With the local primaries just weeks away, we continue to focus on the candidates in New York's upcoming election. Ofer talks to Cesar Zuniga who is running for City Council in the district that covers Sunset Park and Red Hook, two of Brooklyn's most important neighborhoods for future development. The son of Mexican immigrants, Cesar has a backgroun…

Wrapping up a series on the District 33 City Council race, Ofer sits down with Elizabeth Adams, legislative director for the outgoing Council Member, Steve Levin. Elizabeth grew up in a rent stabilized apartment, and affordable housing is central to her platform that local government can do more to help struggling New Yorkers as the city rebuilds.…

In the latest installment of our series looking at the race for the City Council District 33 seat, Ofer sits down with April Somboun. The candidate studied international public policy at Columbia and has worked in marketing and communications. She's a Brooklyn Heights resident, refugee, and working mother who is proud to call herself an outsider in…

Ofer kicks off a short series focusing on the City Council race for the 33rd district, which has a large slate of candidates vying for the seat. We invited some of the top fundraisers to hear their vision for this diverse district covering Downtown Brooklyn, Brooklyn Heights, Greenpoint, Williamsburg, and Boerum Hill. The first guest is Toba Potosk…

Host Ofer Cohen sits down with New York City mayoral candidate Kathryn Garcia, a Brooklynite with a fascinating story. Garcia got her start in the Bloomberg Administration, but more recently, served as sanitation commissioner and was appointed food czar for the City’s emergency food program during the pandemic. In our conversation, Garcia lays out …

City Council Member Robert Cornegy Jr grew up in Bedford Stuyvesant and represents the neighborhood in the City Council's 36th District. In this podcast, Councilman Cornegy lays out his vision for the city, which includes sitting down with real estate developers, promoting public private partnerships, reforming the city's land use process, and more…

HeyBK is back at a time when Brooklyn, along with the rest of NYC, is trying to rebuild all that was lost during the pandemic. This season, Ofer Cohen talks to leaders and political candidates about their vision as the city reopens and rebuilds. In our first episode, Ofer sits down with Ray McGuire, the Wall Street executive running for New York Ci…

In this episode, Ofer sits down with Sue Donoghue, President of the Prospect Park Alliance and the park administrator. At the nonprofit, Sue works closely with the City to help raise 11 million dollars annually and over 50 million dollars in capital funds to improve and operate Brooklyn’s 585 acre park. Seen as Brooklyn’s backyard, Prospect Park wa…

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In this episode, Ofer speaks with Carlo Scissura, President & CEO of the New York Building Congress. Carlo was recently appointed Chair of the NYC Mayor’s committee in charge of evaluating the plan to fix the crumbling BQE. He has been a key player during Brooklyn’s redevelopment and construction boom over the last two decades. Born and raised in B…

Ofer meets with Jonathan Schnapp, founder of the Royal Palms Shuffleboard Club in Gowanus. In 2011, Jonathan and his partner Ashley took a spontaneous trip to the Mirror Lake Shuffleboard Club in Florida and returned home inspired to bring the forgotten sport to Brooklyn. Much sooner than expected, they secured a warehouse space and began fundraisi…

Ofer sits down with two of the Brooklyn restaurateurs breathing new life into the historic restaurant, Gage & Tollner. The restaurant first opened in Downtown Brooklyn in 1879 and shut its doors in 2004. The 125-year-old Brooklyn institution was known for its landmarked decor and impeccable service. In the 14 years since it closed, Downtown Brookly…

In this episode of HeyBK, Ofer sits down with Chad Dickerson, the former CEO of Etsy, a multibillion-dollar online marketplace for handcrafted goods based in DUMBO. Chad left Silicon Valley for the young startup in 2008 and led the company - through many hurtles - to become one of NYC’s greatest Tech success stories. Along the way, Chad, who’s orig…

On this episode of HeyBK, we journey to South Brooklyn to one of the most famous places in the world – Coney Island. Ofer Cohen speaks with Dick Zigun, the “unelected mayor” of Coney Island, a playwright, a circus fanatic, and the creator and leader of the annual Mermaid Parade. Dick tells us his story of growing up in a Connecticut town where PT B…

In this episode of HeyBK, Ofer sits down with Susan Feldman, the Artistic Director of St. Ann’s Warehouse in Brooklyn Bridge Park. The program’s trajectory is closely linked with Brooklyn’s resurgence. St. Ann’s relationship with Brooklyn as a place and Real Estate as a business is a great model for activating neighborhoods while supporting the art…

HeyBK host Ofer Cohen speaks with Jared Della Valle & AJ Pires, the founders of Alloy, LLC, a DUMBO-based development and architecture firm. Jared and AJ explain how meeting through a mutual friend turned into a life-long friendship, successful business, and a true Brooklyn story. Their joint passion and ideas about responsible development, keen ar…

