In New York, block letters on façades of buildings are often all that remains of the original occupants. The employees of Hartley House still proudly claim the masthead above the doors of their Hell’s Kitchen brownstone as their own. The non-profit organization, which offers the community afterschool programs, GED classes, and other recreational services, is located in the building in which it was founded a century ago. Hartley House recently got a helping hand from some neighbors.

A new 11-story building overlooks the river on 140th Street in West Harlem. It has a rooftop terrace, new Energy Star appliances and its very own library. It also has its very own clientele: More than half of the apartments are reserved for ex-convicts.

The Fortune Society, which helps former inmates reenter society, celebrated the opening of the Castle Gardens Housing Complex on September 15 with members of the City Council and financiers from Capitol One Bank, among others.

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During the recession, Karen Auster retooled her Brooklyn-based events-planning business, offering clients in-house design and marketing services she had previously outsourced to other vendors. To do that, Ms. Auster had to take some risks. She doubled her staff to six and moved the business from her home to an office on Flatbush Avenue.

With the economy improving, she’s seeing the benefits. She recently signed the Sky View Center in Queens as a client and will produce a variety of concerts and holiday shows there. She plans to meet with more potential clients in coming weeks.

“We’re closing deals,” she says. “It’s beautiful.”

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After vegetable-wielding protesters showed up last month to oppose a proposed change to New York City’s community garden regulations, the Department of Parks and Recreation issued a revised set of rules on Sept. 13.

As garden advocates citywide review them, gardeners in Fort Greene are trying to figure out what the new rules will mean for the neighborhood’s vegetable plots.

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