Brooklynite falls for Locust Point; new president

Brooklynite falls for Locust Point; new president

Will Cuevas and his wife drove from busybody Brooklyn to languorous Locust Point. They toured a house on Giegerich Street and strolled around the neighborhood.

“We saw dogs,” Cuevas said. “We saw friendly people. We saw the beach club. It was like, ‘Alright, cool. We’ll move here.’”

Four years later, Cuevas is the Locust Point Civic Association’s new president. He’s working to resolve the Glennon Place construction fiasco and wants to host a film series at the beach club. Cuevas and his wife are content. They love breezy Locust Point.

“In Brooklyn, we were in a coop,” Cuevas said. “There were always people in the hall, asking questions. Here, people are nice. Here, you mind your own business.”

The neighborhood is remote but comfortable. Many of Cuevas’ friends have lived in Locust Point for decades.

“People grow up here, move away and want to move back,” Cuevas, a mortgage banker, said. “I grew up in New Jersey. I don’t want to move back.”

Cuevas and his wife bought their Locust Point house in June 2005. They replaced a linoleum floor and yellow countertops. In October 2005, they settled in.

“It was Halloween,” Cuevas said. “We put on costumes to scare the kids. We had fun.”

Last October Cuevas and his wife were pirates. Neighbors who laugh together, stand together. Cuevas is a big fan of Locust Point’s summer Comedy Night.

“Better than comedy in the city,” he said. “You get young and old out here, everyone rolling with laughter.”

Neighbor Kelly Baisley invited Cuevas and his wife to join the Civic Association. Baisley is the treasurer.

“Will and his wife are so sweet,” Baisley said. “I thought they’d be a fantastic addition to the board, and I was right.”

Cuevas works in Yonkers; his wife works in White Plains. He is a real estate whiz. On April 7, Cuevas called the Glennon Place vacant house a concern and praised Locust Point’s elected officials – Senator Jeffrey Klein, Assemblyman Michael Benedetto and Councilman James Vacca.

“If you don’t have a group to fight for your community, what do you have?” Cuevas said. “A few people complaining. You need the group to cajole elected officials, to call 311 every day.”

Cuevas and other board members asked Vacca to help renovate the beach club’s playground soon. Cuevas took over in January.

“We have a new board,” he said. “New ideas. New energy.”

Vice-president Jerry Landi nominated Cuevas.

“He got involved right away,” Landi said, chuckling. “We like him because he’s usually the last to leave our parties.”