Sanctuary

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Growing up on the outskirts of Hamburg, Germany in the 1970’s, we used our street as a playground. We played hopscotch, learned to ride our bikes, roller skated, played ball games … you name it. Sure, there were cars passing every now and then, but the kids owned the street.

Growing up in NYC is of course a different experience. Even in my old neighborhood in Germany, the cars have outnumbered the kids and nobody in their right mind would send them to play unsupervised in the streets anymore. However, there is one little block in our immediate Cobble Hill neighborhood, Verandah Place, that channels life from the past. Historic (mid-1800) buildings line a narrow street alongside Cobble Hill Park, and everybody can safely walk right in the middle of the street. Luckily for Tobin, the cobble stones have been replaced with smooth Asphalt…