July 2006
July 31, 2006
Monday On The Record
14th Street, Sunset Park. Photo by Frank Lynch.
Events: Today in Brooklyn
Political Protest on Brooklyn Bridge
Bloc Party at McCarren Pool
Tourists Discover Brooklyn
Kaiju Big Battel Invades Warsaw
Bed Stuy Stuck in a Moment
Got Khat? Better Not...
House of the Day: Caton Park Fixer-Upper
Here's an interesting one hot off the presses...53 Marlborough Road between Church Ave & Caton Avenue. Not much info on it other than it has good bones, needs a ton of work and is a pretty cheap way ($575,000!) to get your foot in the door in Victorian Flatbush. We doubt anyone's seen it yet but we'll look forward to hearing feedback.
Caton Park Rare Opp [Mary Kay Gallagher] GMAP P*Shark
Head to Head: $829,000 in Williamsburg
If you had $829,000 to drop on a condo in Williamsburg which of these would you prefer? A 2-bedroom, 1-bath in the Manhattan Park Condos overlooking McCarren Park or a 2-bedroom, 2-bath unit on the 8th floor of Shaeffer Landing?
297 Driggs Avenue [NY Times] GMAP
Shaeffer Landing 2 BR [NY Times] GMAP
Development Watch: Edge of Wallabout
What are the chances that this new building going up at the corner of Classon and Park will be even remotely attractive? Zero, we'd guess.
Earth-Shattering News of Greenpoint Development
Hey, have you heard? Apparently there are a lot of condominium residences being built around a park in some underpublicized part of Brooklyn called Greenpoint. This was news to us certainly, so we were fascinated to read the breaking news story in The Times this weekend. Build it and the young professionals will come, goes the logic. A few have already taken the bait. How's it going? “So far I really like it,” said the 35-year-old Jason Titus who recently bought a 1,750-square-foot condominium on Engert Avenue with his girlfriend for $775,000. “But it’s kind of weird, though, because it isn’t a neighborhood in the immediate area yet. It’s a park and a bunch of construction. In the next couple of years, hundreds and hundreds of people are going to move into these buildings.” At least, that's what the developers are hoping!
Stopping to Smell the Roses on Lefferts [NY Times]
More on Hotel Deal, Shooting on Downing
The Daily News has a few more details on the deal the City cut with scumbag hotel operator Moses Fried last week. First of all, the owner of the Lefferts Hotel was only fined a token $2,500. As we reported last week, the deal will eliminate the hourly business as well as require the hotel to install video cameras in the lobby, hire security guards and post signs warning that prostitution is illegal. The police will also have the right to search the hotel without a warrant - excluding occupied rooms - for a year. Lastly, Fried must also bring the building up to code before reopening. "It's an excellent settlement for the City of New York," said NYPD lawyer Mohamed Quhshi. We shall see.
In other Clinton Hill news, two people were shot at 1 a.m. on Sunday at the corner of Gates and Downing--only a block from the police lock-down on Grand Avenue. A 21-year-old man named Terry McNichols was killed when a gunman fired several shots into a group of people on the corner; an unnamed woman was hit in the foot.
Sleaze Hotel Deal Suite for City [NY Times]
Man Shot on Downing and Gates [NY Times]
No Doubt, Housing Market Slowing Big-Time
Things are starting to look ugly for the housing market on a national level, with home sales falling and the more homes than ever sitting on the market. Housing starts are starting to decline, too, though they are still high by historical standards. As for single-family homes, sales are down 4.4 percent, the largest drop since 1995, with the number of existing single-family homes on the market up 33 percent year-over-year. The most pain has been felt so far in the South and the West. "[The housing market] hasn’t slowed down a little bit — it has slowed down a lot," said Doug McCraw, a developer who has scrapped his plans for a 205-unit condominium tower in a neighborhood just north of downtown Fort Lauderdale, Fla. "Anybody who did not have a shovel in the dirt has chosen to wait till the market settles."
Many Homes on Market, Sales Declining [NY Times]
Housing Slows, Taking Big Toll on Economy [NY Times]
Monday Linkster
Water Tower, Vanderbilt Railyards. Photo by Dope on the Slope
Sold at First Sight [NY Times]
Construction Worker Killed in Queens [NY Times]
Al Capone's Park Slope House for Sale [NY Times]
Fire At Coney Island [NY Times]
Surge in Homeless Population [NY Post]
Luxe Homes on Gritty Block [NY Post]
Historic Cobblestones Raise Ire of Chelsea Residents [NY Post]
G-Slope Holiday Inn: Great Hard-Boiled Eggs [Curbed]
Williamsburg Before and After Pics [Gowanus Lounge]
Pacific Street: Critical Mass of Condos [Set Speed]
July 28, 2006
Breaking News on 505 Court: Yes, Rentals
Rumors have been swirling about the troubles at 505 Court Street where condo sales have dragged to say the least. Curbed reported this morning that word of a rental office had emerged, creating confusion in the marketplace. Well, we just got an anonymous tip that 20 condo units in the building are being taken off the market and turned into rentals. Any word on monthly rents?
Open House Picks
Clinton Hill
241 Washington Avenue
Aguayo & Huebener
Sunday 1-3
$1,995,000
GMAP P*Shark
Prospect Heights
187 Sterling Place
Corcoran
Sunday 1-3
$1,375,000
GMAP P*Shark
South Slope
209 18th Street
Fillmore
Sunday 1-3
$989,000
GMAP P*Shark
Bedford Stuyvesant
584A Halsey Street
Brooklyn Properties
Sunday 2-4
$859,000
GMAP P*Shark
Bay Ridge
655 84th Street
Jabour Realty
Sunday 1-3
$659,000
GMAP P*Shark
Development Watch: 125 North 10th Street
Something massive is going on at 125 North 10th Street in Williamsburg. Anyone know what it is?
