Family, friends, and community leaders gathered on the corner of Manhattan Avenue and Conselyea Street to honor Vinny Abate with a street naming on July 18th. The stretch of Manhattan Avenue (between Metropolitan Avenue and Conselyea Street) is now co-named Vincent “Vinnie” Abate Way. This honor to the venerable community member, who passed away early in 2015, was made possible by application sponsorship from the Department of Transportation and Councilman Antonio Reynoso.
A lifelong resident of Greenpoint and Williamsburg, Abate was dedicated to improving his community. He established a reputation of being a hard worker whose determination yielded results. He served as Chairman of Community Board 1 for over a quarter of a century (from the 80s through 2009) when North Brooklyn was going through major residential changes. Among many things, he was noted for granting both the newer arrivals and the long established a fair say in the Board’s affairs.
Vincent Abate’s daughter (Lorraine Aprile), grandson (Jerry Aprile), and granddaughter (Dana Aprile), were joined by Assemblymember Joe Lentol; Community Board 1 Chair, Dealice Fuller; long-time District Manager Gerry Esposito; Conselyea Street Block Association President, Phil Caponegro; and several others to celebrate the life of the steadfast former CB1 Board Chair.
“Vinny passed away in January 2015. This past Monday would have been his 98th birthday. Most people don’t remember this but Vinny ran against me in my first election in 1972 and nearly beat me. Despite that he and I worked closely together for decades promoting the interests of Greenpoint and Williamsburg. He was a tireless fighter for this community and he is sorely missed by all who loved him. Rest in peace my friend,” Lentol said in a post on facebook.
