Brooklyn Daily Eagle

BROOKLYN (AP) — Police say a 58-year-old man crossing the street in Brooklyn was fatally struck by two vehicles, one of which fled the scene.

The accident occurred around 10 p.m. Thursday at the intersection of Coney Island Avenue and Avenue K.

Police say the pedestrian was knocked to the ground by a grey van, which remained on the scene. As he lay in the crosswalk, the man was struck again by a sedan that did not stop.

The victim was taken to Coney Island Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

By John Torenli
Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Maybe they should start calling him Coach W.

Brooklyn College head men’s basketball coach Steve Podias, affectionately known to his players as Coach P, thanked those most responsible for his nearly two decades of success with the Bulldogs after an historic win Wednesday night in Manhattan.

“Milestones are team efforts that represent a team effort,” Podias said after BC topped CUNYAC rival John Jay College of Criminal Justice at The Doghouse, giving him career victory No. 200.

DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN — The Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce reports it recently enrolled the 1,000th business into Brooklyn HealthWorks, its low-cost Healthy NY plan for small employers in Brooklyn.

In fact more than 20 businesses have enrolled during the month of January, according to Dean Mohs, vice president of insurance services.

The Chamber also announced plans to expand the program by opening enrollment to sole proprietors and individuals beginning in February.

“As a business organization, the Chamber made the decision to begin offering medical and dental/vision plan options to the ever-growing number of sole proprietors and entrepreneurs calling Brooklyn home,” said Mohs. “We are excited to expand access to this significant component of the Brooklyn business community.”

By Dennis Holt
Brooklyn Daily Eagle

BROOKLYN — We have previously commented in this space about the horrible decision by the city and state not to rebuild the BQE from Sands Street to Atlantic Avenue. In the long run, stopgap repairs will be more expensive than to do the job right.

One could spend hours talking about all the victims this misguided decision will harm. Much more is involved than bringing an outdated highway up to standards and making sure it will last.

 One of the victims is Brooklyn Bridge Park, specifically the Atlantic Avenue entrance at Pier 6. Everyone has known for years that the haphazard exits and entrances to the BQE are very people-unfriendly and very dangerous. The area could be fixed by itself, but decisions to do so were postponed in anticipation of a complete BQE overhaul.

By Cynthia Magnus
Brooklyn Daily Eagle

NEW YORK — With the topic of cancer being added to the list of federally funded conditions covered under the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation law, hundreds perhaps thousands of stakeholders throughout the city and country tried to connect to a teleconference on Tuesday Jan. 24 organized by the National Institute for Occupational Safety (NIOSH). It was aborted at the last minute due to a phone glitch.

By Mary Frost
Brooklyn Eagle

BROOKLYN — A study released late Wednesday shows that New York City students attending new, small public high schools show higher graduation rates and improved academic performance than similar students attending other schools. These 105 small high schools studied replaced large, low-performing high schools. Out of these 105 schools, 30 are in Brooklyn.

The report is positive news for Mayor Michael Bloomberg, whose school reform efforts in New York City have centered on replacing traditional large public high schools with small schools.

By Michael Gormley
Associated Press

ALBANY  — New York’s Legislature Thursday proposed adding four election districts that would be dominated by Asian-American voters in New York City, and the Senate would add a 63rd seat under a long-awaited redistricting plan.

BROOKLYN HEIGHTS — The Brooklyn Historical Society (BHS) will honor Janet and David Offensend at BHS’s eighth annual Library Dinner. Ron Chernow, distinguished commentator on politics, business, and finance, will speak at the dinner.

The Brooklyn Historical Society will host its eighth annual Library Dinner, a benefit celebrating Brooklyn Historical Society’s Othmer Library, on March 7. The dinner is traditionally intimate, attended by only 100 people for cocktails and dinner, followed by a short talk by a renowned historian and an award presentation to the honoree.

Assemblyman Dov Hikind (D-Borough Park/Midwood) is calling on the NYPD and the city’s Animal Care and Control to do something about two pit bulls who have reportedly been terrorizing Midwood residents, including children, for several months. The two dogs, who congregate at the well-known railroad “cut” and often slip through the fence, have also reportedly attacked other dogs as well as railroad workers. They may be fed by a group of homeless people who live near the tracks, says Hikind.