Recently Sold in Brooklyn
LEFFERTS MANOR $204,760
50 Lefferts Avenue
1-bedroom, 1-bath, 650-sq.-ft. co-op in a prewar building; 24-hr. doormen; sunken living room, high ceilings, hardwood floors; laundry in building; maintenance $440, 45% tax deductible; listed at $205,000, 7 weeks on market (broker: Brooklyn Properties of 7th Ave.)
PROSPECT HEIGHTS $725,000
125 Eastern Parkway
(Theodore Roosevelt)
2-bedroom, 1½-bath, 1,150-sq.-ft. co-op in a prewar building; elevator, entry foyer, dining room, high ceilings, laundry room; maintenance $726, 27% tax deductible; listed at $725,000, 4 weeks on market (broker: Warren Lewis Realty)
Residential Sales [NY Times]
BEDFORD STUYVESANT $259,000
203 Howard Avenue
Two-bedroom, one-bath condo, 928 square feet, with dining area, kitchen with marble floors and Corian countertops and three exposures; eight-unit building is pet-friendly and features laundry and gym. Maintenance $411. Asking price $259,000, on market one week. Broker: Juliet Gittens, Brooklyn Heights Real Estate
CLINTON HILL $290,000
185 Clinton Avenue
Prewar one-bedroom, one-bath co-op, 800 square feet, with dining room, office that can be converted to second bedroom, windowed kitchen, oversized windows, oak floors and full garden views; building is pet-friendly and features door-man, private courtyard and parking with waiting list. Asking price $299,000, on market three months. Broker: Kelly Neinast, The Corcoran Group
RED HOOK $850,000
111 Sullivan Street
Three-family new-construction townhouse, 3,192 square feet, with studio, one-bedroom, one-bath unit and three-bedroom, two-bath duplex with Jacuzzi; home features hardwood floors, laundry, central AC, roof deck and parking spaces. Asking price $850,000, on market seven months. Brokers: Alison Jevremov, Brooklyn Heights Real Estate and Dennis Zier, Bellmarc
Just Sold! [NY Post]
MAS Tour of W'burg Waterfront Tomorrow
Francis Morrone is giving a tour of the Williamsburg and Greenpoint waterfront tomorrow on behalf of the Municipal Arts Society. It's billed as a chance to "experience some of that old industrial atmosphere before it disappears forever." Among other things, Francis will take a close look at the Austin Nichols warehouse and the remains of the Greenpoint Terminal Market. We're not going to be around but we're hoping someone out there would like to attend and take some photos and notes to report back to the group with. The tour kicks off at 2 o'clock from the corner of Greenpoint and Manhattan avenues at G train exit. Any takers?
Tours, Events & Exhibits [MAS.org]
Photo from the Bridge and Tunnel Club
The War For Brooklyn
While new towers are regularly raised across Manhattan with little comment, changes afoot in Brooklyn have sparked fighting of an intensity rarely seen since the Battle of Long Island was waged on this turf in 1776. The Atlantic Yards complex, designed by Frank Gehry for builder Bruce Ratner, is simply the most conspicuous front in what some see as an all-out war for the soul of the borough. Gentrification per se isn’t always the issue; the argument centers often on the appropriate scale for Brooklyn. Is it big-box discounters and midtown-sized skyscrapers, or mom-and-pop stores and low-rises yielding unimpeded views?
So begins Time Out NY's latest cover story on the battle for the soul of Brooklyn. Regular readers of this blog and others won't find too many surprises in the seven neighborhood discussions, but the issue does provide a decent overview of the most significant points of contention in the borough's growth spurt. Unfortunately, you'll need a subscription and log-in to follow any of the links below.
Battleground: Atlantic Yards [Time Out NY]
Battleground: Gowanus [Time Out NY]
Battleground: Brooklyn Bridge Park [Time Out NY]
Battleground: Downtown [Time Out NY]
Battleground: Bed Stuy [Time Out NY]
Battleground: Williamsburg/Greenpoint [Time Out NY]
Battleground: Red Hook [Time Out NY]
Council Pushing for More Openness at LPC
More transparency. That's what a new bill introduced by Councilman Tony Avella last week would bring to the Landmarks process. Avella, who has been the most active Councilmember when it comes to preservation issues, wants to give the City Council the power to nominate properties for consideration--and he wants the LPC hearings at which the nominations are discussed to be open to the public. Much of the motivation for the bill comes from the feeling that Manhattan gets a disproportionate amount of the LPC's attention at the expense of the outer boroughs. We're all for openness and accountability--we're just a little scared of putting such matters in the hands of such philistines as Simcha Felder and David Yassky. After all, look at what they did on 184 Kent last December.
Council: We've Got Your Landmarks [Queens Ledger]
Great Food, and the Black Crowes, Too
We visit Frankies 457 Spuntino in Carroll Gardens frequently for their killer eggplant, marinara, and mozzarella sandwich served on Sullivan St. Bakery bread (it's even better when paired with a generously poured $5 glass of the house red), Brooklyn Vegan prefers their meat- and dairy-free fare, and according to his recent gossip round-up, Chris Robinson of the Black Crowes and wife Kate Hudson are fans of the place, too...
Doubling Down With a Second ARM
When home buyers began flocking to adjustable-rate mortgages earlier in the decade, there was concern about what would happen when the introductory sweet-heart rates ran out. With 5% of all mortgage debt resetting this year, we're starting to get our answer: Rather than lock in a long-term fixed rate, these owners are rolling their mortgage over into new adjustable rate deals, sometimes pulling out even more equity in the process. “They’re trying to put it off forever, which is O.K. as long as interest rates are low," says Frank E. Nothaft, a vice president and chief economist at Freddie Mac. "But when they start to spike, then it’s going to be more problematic.” Personally, we'd have a hard time sleeping at night, but, on the other hand, these folks may end up looking like the smart ones in a few years if rates remain relatively low and the real estate market has a soft landing. Only time will tell.
