By Amanda Moses
The Spring Creek Sun newspaper has served the community since 1974, with its very first edition released on June 13, 1974, under the name Starrett City Sun. What began as a weekly venture to highlight the newly built residential site has transformed over the past 50 years into a grander, bi-weekly, media outlet that now has a wider reach thanks to Spring Creek Sun’s online presence.
Spring Creek Towers (SCT), formerly known as Starrett City, was developed to create and maintain a viable, stable, diverse community in an area that was once considered marshland with no access to public transportation, amenities, or schools. The very first issue underscored this plan, stating that 450 apartments would be occupied by October 1, 1974 ushering in about 25,000 residents in what management had hailed a “City Within a City.”
“Welcome to your first Starrett City Sun. This newspaper will, with your cooperation, serve to bring you complete information about the vital new community of Starrett City in the Spring Creek Section of Brooklyn. During its development stage, as Starrett City becomes a live with people, shopping areas, parks, schools, recreation facilities, and grassy spans of open space, your newspaper will accept its responsibilities and keep you informed,” part of an article in the Vol. 1 No. 1, 15cent issue of the Sun read (the Spring Creek Sun is currently a free digital newspaper).
The Sun set out with the goal to catalyze all of the social, political, civic, religious, and business news that affected those in the Spring Creek area. Additionally, the Spring Creek Sun was under contract to be free to remain an independent newspaper despite being owned by management.
With each milestone SCT hit, the Spring Creek Sun was there to document it. From stories such as on October 15, 1974, where Mayor Abraham Beame presented a key to the first 300 families to move into Starrett City to the very first Starrett Tenant Association meeting on February 17th, the editorial team was there.
On June 2, 1975, a ceremony was held to official break ground to the creation of the Starrett City Recreation Center, which is now known as the Brooklyn Sports Club (doors opened in 1978) as well as the First National Bank opening its doors for locals.
The Starrett City Intermediate School was opened and built on September 18, 1975, offering two garage spaces for classes, and then the focus was pivoted to the creation of PS 346 which was set to open in September 1976. This was then followed but the opening of the Starrett City Shopping mall and the Starrett Early Learning Center in 1976.
The power plant was also highlighted in the Sun after the New York City black out occurred on July 17, 1977—however “Starrett City shone brightly as usual because Starrett has its own power-house.”
Advertisements to long forgotten department stores ran in the Sun, as well as one for SCT that stated, “You’ll sleep better at Starrett City” with 80% of the site rented.
In 1983, the Starrett City Boxing Club was highlighted for participating in the New York Daily News Golden Gloves Competition in February 1983. The following year, Alberto Quinones from the Starrett Boxing Club won the Golden Gloves championship with Jimmy O cheering from the sidelines at Madison Square Garden.
Each achievement from local clubs, or even entertainment news including stories on Freddy Mercury of Queen or the launch of a new Rolling Stones tour made it into the Sun newspaper.
It wasn’t until 2008, Starrett City was renamed as Spring Creek Towers and the newspaper earned the title, Spring Creek Sun.
