Van Halen Tickets? No, Just an Open House

Didn't go to this one, but did go to an open house at the 'Carriage House' on 15th street - also by Corcodevil. Geez, are they overpriced - pretty, but overpriced. The few units they had open: a one-bedroom for $690k, a two-bedroom (with spectacular viewes) for $890k...

Tons of traffic. I hope they all sell for ask!

Posted by: Anonymous at September 19, 2005 2:31 PM

Yes building is in middle of block...I remember a parking lot there so may not have torn down anything.
I believe that 'sq. footage' is probably something in 'offering plan' in the prospectus and filed with NYState....so dubious whether it is 'Corcoran' that is doing the calculating or quoting anything that other agencies don't quote.

Posted by: Anonymous at September 19, 2005 3:02 PM

How did you find out they are including elevator and hallways in square footage??

Posted by: Anonymous at September 19, 2005 3:06 PM

These look like nothing special to me.

But they are condos. My husband often talk about the fact that if we were buying now, we would have to buy a condo. We make a bit under 200k combined. At today's prices, we would just barely be able to put 20% down and would not have enough left over or a high enough HHI to get past a board. No way.

Posted by: Anonymous at September 19, 2005 3:24 PM

The reason for the long lines for this open house is simple; location location location.

You'd be hard pressed to find a condo on one of the "place" blocks in Carroll Gardens.

Needle in a haystack my friends.

Posted by: Anonymous at September 19, 2005 3:32 PM

The first open house was on Saturday starting at 1:00. Nobody slept on the sidewalk over night, but the line started forming at 10:00 am. They were showing for back up at the open house on Sunday, so it looks like all units sold out on Saturday. This is a great location and a nicely designed building. Unlike Fort Greene, Carroll Gardens never went through a renaissance; it hasn't had the press it deserves. At these prices it looks like it's finally coming into its own...

Posted by: Anonymous at September 19, 2005 3:58 PM

Re 15th Street -- I can only imagine how great the views are from the top couple of floors of that building! The lower floors, not so much, but the top floors -- wow. (Not that it's not a bit pricey, but I'd take there over the (formerly) $1000/Sq ft 7th Street places any day, even with 7th Street being closer to restaurant alley.)

Posted by: Anonymous at September 19, 2005 4:20 PM

Has anyone been to the 20th Street place Corcoran is also selling? At least one of the same brokers as this one. That place seems to be going like hotcakes, even though it is on the otherside of the Prospect Expressway. What's the scoop? The prices are definitely lower, but I am still suprised how fast the apartments seem to be disappearing. (The good news for buyers will be that if the new Greenwood Heights/South South Slope zoning goes through, the views should stay. Meanwhile developers on 15th and 16th are going nuts trying to get concrete poured before the zoning changes.)

Posted by: Anonymous at September 19, 2005 4:27 PM

I live on the block -- saw a few people lining up a bit before noon on Saturday -- I was gone the rest of the day, so don't know if it became a "mob scene" later. Sunday had traffic, but didn't seem like huge crowds. But the square footage is pretty accurate -- it was a 33 foot lot -- that's why the builders could build so high, and building probably goes back 50 feet, or close to it. Because it's so wide, the apartments have floor to ceiling windows 4 across -- very unusual. The building wouldn't be so bad if it wasn't so high -- a 4 story with that design would be ok -- but it replaced a 3-story/2-family 60's era modern house which also didn't fit in (there are a smattering of those modern townhouses on various streets in the neighborhood). The "place" blocks between Court St. and Henry aren't landmarked, by the way, despite being very desirable due to the large front and back gardens (lots on 2nd Place run 133' feet deep). The folks on the block can't believe condos are going for 1.2 million when you can still get entire brownstones for not much more.

Posted by: Anonymous at September 19, 2005 6:55 PM

I actually looked at this place when it was selling as a 3 story brownstone. It was listed at around $1.8 w/ and a few people had the listing (I saw it w/ Brooklyn Bridge). When they were showing it they mentioned that it was zoned for an extra floor so I was surprised to see they put 2 extra floors on three.

If memory serves the building was built in the late 1960s and was absolutely humungous. There was a lower duplex (connected by spiral stairs... yech!) and a seperate entrance to the top floor apartment which was absolutely huge. I seem to remember that the lot was 30 feet wide.

Great location... these will go quick, despite the ridiculous price.

Posted by: Anonymous at September 19, 2005 9:27 PM

van halen?? come on, you're showing your age (and hipness.)

Posted by: Anonymous at September 19, 2005 9:37 PM

square footage is not determined by the RE agent. It is provided by the seller which in this case is the developer.

Posted by: Anonymous at September 19, 2005 10:44 PM

Anon at 6:06 -- the zoning has changed on the north side of 15th street. no one can build as high as that six-story condo anymore. and the same will happen to the other side of 15th street shortly -- which is why some are questioning whether the places on 15th and 16th will be built and someone else is screaming.

Posted by: Anonymous at September 20, 2005 8:17 AM

Anon at 9:39 pm:

wow, you really are desperate to shove your 12 story towers into 4 story high residential area. and that's an impressive bunch of building violations you have already racked up.

Posted by: Anonymous at September 20, 2005 8:40 AM

Is the Henry Rad one on 15th between 4th and 5th on the agenda?

Posted by: Anonymous at September 20, 2005 11:09 AM

brownstoner, do you or any of your readers have any new developments you like or would recommend? Or is it simply that you and your readership hate all new development? We're first time buyers in the $600K-$800K range. Any unbiased advice would be greatly appreciated.

Posted by: Anonymous at September 20, 2005 11:33 AM

Many of us are actually at least moderately pro-development -- just with a little restraint and preferably not hideously ugly. Two recommendations for Park Slope: the "Carraige" on 15th Street (the upper floors) (see Corcoran's website) and 8 by 8 (see Developers Group website) (first open house this weekend). Don't yet know what the pricing is going to be on 8 by 8, but suspect some will be in your range -- whether they will be overpriced is still to be determined. And one to avoid in Park Slope -- the 7th Street set on Corcoran (at least until they drop the price again).

Posted by: Anonymous at September 20, 2005 1:39 PM

....just wish "pride in what you build" came up a bit more often during development

quote missing from my post.

Posted by: Anonymous at September 20, 2005 2:06 PM

Um... The Carriage House is on the north side of the street - thus, their views can only (and will likely) be blocked by developments on 4th ave. In a galaxy far far away...

Posted by: Anonymous at September 20, 2005 8:51 PM

Ok...now that people have finally figured out which side of the street the Carraige is on -- North side, down-zoned -- the view seems to be that 5th Ave is automatically going to go to 70 feet. Do people thing that every plot on 5th Ave is just going to shoot up to to 70 feet?? You have to be kidding me...with the opinions of the people here, you would never buy anything in park slope except a $3.5 million brownstone on a landmarked block... Is anyone aware of a single 70-foot project in the works on 5th Ave???

Posted by: Anonymous at September 20, 2005 10:07 PM