Re-Refinancing and Putting Off the Mortgage Pain [NY Times]
Friday Linkerati
Pink Heart, Gowanus. Photo by Soupflowers
St. Brigid's Church Gutted [NY Post]
Ohio Supreme Court Rejects Eminent Domain [NY Times]
Brooklyn's Intrepid Bloggers [Time Out NY]
Mayor Markowitz? [Brooklyn Papers]
City Blocks South Slope Building [Brooklyn Papers]
Vacate Order Lifted at 1504 8th Ave [IMBY]
Ugly Architecture Grows Up [Transfer]
Trouble Brewing at 505 Court Street [Curbed]
Highlights From My New Commute [A Test of Will]
July 27, 2006
Thursday On The Record
Russo Realty. Photo by Bluejake.
Events: Today in Brooklyn
Students Protest Prison Environment
Soccer Club Punished for Fixing Park
Openings: Brown Betty in Clinton Hill
Montgomery Rises to the Challenge
Smash Nabbed by Subway Cops
House of the Day: 10 Pierrepont Street
This seems like a no-brainer. Prime Brooklyn Heights for $650 a foot? What gives? So the house is only 19 feet wide, but it's 66 feet deep and has one of the more stately facades around. For this kind of dough you'd think the brokers would have mustered more than three photos though. Makes you wonder whether there's some catch. So why isn't the price at least a million dollars higher? The market's not this weak is it?
10 Pierrepont Street [Corcoran] GMAP P*Shark
Chugging Along at 174 Vanderbilt
June 14...
July 26...
Here's the progress that's happened over the past six weeks at 174 Vanderbilt. On the slate: A 6-story, 75-unit, 111,000-square-foot condo development designed by Meltzer/Mandl Architects, who also designed the Greene House Condos on Carlton and Greene. Tres moderne. GMAP
Openings: Brown Betty Cafe in Clinton Hill
The culinary scene in the Southeastern corner of Clinton Hill just got a whole lot brighter with the opening earlier this month of Brown Betty Cafe at 466 Grand Avenue. Area resident Cynthia Walker, who's worked extensively as both a private chef and restaurant manager, has created a space that is at once both modern and welcoming. Emphasizing organic ingredients, the menu ranges from a wide assortment of pastries and coffees to sandwiches and salads and, starting tonight, a full dinner menu. Following on the heels of Choice Market's April opening four blocks up the street, Grand Avenue is shaping up to be quite a tasty stretch. And now, thanks to recent developments, you don't even have to worry about encountering any crack heads as you walk back and forth between the two restaurants.
LPC Greenlights Cambridge Haunted House
While we were away, Shahn Anderson finally got the green light from the LPC and, as you can see, he wasted no time in jump-starting exterior work. He says he's shooting to finish the entire project by Christmas. Think he can do it? Maybe if we all beg him, he'll bring the Cambridge Reno back out of retirement.
Lefferts Manor Echo July Edition Drops
We know you've all been on the edge of your seats waiting for the next issue of the Lefferts Manor Echo, so we're happy to announce that it's here! Produced by Brownstoner mainstay Bob Marvin and a crew of local volunteers, the July edition has stories on the recent House Tour and Block Party as well as a police blotter and news about local art exhibitions. Hard copies are available at K-Dog and Dunebuggy at 42 Lincoln Road; there's also an electronic version on the link below.
Lefferts Manor Echo [LeffertsManor.org]
Civil War Era Gem Facing Wrecking Ball
When 70 Lefferts Place, the old free-standing woodframe between Grand and Classon, went on the market last Spring, there was considerable speculation and fear in the neighborhood that a developer would buy the house only to tear it down. And indeed, now that the sale has been finalized for $2.4 million, it turns out that this is the old beauty's fate. From what we hear, the developer who bought the place, Christopher Morris, is planning a full demolition to be followed by a 21-unit condo building. While we're saddened that this is the case, it was almost inevitable given market forces: here was a 7,000-square-foot house with an extra 11,000 square feet of buildable air rights in an unlandmarked part of town. The house's only real hope had been for the same person to buy the house and the adjacent vacant lot so that the air rights could be transferred and thus fully utilized. We gather that Morris is planning to try to incorporate some the house's elements into the new facade. We had the pleasure of seeing the gorgeous staircase and widow's walk first-hand when it was on the market. Stunning. Mr. Morris has received an invitation to attend the Lefferts Place Community meeting on August 2 to share more details of his plans. At this point, we'd describe the mood of residents as a mix of resignation and cautious optimism. We hope Morris' heart is in the right place on this one. We'll be watching closely, that's for sure.
Stopping to Smell the Roses on Lefferts [Brownstoner] GMAP P*Shark
Beating the Coney Island Dead Horse
The Coney Island story is getting beaten to death. Seems like everyday there's another article touting the area's renaissance and bright future as a reborn entertainment destination and development hot spot. So we'll just pull out the real estate facts in today's NY Post story and be done with it: The Dynamic Group is planning to break groundnext Spring on a 250-unit condominium called Ocean Dreams. Consisting of three six-story glass buildings, prices for the luxury pads are expected to start at around $700 a foot. By comparison, at Brightwater Towers, which was built in 1964 as a Mitchell-Lama affordable-housing building and condo'd in 1991, one-bedrooms go for between $375,000 and $450,000 while two-bedrooms are priced at $450,000 to $500,000 and three-bedrooms cost $575,000 to $675,000. Meanwhile, in neighboring Sea Gate, a gated community of 840 houses, prices quadrupled between 1995 and 2005; mid-sized two- and three-family houses now fetch between $700,000 and $800,000.
Coney Island High [NY Post]
Thursday Links
Blue Wall, Sunset Park. Photo by Joseph O. Holmes
Addicted to Renovating [NY Times]
Technical Foul Over Timing of AY [NY Post]
Cracks Force 8 Families Out of Building [NY Daily News]
BSA Halts Construction For Credibility Reasons [NY Sun]
DOB to Require Signage Registration [Gothamist]
Shoes and Booze in BK [Curbed]
Photos of Shaefer Landing Esplanade [Flickr via I'm Not Sayin]
Ikea Update: Todd Shipyards No More [Gowanus Lounge]
July 26, 2006
Wednesday On The Record
Sugar Factory, Red Hook. Photo by Frank Lynch.
