Ecowrist using bamboo, nuts, and leather ($99) Photo.
- Kimera (366 Atlantic Avenue) Wax linen bracelets handcrafted by Thai villagers ($32).
- Jonathan Adler (378 Atlantic Avenue) Furniture made from “sustainable forest initiative” certified companies.
- Mini Max (152 Atlantic Avenue) Recycling Truck toy made from 100% curbside collected products with packaging made from recycled materials ($25). Local designer City Hopper bibs and burp clothes ($16-$32).
- Annie’s Blue Ribbon General Store (365 State Street just off Atlantic) Bicycle chain photo frame ($36) Photo . MTA Tyvek wallets ($15) Photo.
- Sterling Place (363 Atlantic Avenue) Set of 4 drinking glasses made from the colorful Boylan soda bottles ($36). Yankee Stadium cufflinks made of wood salvaged from Yankee Stadium in 1973 ($165).
- Greenhouse (375 Atlantic Avenue) offers a hand-picked collection of eco-friendly, high style options in furniture, tableware, bedding, bath products, and home accessories.
People’s Choice Awards
Celebrity judges will vote on the best holiday windows but this year so will shoppers on Atlantic Avenue – with the People’s Choice Award. Ballots and ballot boxes will be available at stores. The winning store will receive a holiday gift basket from Sahadi’s, a neighborhood institution since 1948 located at 187 Atlantic Avenue.
Holiday Window Competition Judges
Hope Davis has starred in more than 20 feature films. Her early work includes The Daytrippers and Next Stop Wonderland. Hollywood films include the thriller Arlington Road, About Schmidt and American Splendor for which she won the New York Film Critics Circle award. Davis returned to the stage in 2009 in Broadway in God of Carnage, which gained her a Tony Award nomination for Best Leading Actress in a Play. Davis is currently co-starring in HBO’s In Treatment. She lives in Boerum Hill, Brooklyn with her two children and her husband, actor Jon Patrick Walker.
Mark Morris is a world renowned choreographer. He formed the Mark Morris Dance Group in 1980, and has since created more than 120 works for the company. From 1988-1991, Morris was Director of Dance at the Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie in Brussels, the national opera house of Belgium. In 1990, he founded the White Oak Dance Project with Mikhail Baryshnikov. The Mark Morris Dance Group (mmdg.org) was formed in 1980 and gave its first concert that year in New York City. The company, one of the world’s leading dance companies, performs across the U.S. and at major international festivals. In 2001, MMDG opened the Mark Morris Dance Center in Brooklyn, NY, housing rehearsal space for the dance community, outreach programs for local children, as well as a school offering dance classes to students of all ages.
Tad Hills is the author and illustrator of many books for children, including The New York Times bestsellers Duck and Goose and Duck, Duck Goose. He lives in Cobble Hill with his wife Lee, their two children, Elinor & Charlie, and Rocket, their dog who inspired Tad’s next book, How Rocket Learned to Read which will be released in July 2010.
Kate Cusack is a versatile designer and creative thinker who’s unique Zipper Jewelry is internationally known. Kate earned her BFA at the Maryland Institute College of Art and her MFA at Yale School of Drama. Kate creates non-traditional costumes for theater and dance; her sense of theatricality is evident in her one-of-a-kind Zipper Necklaces and Zipper Bracelets. Kate was born and raised in Boerum Hill.
Background on The Atlantic Avenue Local Development Corporation
The Atlantic Avenue Local Development Corporation (AALDC), originally formed in 1974, is a not-for-profit organization committed to the economic development of the Atlantic Avenue area from Fourth Avenue to the East River waterfront in Brooklyn, New York. In addition to producing the Atlantic Antic, one of New York City’s major cultural attractions, and the annual Atlantic Avenue ArtWalk, the organization’s activities include implementation of streetscape improvements, historic storefront preservation, and advocacy on issues of importance to the retail and residential community. The Atlantic Avenue Local Development Corp. is charged with bringing to fruition the Atlantic Avenue Master Plan which was conceived by the Atlantic Avenue Leadership Conference, a collaboration of 50 local community groups and businesses including the Atlantic Avenue Local Development Corporation. http://www.atlanticave.org/
Directions:
(2,3,4,5 to Nevins Street, A,C to Hoyt Street, R to Lawrence Street, F to Jay or Bergen Street, buses 61 or 63) Map link
Editors:
For images of this year’s holiday poster, click here. For photos of the judges and images of unique green holiday gifts, please contact winters.pamela@gmail.com
