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Big news: The original cement facade of the Coignet Building, not been seen in decades, is now visible at the corner of 3rd Avenue and 3rd Street. The uppermost story of netting that has shrouded the landmark at 360 3rd Avenue in Gowanus for about a year as it undergoes restoration came down sometime in the last few days. We snapped these photos yesterday as we were passing through the area.

The red brick veneer applied sometime in the mid-20th century has been removed, per the restoration plans. It looks to us as though the restorers are planning to add a top coat of cement to finish and seal the exterior. Perhaps this explains why some of the netting has been removed.

The historic restoration of this landmark is certainly not finished, as more photos below reveal. The front stoop has greatly deteriorated in the last year, since the scaffolding went up — perhaps a result of this unusually snowy winter.

Whole Foods, which is handling the restoration as part of a deal to build its adjacent store, is also stabilizing the interior. Click through to see behind the fence.

Coignet Building Coverage [Brownstoner]

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What's Your Take? Leave a Comment

  1. johnbk: ” It’s appearance is significantly reduced to an undesirable fashion because of the whole foods flanking it on all sides.”

    Appreciate you pointing this out. LPC gave their blessing to Whole Food to do just that and never even asked Whole Foods to produce a single drawing to show that they were not diminishing the significance of a building which LPC itself affirmed was significant. The city agencies will let big business and big development get away with whatever they want, but stick the little guy with every rule in the book.

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