Events: Today in Brooklyn
Heath and Michelle Here to Stay
Yassky on Black and Whites
Hate Crime in Fort Greene
Tanoreen...Really Brooklyn's Best?
Weekly Food Round-Up
Illuminate Us, Please
Weekly Food Round-Up
Hernandez Huaraches
"The meat was too tasty: salty, crispy, juicy, and nigh-impossible to resist. So instead of self-denial I simply surrendered, and started tearing at the tortilla while experimenting with a few salsas they keep on tap. Be sure to try the surprisingly spicy, smooth guacamole and hot tomatillo, both wonderful compliments to the meat." [The Porkchop Express]
Chicory Brooklyn
"Who could argue with a place that offers a pair of fried fish tacos for just $5, topped with sliced radishes, chopped avocado, shredded lettuce and a squeeze of lime? Or a smallish burger ($5), made with loosely packed, crumbly ground beef, cooked to a moist medium rare and topped with a 'secret sauce' fashioned from sweet pickle relish, minced shallot and yellow mustard that would be the hit of any backyard barbecue?" [NY Times]
After the jump: Sunset Bagels, Bar Toto, and Fette Sau
House of the Day: 591 Hicks Street
It's hard for us to say whether this mixed use building is particularly cheap or not since we don't have a good grip on what kind of rent this ground-floor retail space could generate. But we've got a good gut feeling about this one. Granted views of the expressway and a lack of outdoor space aren't exactly big selling points, but the 1,440-square-foot, two-story building oozes old-world charm from the outside and there's another 400 square feet of unused FAR that could possibly be turned into a half-floor addition on the rear of the roof. From our back-of-the-envelope analysis, there's probably not a lot of short-term juice in this as an investment property but it could make be an interesting owner-occupied play. The property will be delivered vacant.
Mixed Use Property Available [Brownstone Real Estate] GMAP P*Shark
Lefferts Hotel Cuts Deal with Tish James
More news on the status of the Lefferts Hotel, which was recently shuttered after an undercover operation exposed the rampant drug and prostitution trade being conducted on the premises. In recent days, Council Member Letitia James has brokered an arrangement with the hotel owners, we have learned, that will keep the hotel closed until October 1st at which point it will re-open "under different circumstances." The only details we have are that it will be a run as a long-term, residential hotel not a "short-stay" one. In addition, the owners have agreed to have the premises monitored by security cameras 24-hours a day with regular patrols by the precinct. We're not sure how this sounds. Seems like the owners are getting off too easy to us, but it can be quite hard to make these charges stick and it may be that this was the best that could be achieved from the community's point of view. The only concern we have is that without substantial capital improvements who is going to want to stay there? Not exactly the kind of clientele residents are hoping for, we'd guess. And what about the egregious buildings violations? Are they being addressed as part of this deal? Tish James can be contacted at 718-260-9191 for more information.
Drugs and Ho's Bring Down Lefferts Hotel [Brooklyn Record] GMAP
While We Were Away...
Why is it that one always comes back from vacation more exhausted than before one left? Anyway, we're back, taking a transitional day to get caught up around here before facing the depressing prison cell that is our day job. While we were gone, the folks over at the Bed Stuy Reno were getting their hands (and just about every other body part) dirty removing the plaster from their parlor floor. Their big tip? Use trash compactor bags instead of the larger and less wieldy contractor bags. Meanwhile, over at the Gates Reno, having made peace with the compromises and postponements that became financially necessary, they've been busy picking bathroom tile and fixtures with lots of input from the peanut gallery. On another note, we're interested to know if there are any important stories or developments that fell through the cracks while we were in the wifi-less mountains of Europe.
Plaster, Our Worthy Adversary [Bed Stuy Reno]
The Road to Hell is Paved with Tile [Gates Reno]
Reckless 15th Street Excavation Forces Evac
Man, crazy times on 15th Street. On the same day that the BSA finally put the kibosh on the development at 182 15th Street, more bad news from up towards 8th Avenue. After failing to adequately police the reckless construction project at 406 15th Street, the DOB yesterday ordered the 8 families who rent apartments in the adjacent building at 1504 8th Avenue to evacuate the premises because they had become "imminently perilous to life." Turns out that developer Jack LoCicero, under the fine architectural guidance of architect Henry Radusky, have been attempting to build an underground garage atop a stream. Their efforts thus far have caused structural problems on four occasions, two of which resulted in violations, one of which was accompanied by a $5,000 fine, only slightly less than the $6,000 that one displaced tenant reckons he is now out-of-pocket. The Red Cross is putting tenants up for two nights. Seems to us LoCicero should be putting them all up at the Waldorf indefinitely. If you find any of this troubling, please give a call to Bill de Blasio at 718- 854-9791, Jim Brennan at 718-788-7221 and Marty Markowitz at 718-802-3700.
Imminently Perilous to Life [IMBY] GMAP
Yassky on Black and Whites (Cookies, That Is)
We realize that we've been posting an awful lot about Councilman David Yassky these days, but we had to share this article from Edible Brooklyn, a new quarterly magazine that celebrates the borough's food and culture. The editors found their way into Yassky's refrigerator, and wouldn't you know it, the only caucasian candidate in a racially charged Congressional race offers a short commentary on black and white cookies: "To my mind, Bergen Bagels has the very best black and white cookies. They're chewy rather than crumbly which I prefer — although I absolutely respect people who eat them crumbly," says the ever-diplomatic Yassky.
The Brooklyn Fridge: David Yassky (PDF) [Edible Brooklyn]
BSA Gives the Heisman to Katan
After giving free passes earlier this summer to three South Slope developers who had clearly violated both the letter and spirit of the law, the BSA finally showed some backbone yesterday in voting unanimously to stop Isaac Katan's company, Global Development, from erecting an 11-story building at 182 15th Street. The vote follows the DOB recommendation earlier this week. Among other offenses, conduct had included performing mechanical demolition without the proper permits and proceeding with foundation work before completing excavation. Katan's attorney now has 30 days to appeal the BSA's decision to the State Supreme Court.
