Park Slope should be on PPS's list of the 20 greatest neighborhoods. This is why it should be on the list:

I. Significant Neighborhood Institutions: 1. Prospect Park (with the numerous amenities already listed on your website). 2. Main Branch of Brooklyn Public Library and several smaller branches within the neighborhood 3. Brooklyn Museum - portions of which are newly refurbished 4. Brooklyn Botanic Garden - containing a wonderful cherry tree esplanade, a beautiful and peaceful Japanese garden, and children's garden 5. Saturday Farmers' Market at Grand Army Plaza 6. Music School on Seventh Avenue with regular weekend performances 7. Fifth Avenue (joining Seventh Avenue) containing many new, small, individually owned shops, great restaurants and galleries 8. PuppetWorks, a puppet theater on Sixth Avenue, and a range of other theaters and cultural amenities 9. Park Slope Food Coop - Member owned, run and staffed grocery store with 11,000 members 10. Fifth Avenue Committee - a community development corporation dedicated to preserving affordable housing, employment for low-income and working people and providing many other services to the community in the interests of preserving an economically diverse and affordable neighborhood 11. A special trolley leaving from Grand Army Plaza takes people to the Brooklyn Children's Museum 12. Outdoor flea market every Saturday at P.S. 321

II. Good Transportation Links Many New York City subway lines serve various portions of the neighborhood: the 2, 3, N, R, Q and F lines have stops in the area. There are also a number of buses.

III. Lots of independently owned small businesses including at least three independent bookstores. Some stores, e.g. several ice cream places and a muffin store have quite a bit of seating outside. Because there are lots of places to stop and sit it's a great neighborhood to walk around in.

IV. Lots of Annual Events: 1. The Fifth Avenue Street Fair - every spring 2. The Halloween Parade on Seventh Avenue 3. The St. Patrick's Day Parade 4. The Labor Day West Indian Parade (on Eastern Parkway but ends at Grand Army Plaza) 5. Gay Pride Parade 6. Philharmonic in Prospect Park 7. Summer performances at the Bandshell in Prospect Park

Walking around our neighborhood on a Saturday is like attending a big party; Prospect Park is full, Seventh and Fifth Avenues have lots of foot traffic, there are stoop sales all over.

The neighborhood is moderately clean and feels very safe. There are people out walking from early in the morning until late at night so it is rare to be out on the street alone.

All of the institutions listed above have lots of activities, programming and community involvement.

It's a very social neighborhood at least in part because there are so many institutions and amenities that draw people outside and encourage them to interact.