Town Square is tickled to be a Media Sponsor for the 5th Annual Brooklyn Baby Expo! Brooklyn Baby Expo offers access to the latest baby gear, top advice from Brooklyn parenting experts, interactive demonstrations, kid-friendly entertainment, and access to community resources (including 30+ camp directors ready to talk summer 2016) that make parenting kids in NYC easier and more fulfilling. 

This popular one-day event will feature more than 70 sponsors and exhibitors, including top brands like Ubbi, Pottery Barn Kids, Bugaboo and Babyganics, as well as local businesses like Emily Dewan Photography, NY Kids Club Park Slope and Kid Ventures. 

The highly popular Mil’s Trills will be the musical performance of the afternoon. Children of all ages are invited for face painting, arts and crafts as well as demos throughout the event. NYC’s Super Soccer Stars will be on site for a mini-scrimmage. Brooklyn’s Cumbe Center for African and Diaspora for Dance will host an African drumming circle as well.

The Expo’s parenting seminars include: “First Fevers, Allergies, Breastfeeding & More”, a Q & A with Mt. Sinai Pediatricians, and “Raising a Good Sleeper” by author Dr. Janet Krone Kennedy. The Good Sleeper: The Essential Guide to for Your Baby (and You.)

Tickets start at $15: http://achildgrows.com/expo/.  Pssst!  Use a special discount code, ACG15OFF, for 15% off any ticket type.

NYC CM Stephen Levin and NYC CM Antonio Reynoso have set aside $1.5 MM and $1 MM, respectively, for capital projects in Council District 33 and Council District 34 - hey! that's us! Greenpoint & Williamsburg (and certain other parts of Brooklyn). And WE, the voters, will decide which capital projects get the money. Folks, it's easy: the projects with the most votes will get the $$!

WHO CAN VOTE? Any resident in District 33 & DISTRICT 34, respectively, age 14 and older.

WHAT ARE THE PROJECTS? Check them out here.  You can vote up to 5 projects; the project(s) with the most votes will get the $$. This year, Town Square Chair Susan Anderson helped craft a $500K joint proposal for STEM labs at IS 318 (South Williamsburg) and PS 34 (Greenpoint), two underserved and deserving schools.  Invest in our future!   

WHERE ARE THE VOTING SITES? There are many convenient voting locations and times, including the Greenpoint Public Library on Norman Ave, near the G-Train's Nassau Street station.  Please check them out here. 

District 33 Projects & Voting Locations: http://labs.council.nyc/districts/33/
District 34 Projects & Voting Locations:  http://labs.council.nyc/districts/34/

For those of us who don't avidly follow chess happenings, the NEW YORK STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS 2016 took place in March. So proud to report that local Brooklyn IS 318 beat out the best private, charter and public schools in New York State (and beyond) to win the Junior High School Championship title! And huge kudoos to PS 139 and PS 31 for their respective trophy wins at State Championships and recent local tournaments.

Next step for all these hard working, talented kids: NATIONALS in the Spring! Join us in supporting them with a tax deductible donation through:  https://chess-at-streb-fundraiser.eventbrite.com/.

What do action heroes and local chess champs have in common?

Thanks to STREB, on Thursday, April 7, quite a bit!  Elizabeth Streb and her Action Heroes demonstrate courage with their new show,"SEA" - a pure Action Explosion with human bodies careening through, around and above invented hardware.  And they are inviting the local chess scene to celebrate with them!  Every ticket purchased will help support IS 318, PS 31 and PS 139 - ALL Title 1 schools, by the way - in their quest for the state and national championships this spring! 

This event is sold out.  But you can still support these amazing, hardworking kids with a tax-deductible donation through the ticket link: https://chess-at-streb-fundraiser.eventbrite.com/.

Click here for a pdf flyer

Spring is here and it's time to air out that closet!  Do you have gently used items taking up space? Bring everything over to the Greencycle Holiday Swap tomorrow at the Greenpoint Public Library.

Bring some! Or take some!
One man's trash is another man's treasure.
Let's recycle, reuse and reduce!

MEN’S, WOMEN’S & CHILDREN’S CLOTHING, SHOES, BOOKS, TOYS, BICYCLES, PHONES, HOUSEHOLD ITEMS & ELECTRONICS. We will accept electronics until 3 PM. Cleaned, gently used and working items please.  No need to bring anything to take items. However, out of consideration for others, we may limit folks to the greater of 1 bag or the number of bags that you have brought to donate to the swap.

$5 suggested donation to help cover costs. Town Square is a qualified 501(c)(3) not-for-profit institution. Your donation will be TAX DEDUCTIBLE to the full extent of the law. For more info, please contact Town Square at 347.559.1410 or greencycle@townsquareinc.com.

We gratefully thank our partners and sponsors: CM Stephen Levin, CM Antonio Reynoso, NYC DYCD, Brooklyn Boy Scouts Troop 26 and Friends of Greenpoint Public Library.  We are also thrilled to partner with Home Life Services. All remaining swap items will be donated to The Clay Family Residence, a local Home Life Services shelter at 66 Clay Street and four other Home Life shelters in Brooklyn and Bronx with over 500 children. In particular, toys, books and children's clothing will be earmarked for the Albemarle Family Residence in East Flatbush; this shelter was designed by NYC as the best shelter last year, based on perfect school attendance by their 184 children, ages 5 through 18! Please help these children and families while benefiting our environment.

We can hardly wait for the 9th Annual Go Green! Brooklyn Festival in beautiful McCarren Park in early June. Go Green is a fun and informative day of exhibits and activities promoting Earth Day values for the thousands of park-goers who traditionally enjoy McCarren Park on a nice summer day. Does your mission help our environment? Do your products or services feature recycled, upcycled, organic materials or are otherwise fitting in with an Earth day theme? Are you interested in reaching a broad audience in exciting Greenpoint and Williamsburg, Brooklyn? Go Green! is the festival for you!

To exhibit at Go Green! Greenpoint 2016, please apply at https://go-green-bk-2016-exhibitors.eventbrite.com. Applications will be reviewed on a first-come basis.  For more information, contact us at sales@townsquareinc.com or visit www.gogreenbk.nyc. 

Long awaited AFTERSCHOOL CHESS is happening now! Click here for more info & to register for afterschool. We'll arrange for pick up if there're at least 4 students from your school who sign up for the Spring Session.    

You can also sign up for the awesome Greenpoint Chess Holiday Camp (every NYC public school holiday) & Summer Camp are available. Matches, lessons, games like musical chess, playground time, pizza, ice-cream and more! Click here for more info & to register. 

AMAZING FLEXIBILITY!  Sign up for a day or even half day! Great way to try it out.

Town Square received a Small GCEF Grant to create a Go Green Hub for Greenpoint!  Our vision includes a Sustainability Map and infographic (please see below), generously designed by VICE.  This is an evolving work-in-process and we'll be looking to you for your input.