4 JANUARY 20 - JANUARY 26, 2017 BROOKLYN MEDIA GROUP Crowds gather for Ridge March against Hate BY JAIME DEJESUS JDEJESUSBROOKLYNREPORTER.COM In response to President-elect Donald Trump’s upcoming inauguration, hundreds of Brooklynites of all races, genders and ages gathered in Bay Ridge to participate in the Martin Luther King Day March against Hate on Monday, January 16. At 1 p.m., hundreds of attendees, many with signs that quoted King, gathered outside the Islamic Society of Bay Ridge, 6807 Fi h Avenue, to show their solidarity with Muslims, immigrants, women, people of color, people with disabilities, and others they believe to be threatened by the incoming Trump administration. “I used to teach at I.S. 30 and now I teach at P.S. 503. Nobody is going kick my students out," said Julia G. "I love them and I’m here to support them. It feels really good, especially on a day like today. Nobody is going to take that dream away.” “We organized a similar event a year ago when the Arab-American community was facing incidents of hate in the neighborhood and we are very glad to do that again and make it a regular part of our interactions,” said David Farley, co-organizer of the event for Bay Ridge for Social Justice. “We are very glad to stand in support of our Arab-American neighbors, especially through these struggling times. Today means a lot, especially with the rhetoric leading up to the election, and then the continued rhetoric. It’s very disturbing that it's being normalized." Even children were happy to show support. "My daughter knows that it’s important to love everybody despite their di erences,” said Rupsha, one of the day's attendees, of her six-year-old daughter Doria Sharif. “We wanted to come and make sure to stand with Muslim neighbors, brothers and sisters and make sure they know we are there for them and we won't stand for this kind of hate,” added Rovika Rajkishun of the group Love Trumps Hate Sunset Park. Assemblymember Pamela Harris also marched and discussed the signifi cance of the day. “Dr. Martin Luther King had a dream that we all are created equal,” she told this paper. “Today of all days is perfect for Bay Ridge and Muslims, Jews, Catholics and African-Americans of the community to come together and embrace this day as a day of peace. It’s not about hatred. It’s about coming together and living among each other.” Once the march ended, attendees entered the Salam Arabic Lutheran Church, 414 80th Street, where several speakers expressed their concerns, including Linda Sarsour, executive director of the Arab American Association of New York and one of four national co-chairs for the women’s march on Washington D.C. on Saturday, January 21. “I’m very proud as a Brooklynite, a daughter born and raised here as a neighbor in Bay Ridge, to represent the values and principles and convictions that we have, like compassion, justice and unity,” she said. “I will BROOKLYN MEDIA GROUP/Photo by Jaime DeJesus Hundreds of people participated in the Bay Ridge March against Hate on Martin Luther King Day. not respect a president who won the election on the backs of Muslims, black people, the undocumented, women and reproductive rights. I will not respect an administration full of Islamophobics that have called the religion that I follow a malignant cancer." Brooklyn real estate prices soar in fi nal quarter of 2016 BY PATRICK WEINBERG EDITORIALBROOKLYNREPORTER.COM Potential home buyers will need to shell out more cash if they want the experience of living in a Brooklyn neighborhood. Brooklyn real estate prices continued to reach new heights in the fi nal quarter of 2016, according to Halstead’s Fourth Quarter 2016 Brooklyn Market Report. The report, released Thursday, January 12, shows the median apartment price rose 16 percent in the last year to $645,000, while the average price for an apartment reached a new record of $834,944 in the last quarter. Prices rose faster for condos than coops, particularly in South Brooklyn, with the average price per square foot up to $437, an 11 percent jump from a year ago. Diane Ramirez, chairperson and CEO of Halstead Property, said, “Both the average and median apartment prices for all sales in Brooklyn were higher in every market area in our report than a year ago.” Ramirez also noted that the development of new high-end properties has contributed to the rising prices, and accounted for 31 percent of all Brooklyn apartment closings. These new developments have apartments averaging at a price tag of $1.2 million, which is a 46 percent increase. Inventory levels are also critically low, especially in areas such as Brooklyn Heights and Park Slope, which have caused prices to go up in not only those neighborhoods, but throughout Brooklyn. That should send potential buyers to explore neighborhoods where they can buy more for the money. Sarah Burke, managing director of Brooklyn New Development for Douglas Elliman Property Management, says, “Buyers looking for condos under $2 million in those categories three and four bedrooms especially to start to explore areas such as South Slope, Greenwood Heights, Prospect-Le erts Garden and Kensington, and buy to take advantage of still low interest rates. “ “Both the average and median apartment prices for all sales in Brooklyn were higher in every market area in our report than a year ago.” — Diane Ramirez, chairperson and CEO, Halstead Property Although inventory has lessened, the future seems bright according to Trish Martin, Halstead’s managing director of Brooklyn sales. “New development closings were a key driver of record prices in the fourth quarter, and looking toward the spring we anticipate a strong Brooklyn market across the board and in all areas in the borough,” she said.
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