City Votes Against Controversial Development [NY1] GMAP
DOB Backs Community Opposition to 15th Street [Brownstoner]
BSA Hearing on 182 15th Street [Brownstoner]
Former Brig to Yield Up to 400 Units of Housing
A lot of people, including this guy on Flickr, have been wondering about the future of the full square block in the Wallabout section of Fort Greene that has been lying fallow for some time now. Now we know. Yesterday, Mayor Bloomberg announced plans to build up to 400 units of affordable housing on the 100,000-square-foot site. Bounded by Park, Flushing, Clermont and Vanderbilt, the former site of the Navy Yard Brig will likely include a mix of co-ops, condos, multifamily rentals and townhouses as well as some kind of community center. The Brig was built in the early 1940s and served as a naval prison. After the closing of the Brooklyn Navy Yard in 1966, the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service used the Brig as a detention center until 1984 until the City began using it as a minimum security prison until its shuttering in 1994. Proposals from developers are due in November and there should be a lot them given the City's asking price of (cue Doctor Evil) one dollar. Construction is expected to begin at the end of 2007.
City Has 'Brig' Idea [NY Post]
Mayor Announces Redevelopment of Brig [iBrooklyn]
Photo by Brownstoner. GMAP.
Wednesday Linkster
Balconies, Red Hook. Photo by Simon Pride
Walmart Beachhead Close to NYC [NY Times]
Brooklyn Railyard's Off Trcak [NY Daily News]
Ditched Outside the Dunham [Curbed]
(Non) Blight in Prospect Heights [Gothamist]
New Goods on Myrtle [Clinton Hill Blog]
New Liquor Spots on Lafayette [Set Speed]
Slaves of Con Ed [Daily Heights]
Oh, That Boring Housing Bubble [The Matrix]
Bedford Bummers: Number 800
Not so bad, actually.
Residential RE Squeezes Industrial Nabes
A lot of concern has been raised about the survival of the industrial sector in the city, and much of the worries stem from the encroachment of residential property on land used primarily for industrial uses, whether it be through zoning variances, or illegal conversions. The residential real estate market has put enormous pressure on the industrial sector. In response, Bloomberg - in cooperation with advocacy groups and business leaders - has created a centralized agency to coordinate the effort to help the sector, initiated protective boundaries around the city called Industrial Business Zones, and has increased penalties and patrolling for illegal residential conversions.
A more complete look at the issue after the jump...
Commentator Balks at Mayor's Housing Plan
Arguing that Bloomberg's affordable housing plan will in effect increase housing costs for middle-income New Yorkers, Nicole Gelinas, of the Manhattan Institute, outlines the theory that regulating prices acuses supply to become restricted. The result? Housing becomes more valuable and prices rise for living space still on the free market. She also makes the generalized argument that rent stabilization leads to the deteriorization of housing conditions by depriving landlords of revenue needed for upkeep, forcing them to cut corners. Granted, some single mothers may not be able to afford their apartments without government regulations, she says, but that's "a problem of the dysfunctional underclass."
Bloomberg's Housing Horror [NY Post]
Tuesday Linkage
Bushwick Art Project. Photo by Aaron Geiser
'Blight' in the Eye of the Beholder [NY Times]
Bensonhurst Residents Unhappy with Trash Plan [NY Post]
Sunset Park to Get New Recycling Plant [Sunset Parker via Bklyn Record]
Historic Cobblestones Raise Ire of Chelsea Residents [NY Post]
Once a Housing Scandal, Now a Hope [City Limits]
Long Post on Appraisal Inflation [Matrix]
Jail as Affordable Housing [The Real Estate]
Yassky: Developers' Trojan Horse? [Amsterdam News]
July 24, 2006
DOB Backs Community Opposition to 15th St. Tower
Developers of an 11 story residential tower at 182 15th St. (GMAP), in South Slope, should not be allowed to continue to build, the DOB says. Tommorow, the BSA will decide whether the developers, Global Development, should be allowed to erect the building in the recently downzoned neighborhood. The developers argue that they laid the foundation before the rezoning and thus should be allowed to continue. But Janine A. Gaylard, assistant general counsel to the DOB, wrote in a letter to the BSA that the developers did not apply for a permit for mechanical demolition - and had they, it would not have been approved. The developers, Gaylard said, would not have been able to beat the clock by manual demolition. The letter says the mechanical demolition is "clearly unsafe."
DOB Backs Tower Critics [Park Slope Courier]
More Monday Links
Gowanus Canal, photo by Dubsyuhs.
Sunset Park Manhole Blasts [Daily News]
Lack of Stoplights Draws Ire of Residents [B61 Productions]
Preservation Links [Gotham Gazette]
Shady Developer Seeks Boro Park Zoning Change [NY Times - 3rd Item]
Park Slope Stay At Home Parent Smackdown [Curbed]
Visions for Gowanus Canal [Gowanus Lounge]
The New (And Not So Improved) Bedford Avenue
Bedford Avenue from Classon Avenue in Bed Stuy to Grand Street in Williamsburg has experienced a building boom in recent years that has forever altered the landscape. You can probably take a wild guess about how we feel about most of these new buildings from a design standpoint, but we're still on vacation so we'll let the pictures speak for themselves and let you debate their aesthetic merit.
This one's probably the worst of the lot.
Development Doesn't Stop with Atlantic Yards
Within three blocks of Forest City Ratner's Atlantic Yards proposal are eight new construction projects, and at least five of them are 35 stories or higher, reports the NY Post. Thor Equities is planning a 60-story mixed use tower called Albee Square West; John Catsimatidis - owner of the Gristede's chain - is planning a project that will reach near 40 stories; BFC Development has a 40-story residential and retail tower development in the works that was designed by Skidmore Owings and Merrill, and Ron Hershco just broke ground for his 35- and 40-story luxury buildings.
New Downtown Brooklyn 'Heights' [NY Post]
Albee Square West graphic from Thor Equities
Monday Links
Greenpoint Smile. Photo by Dan Witz.
