NEIGHBORHOODS

Prospect Heights

With the Mayan end-of-the-world prediction just 10 days away, there are Brooklynites that claimed a UFO was seen flying over Brooklyn on Dec. 3, according to a Gothamist report. … Full Article

The nation and the international community have come a long way in the fight against AIDS, according to Councilwoman Sara Gonzalez (D-Sunset Park), who spent World AIDS Day on Dec. 1 with medical professionals from Lutheran Medical Center recalling the early years of the epidemic. … Full Article

The new owners of the infamous “pink house” at 233 Garfield Place have covered the four-story home with brown primer, according to the New York Post. … Full Article

As sales of paper books decline, some bookstore owners are trying a different marketing technique: presenting the book as an artisanal object. Brooklyn’s Heather O’Donnell is one bookseller who’s betting that the borough of all things vintage has space for vintage books. … Full Article

One year ago, the congregation of Park Slope’s Congregation Beth Elohim was given refuge in the sanctuary of neighboring Old First Reformed Church for Rosh Hashanah services while the ceiling of their synagogue was being repaired. … Full Article

Amidst concern about toxic sewage overflows from Superstorm Sandy and the EPA’s Superfund cleanup process, the Gowanus Canal Community Advisory Group (CAG) will meet with senior officials from the NY State Department of Environmental Conservation on Tuesday, Dec. 4, 6 to 8 p.m. … Full Article

New York Methodist Hospital’s repertoire of minimally invasive bariatric, or weight loss, procedures recently expanded to include laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG), an advanced surgical technique designed to help morbidly obese patients lose weight. … Full Article

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“Civic Virtue,” a controversial and deteriorating marble statue depicting a muscle-bound young man (representing virtue) trampling upon two reclining young women (representing graft and corruption) is finally moving from Kew Gardens, Queens, to Brooklyn’s Green-Wood Cemetery, according to the  … Full Article

At a meeting held by Congresswoman Nydia Velázquez to address concerns about toxic sludge left behind by the Gowanus Canal after Hurricane Sandy, EPA Regional Manager Judith Enck said that bacteria levels were very high -- but toxin sediment at the bottom of the canal remained undisturbed. … Full Article