Ocean Avenue Sites That Delight

Driving from Clinton Hill to Victorian Flatbush, we were particularly struck by these two appetizing apartment buildings on Ocean Avenue. The Art Deco awning at No. 395 and the Tudor roofline at No.441 only whetted our appetite for the main course. Built in 1924, 441 Ocean Avenue has 86 residential units across about 115,000 square feet of space. We're not sure if this is a co-op or rental. Anyone?

Comments

There are beautiful apartment building along Ocean Avenue. Majestic, even. I wonder what people thought at the time they were built though - hundreds of Victorian wood-frame homes were torn down to accomodate them. The post-war climate and the desperate need for housing that followed must have quelled some objections. Wish we could hear a voice from someone who lived though the changing times.

Posted by: Anonymous at March 6, 2006 10:21 AM

What, pray tell, were you doing in Victorian Flatbush?

Posted by: Anonymous at March 6, 2006 10:38 AM

Oops! Never mind.

Posted by: Anonymous at March 6, 2006 10:40 AM

Ocean Avenue was once one of the premier streets in all of Brooklyn, especially known for its fabulous apartment buildings, from Prospect Park to Coney Island. One of my faves is #416 (corner of Caton) aka "The Bracebridge". It's one of those buildings that, the more you look at it, the more you appreciate its fine details. According to realtors who now hawk coops in that building, it used to be the "official hotel" for the Brooklyn Dodgers when they were in play at nearby Ebbets Field. I don't know if that is true or not. But, for a pretty interesting site that talks about the history of Ocean Avenue, in some detail, check this out: http://www.geocities.com/buddychai2/Brooklyn/BklynStreets.html

Posted by: GardensGal at March 6, 2006 10:59 AM

If you had kept driving up Ocean Avenue passed let's say.....Avenue L your eyes would have been assailed by the many Fedders buildings popping up and construction sites for potential Freidrich buildings....one can only hope that those apartments will be the affordable housing which this city desperately needs. My heart aches to see these buildings....but I must have hope....

Posted by: Anonymous at March 7, 2006 12:12 AM

Those two buildings are both rentals. The one at 395 appears to be in very good condition while the one at 441 suffers somewhat from a lack of careful attention. I bought an apartment in 416 Ocean a couple of years ago and the coop buildings that are in the area offer huge apartments at cheap prices - at least they were cheap two years ago. I think the pricing is still pretty reasonable.

Posted by: bajalero at March 8, 2006 3:05 PM

My family moved into 441 Ocean Ave in 1936. I lived there until WW2 but my parents stayed on until 1955. The building was called The Capitol. It was quite elegant with 24-hour doormen and elevator operaors. The latter were not needed after the elevators were converted to self service in 1936. Judging from the picture, the building has run down in that there is no longer a canopy extending from the front entrance o the curb. The caopy was inscribed with the word Capitol and 441.
In regard to Bracebridge Hall: It is diagonally across from 441.The Dodger players did not live there. When the team was at home, the players lived in their own homes. I had personal contacts with two Dodgers of the 1940-50 era. Spider Jorgensen played third when Jackie Robinson made his debut. Dolph Camilli, a great first baseman, played in the early '50s.

Posted by: Sy Gollin at June 26, 2006 1:34 PM

I used to live at 395 Ocean in a studio apartment. The apartments are really beautiful, huge (could have been converted to a 1 bedroom) and very well taken care of. I now live in another building the management company owns and they really try to keep the exteriors and interiors clean. When an apartment is vacated, they redo the kitchens, but have kept all of the pre-war touches.

Posted by: guest at November 19, 2007 10:56 PM

I just moved to 441... it's a rental.

Posted by: guest at January 7, 2008 1:53 PM

Hello--We love these apartments on Ocean Avenue (especially the buildings in the 400 blocks.) We're interested in starting to look at places in this neighborhood. How do others feel about the safety in the neighborhood along Ocean Avenue? I read about a murder at the Parkside Q stop as well as some broken windows and run-down apartments on Woodruff. Any thoughts?

Posted by: guest at March 5, 2008 5:49 PM

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March 6, 2006

Ocean Avenue Sites That Delight

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