Clinton Hill Brothel Owner Also East New York Slumlord [Daily News]
Eminent Sense in Brooklyn Domain [Daily News]
Debate Rages on Over Brooklyn Bridge Park [NY Times]
Deadly Traffic Trends in Red Hook [NY Post]
DOB Supports Critics of 15th St Tower [Park Slope Courier]
Critics Assess Atlantic Yards Environmental Study [Park Slope Courier]
Carroll Gardens Greenmarket Approved by CB6 [Carroll Gardens Courier]
July 21, 2006
Brooklyn's Labor Market
Brooklyn is not fulfilling its potential in the retail market, and construction jobs are not keeping pace with the number of construction projects in the borough, says a recent report on the labor market in Brooklyn, published by the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce. While the number of jobs in Brooklyn grew 1% in 2005 - the highest percentage occuring in culture and recreation - the 6.2% unemployment rate still lags behind the citywide average of 5.5%. Commanding the labor market is still the public sector, at 41% of all jobs in the borough. Wages have kept pace with inflation, but also remain below city average. The overall number of residential building permits issued almost doubled between 2001 and 2005. In 2005, 1,600 were issued, at a total of 9,000 units - coming in just over Manhattan, which totaled 8,500.
Brooklyn Labor Market Review [Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce]
Chamber's 'Target': Shopping [Brooklyn Papers]
Photo by Rob Innes.
More CH: St. Marks Avenue
669 and 671 St. Marks Avenue (architect: E.G.W. Dietrick)
673 St. Marks Avenue
Black Forest Queen Anne at Number 671: An eccentric adventure that continues the experimental vitality of St. Mark's Place, where a whole history of 19th-century experimentation will greet you. Paint Stripping would reveal the brick and limestone reality masked with too much mascara.
--AIA Guide to New York City, p.742
More CH: Dean Street
Dean Street between Nostrand and Bedford Avenues.
1174 and 1172 Dean Street; 1178 and 1176 Dean Street.
The South Side of Dean between Bedford and Nostrand includes ten lovingly maintained Queen Anne houses in a melange of brick, limestone, terra-cotta, wooden shingles, and spanish tile, with alternating stepped, peaked, and domed gables. Their new color schemes are perhaps too colorful.
--AIA Guide to New York City, p.742
More CH: Pacific Street
1220, 1218 and 1216 Pacific Street
1249 and 1251 Pacific Street
1259, 1261 and 1263 Pacific Street
A Shady Figure of Development in East New York
Indicted East New York Assemblywoman, Diane Gordon, and an opponent for her open seat, have a not so encouraging connection. The developer who caught Gordon on video in the land use hussle, according to Tom Robbins for the Voice, was introduced to her by former Democratic district leader, DeCosta Headley. Headley, whom the developer refered to as 'manipulative' in the videotape, also has a history in the shadows with Winchester Key, a challenger for Gordon's seat. A decade ago, Key fired then director of his non-profit, Martin Dunn, for refusing to award a contract to one of DeCosta's firms to build a homeless shelter. Robbins broke that story as well.
In related news, Gordon wore a wire to one of her fundraisers in an attempt to catch judicial candidates in a bribe. None took the bait, but we wonder... who would actually attend that fundraiser?
Nice race so far, eh?
Friday Linkapalooza Twooza
Brighton Beach. Photo by Matt Cohen
Con Ed Coneheads [Daily News]
Business Group Divests Stake in Nets [Bergen Record via NoLandGrab]
Hassles of Landmarks Designation Deters Buyer [Walk Through]
In Greenwood Cemetery: Bikes? No. Cars? Yes. [Daily Heights]
Crown Heights North Landmark Tour [Gothamist]
Brooklyn Industries Opens Store in Chelsea [Thr Real Estate]
Friday Linkapalooza
Boro Park. Photo by gkjarvis
G is for Gross [Daily News]
Possible Lawsuit Over Listing Cruise Ship [NY Post]
Sierra Club Joins Brooklyn Bridge Park Battle [NY Times]
NYC Low Unemployment Helped by Job Growth [Crains]
Coney Island Housing Complex May Raise Fees [Bay News]
Millions Earmarked to Save Brooklyn Ecology [Bay Ridge Courier]
Debate over Scale of Atlantic Yards Proposal [Brooklyn Papers]
July 20, 2006
Co-op of the Day: Eastern Parkway 2-Bedroom
We didn't touch much on Eastern Parkway this week but thought this BHS listing was worth pointing out. The 2-bedroom, 2-bath pad has been recently renovated and the floors and moldings look great. We're not big fans of black granite, but someone clearly put some effort into the new kitchen as well. The only negative we can see is the lack of elevator. We're not sure of the square footage but we'd hazard a guess that it's between 900 and 1,000. It's hard to tell how big a building this is. Anyone know?
Eastern Parkway 2 Bedroom [Brown Harris Stevens] GMAP
The DC 37 Contract's Affect on the Housing Market
As part of the recent contract between the city and its largest union, DC 37, the Bloomberg administration agreed to revise a rule from 1986 that mandated employees working for the city also live here. Now, if the City Council agrees, DC 37 members - 120,000 in all - will be able to move to the surrounding suburbs.
The Sun's editorial page likes this part of the agreement, and predicts that the decrease in demand will result in lower housing prices. In an article in the same paper, Nicole Gelinas, fellow at the Manhattan Institute, subscribed to the same theory.
El Diario says the agreement is an acknowledgment by Bloomberg that "the cost of living here is out of control, and renting or owning a decent home is less of a reality every day for many people. It underscores the need for more affordable housing in the city, despite the administration`s gains in this area."
Mayor Announces Agreement [City Hall]
Fact Sheet on Residency Requirements [DC 37]
More CH: The Bedfordshire and St. Bartholomew
The Bedfordshire at 1200 Pacific and St. Bartholomew's Church at 1227 Pacific with its 1931 Tiffany window reportedly worth $1 million.
St. Bartholomew's is a charming and romantic place: squat and friendly, with stone and brick, and trimmed in terra cotta. The tower is crowned with "fish scales," imbricated tiles in a sinuous profile. All in a bosky bower with a Hansel and Gretel manse.