On this episode of HeyBK, Ofer speaks with Andrew Kimball, the CEO of Industry City. Since taking over in 2013, Andrew and his partners transformed the largest industrial complex in NYC into a renowned creativity and innovation hub. Andrew gives us the scoop on what it takes to run such a huge transformation project, how sometimes new opportunities…

On Season 2, Episode 5, Ofer sits down with Jed Walentas, the real estate developer behind the transformation of DUMBO, one of the most desirable neighborhoods in New York City. In the mid-90’s, Jed became involved in his family business, Two Trees, and spearheaded the transformation of the area. In their conversation, Jed talks about growing up in…

In this episode, Ofer sits down with Karen Auster, a key force behind the new Brooklyn experience. During the past two decades, Karen’s Dumbo-based marketing firm, Auster Agency, has helped launch some of Brooklyn’s most exciting projects, including Brooklyn Bridge Park, 1 Hotel, the new Atlantic Antic and now Domino Park. Karen fell in love with B…

Eran Chen, Founder of ODA Architecture, speaks with Ofer Cohen about his humble beginnings in Israel to becoming one of NYC’s most renowned architects with an expanding international clientele. Beginning his career designing McDonald’s restaurants, to eventually starting O.P.E.N and creating a mega-museum of street art, he believed that he could br…

Born and bred Brooklynite, Dave Maundrell, chats with Ofer Cohen about growing up in Williamsburg and witnessing, first-hand, the changes throughout Brooklyn over the last two decades. Dave has great respect for the history of the neighborhood. He's watched it evolve from its industrial and gang-ridden past in the 70s and 80s, to an artist-driven h…

Ofer Cohen talks to Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams about his concerns, goals and vision for the ever-changing communities throughout Brooklyn. A born and bred Brooklynite, Eric Adams started his career as a police officer, serving 22 years on the force. He began his political career as a State Senator representing Brooklyn districts. To say …

Jersey-born real estate developer turned fully-immersed Brooklynite, Doug Steiner, meets with Ofer Cohen to share his story about developing Brooklyn, and the creation of Steiner Studios, the largest movie studio outside of Hollywood. The state-of-the-art film and television studio at the Brooklyn Navy Yard opened six months after Doug advocated fo…

Ever since he moved to Brownstone Brooklyn in the early 2000s, Jonathan Butler's entrepreneurial projects have fostered a unique Brooklyn brand, which has since spread to other cities. He's the creator of some of the borough's most transformative projects, including 1000 Dean, and co-founder of the Brooklyn Flea and the food market Smorgasburg. The…

David Ehrenberg is the President and CEO of the Brooklyn Navy Yard. In his conversation with Ofer Cohen, he shares his excitement about the Navy Yard’s mission and his experiences while managing some of the most complex and important revitalization projects in America.بقلم Hey BK

On the sixth episode of Hey BK, Ofer Cohen catches up with Jacqui Williams, a real estate lobbyist working on some of Brooklyn’s biggest projects. Jacqui lets us into her remarkable life story - from some dark moments in her past, living homeless on the streets of New York City, to becoming a power player in some of the most important approvals of …

Regina Myer is President of the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership, a local development corporation that is tasked with supporting Downtown Brooklyn's emergence as a center for innovation, creativity and entrepreneurship, as well as a world-class cultural, education, residential destination. Regina moved to Brooklyn in 1991 and over the last two decades…

David Belt, Co-Founder and CEO of New Lab, speaks with Ofer Cohen about the path that led him to the aspirational real estate development work he is involved with, in the intersection of art, technology and architecture. From his early years touring with a punk rock band, through the idea of converting dumpsters into swimming pools, to creating the…

Hey BK Host, Ofer Cohen, chats with Toby Moskovits, President of Heritage Equity Partners. Toby speaks about growing up in Brooklyn and how she was able to “beat the odds” to gain success and credibility in the commercial real estate industry. She also touches upon her interest in the Williamsburg and Bushwick markets, and what drives her to contin…

MaryAnne Gilmartin graduated from university and was given an Urban Fellowship, an opportunity in NYC to experience public service. It was here that Gilmartin realized her passion for real estate and development. Very early in her career, MaryAnne met some of NYC’s most powerful developers. While balancing parenting and running some of Brooklyn’s m…

David Kramer, a true Brooklynite and President of Hudson Companies, speaks with Ofer Cohen about his path to becoming a developer in New York City and more specifically, Brooklyn. Tune in to hear why David moved back to NYC from L.A. to follow his dream. The conversation touches on how he started in the business and was able to build such a diverse…