--AIA Guide to New York City, p.741
Gotta Love DUB
At Down Under Bakery (DUB) Pies – where the spunky Australian hostess/counter-gal/server/smoothie-maker closes every phone order by saying, "Thank you, my dear!" – the specialty is meat pies, with hospitality on the side. We were so distracted by our tasty lunch and our server's animated description of the memoir she's writing that we didn't remember to take a picture until dessert — note the photo of the just-tart-enough mini key lime pie above. You'll have to go see the light and flaky meat pies for yourself — they're stuffed with ground beef or chunks of top-round steak, stewed in a dark and savory onion gravy. For vegetarians, a sweet and spicy curry with notes of garam masala brightens a pie filled with potatoes, carrots, and peas...
More CH: The Imperial Apartments
The Imperial Apartments, 1198 Pacific Street. Architect: Montrose Morris.
Erected on an imperial scale, with great paired Corinthian terra-cotta columns and arches along both Pacific Street and Bedford Avenue. Advertised in their time as "elegant and well conducted" and "in the fashionable part of Bedford," the immense apartments have since been subdivided. It has many similarities with Morris' Alhambra Apartments on Nonstrand Avenue.
--AIA Guide to New York CIty, p. 742
More CH: 23rd Regiment Armory
23rd Regiment Armory, 1322 Bedford Avenue
With its eight great round towers, one soaring over its peers, and arched entry complete with portcullis, this crenellated brick-and-brownstone "fortress" for the National Guard lacks only a moat to be out of King Arthur's realm.
--AIA Guide to New York City, p. 740
Housing and Planning Groups Release new Study
The Citizen's Housing and Planning Council and the Regional Plan Association have released a report that attemps to lay out a strategy to provide a balanced housing market for the metropolitan region. While the high cost of housing in the city can be interpreted as a sign of the value of living here, it also poses a threat to the economic growth of the region, the authors mantain. Among their suggestions are: to promote growth in smaller cities like Newark and Yonkers, a focus on affordable housing preservation rather than development, and upzoning in certain districts linked to the preservation of open space in others. Also, the authors view a need for the coupling of transportation planning with residential development and a need to disassociate school financing with property taxes. Furthermore, they call on the government to offer below market loans and grants in order to promote home ownership.
The report is availbe on the CHPC website under the 'publications' link in the column on the right.
Blog Wrap Up
Grand Army Plaza. Photo by Hiroshi Watanabe
The Chronicles of 205 Parside Ave [Planet PLG]
Frank Gehry Can Do Small [3 Bikini]
Park Slope Mom Snaps, Gains Cult Following [Gowanus Lounge]
Prospect Heights Candidate Forum [No Land Grab]
Need Help Moving? Apartmentratings to the Rescue [Property Grunt]
Pew Internet Survey: What Bloggers Blog About [PSFK]
Red Hook Demonstration Today [Brooklyn Record]
Thursday Links
Graffiti, Bushwick Loft Hallway. 'Merit'
Blacked Out and Blazing [Daily News]
Businesses Paid to Reduce Energy Use [Associated Press]
L Train Fluff Story [Daily News]
Ratner to Discourage Driving to New Arena [NY Post]
Workers Probe G Line Sewage Leak [AMNY]
New York Retail Prices Rise on Housing Costs [Crains]
Slideshow: Illegal Loft Conversion [Village Voice]
July 19, 2006
Best Deli Sandwiches in Brooklyn?
Our current vote is going to Las Americas Deli (506 Court St. at Nelson St), where the sandwiches are served up with a smile by their in-house sandwich artist extraordinaire, Will. There’s never a shortage of locals lining up at his counter/Mets shrine for a quick conversation and some cheap eats. At $4 or so for an overstuffed sandwich, you can’t go wrong, and with the overall lack of tidy establishments like this one, which has a hot grill and quick service, the shop is a real treasure. Current household favorites are the hot roast beef with queso blanco and some hot sauce, and the always-delectable pastrami with pepper jack cheese and a bit of mustard. $3 breakfast sandwiches? Yep, they’ve got that too. Recently they’ve also added some new refrigerators and they continue to sport an ever-expanding and impressive beer and beverage selection. Family owned and operated, this is true Brooklyn convenience. — Pete D'Angelo
House of the Day: 1252 Dean Street
This baby's a beauty: Tons of original woodwork, fireplaces and floors plus a new kitchen. It's also on one of the best streets in the nabe. Is it worth $1.1 million? To someone, we bet. And that's all it takes.
1252 Dean Street [Corcoran] GMAP P*Shark
The Better Borough Beer Guide, Volume 2: Atlantic Avenue
In the wake of the Smith Street explosion, nearby Atlantic Avenue has developed a nightlife of its own. But where Smith Street transformed, leaving behind many of the old neighbors for a new young crowd, the scene on Atlantic is classic Brooklyn. Each bar provides warm, welcoming service to all who enter. Even better, for the purposes of our guide, they all serve beer that you may not find anywhere else.
The Brazen Head is a beer destination. Besides having a regularly changing selection of 15 top notch beers on tap, it is one of a select few bars in New York that offer cask ales. It has two beer engines that serve out beer the old-fashioned way. Three times a year, The Brazen Head hosts its Cask Ale Festival, drawing ales from far and wide. The next festival is slated for November. Don't miss it. Check out the chalkboards on the wall to find out about events like dart contests, nightly specials, as well as upcoming festivals. The regular crowd includes bartenders from neighboring bars and locals stopping in for a pint and a chat with friends. (228 Atlantic Avenue, between Court St. & Boerum Pl.)
Read on for Pete's Waterfront Ale House, Floyd, and Chip Shop...
Continue reading "The Better Borough Beer Guide, Volume 2: Atlantic Avenue"
CH Tour: Showrooms and Bank Buildings
Finally, some public buildings: The old Studebaker Showroom, which is now divided into apartments, and the façade of a Deco era bank, now Banco Popular, on Eastern Parkway and Nostrand Ave.
I hope you’ve enjoyed a look at my Crown Heights North neighborhood. There is so much to see and enjoy here, and it’s a great place to live.
CH Tour: My Favorite Church
Speaking of churches, I saved the best sacred space for last – the fabulous Victorian pile that is now the Hebron Seventh Day Adventist School, but was built as the Brooklyn Methodist Church Home, in 1899, a massive complex of buildings on a huge lot, that look like something out of a Dickens novel, with a very asylum like atmosphere, and a beautiful chapel on the side. I am very glad that landmarking of this entire area will soon occur, and this large complex will be preserved and not torn down for new construction.
Atlantic Yards Debate Takes Next Major Step
Photo from Dope on the Slope
The effects on the surrounding community by the Atlantic Yards proposal were outlined in two State documents released today: the General Project Plan and the Draft Environmental Impact Statement. A 60 day public comment period now ensues. Don't have time to read and analyze 15 inches of complex issues? Many in the community feel the same way. The Times, the Daily News and the Atlantic Yards Report sum up the reports, and I'm sure the reports will be impressive fodder for the blog wars in the near future (like tonight, perhaps?). If you want to learn more about what this is all about, the Council of Brooklyn Neighbors will be hosting 3 public workshops. CBN, by the way, has just been awarded $130,000 by the City Council for an independent study on the proposal.
Density Levels at the Atlantic Yards [The Real Estate]
CH Tour: Getting Religion
Crown Heights is also known for its magnificent churches. They are among the best sacred buildings in the city. Union United Methodist Church (first photo) and Hebron French Speaking Seventh Day Adventist Church (second photo) are right across the street from each other at the corner of Dean Street and New York Avenue. They are huge and architectural treasures.
One of my favorite churches is much smaller and tucked away on Pacific St. across from the newly renovated Imperial Apartments. St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church is a wonderful country looking church which boasts a beautiful Tiffany School window, and is a treasure of Victorian wooden gothic style inside.
Weekly Food Round-Up
Spicy Mangoes and More
"One of Red Hook’s best treats is the weekend fare at the soccer fields (around the corner from the pool). There are a number of vendors there selling a delicious and affordable selection of South and Central American dishes... This was a new one for me — fresh mango sprinkled with salt, chili powder, paprika and lime. THIS IS REALLY GOOD!" [423 Smith]
Spartan Souvlaki
"The gyro is killer. Available in multiple formats, the mystery meat is best enjoyed in the version found among the 'Spartan Specials,' where $6.15 gets you a sandwich so big, the pocketless pita can't contain it. Bulging out the top are red ripe tomatoes (the place prides itself on perfect tomatoes), curling strips of oozing meat, purple onions, romaine, and a tzatziki made with so much raw garlic you can smell it as the waiter foots it across the room." [Village Voice]
After the jump: Christie's Jamaican Patties, Provence en Boite, and Cafe Lafayette
Energy Needs in a Blazing Summer Sun
Where's the Energy? Photo by Konrad Fiedler
When the power went out across two blocks (GMAP) on Union Ave, in Park Slope, the Food Coop was closed longer than it was during the 2003 blackout, the Sun reports today on their energy themed day. The outage was caused by undergroud fires, resulting from overheated equipment.There were sporadic blackouts accross the city yesterday as the state's Independent System Operator reported a record peak demand for electricity on Monday.
In 2004, the mayor's Energy Task Force called for an increase of energy production of 25% by 2008. But they now say current conservation measures are sufficient to meet rising demand until 2012. Con Ed said the past couple of days problems were the result of isolated equiment failures, and not an inability to meet demand. But the Sun still thinks the city dropped the ball. It doesn't matter "whether the problem was a lack of electricity or an unreliable way to deliver it," the opinion page posits, and they use yesterday's subway signal failures as an example of why.
Power Outages [NY Sun]
"Stark Reminder" of Energy Woes [NY Sun]
Mayor Could do Better [NY Sun]
New York's Energy Future [NY Times]
How to Reduce Your Energy Consumption [NRDC]
Wednesday Linkster
Everthing a Nabe Shouldn't Be. Sao Paulo, photo by S. Peterman
Crown Princess Lists Badly [Daily News]
MTA's Cleaning Chemicals Mix Badly With Heat Wave [Daily News]
Manhattan BP to Tally Abandoned Buildings [City Limits]
Illegal Residents Refuse Rent to Landlords [Village Voice]
2 Artistic Communities´Gentrification Compared [Block Mag]
Importance of Accurate Appraisals [Marketwatch - via Matrix]
Williamsburg Vs Park Slope: Amount of Shade [Gowanus Lounge]
July 18, 2006
He'Brew Presents New Brews from the Chosen
Jeremy Cowan, the owner of Shmaltz Brewing Company, is in Brooklyn to celebrate the release of two new He'Brew beers. Last week he hosted a tasting in the backyard of Bierkraft in Park Slope. A small group braved the heat to get an early taste of Genesis 10:10, Shmaltz¹s 10th Anniversary beer, and Bittersweet Lenny's RIPA.
Cowan describes Genesis 10:10 (pictured at right) as an Imperial Pale Amber, a middle ground between the more common pale ales and amber beers out there. Just to make it more interesting, they threw in some pomegranate juice, which adds an obvious, but not overpowering, fruitiness.
Bittersweet Lenny's RIPA honors Lenny Bruce, who died 40 years ago. Cowan says his goal was to create "the most obnoxious beer we could make." It is appropriately jarring. The "R" in RIPA stands for rye, which accounts for the distinctive flavor. There is nothing moderate about this beer.
Both beers will be on tap for the first time at Spuytin Duyvil in
Williamsburg tomorrow, Wednesday, July 19th, at 6pm. They both weigh in at 10% alcohol so be sure to take it easy while sampling. — clay williams
He'Brew: The Chosen Beer [Homepage]
Sputin Duvil [Homepage]
House of the Day: 75-Footer on President
Here's an interesting house on President at Troy. Balcony and bricked-up window aside, the 75-foot deep house appears to have nice interior details combo'd with a modern kitchen. There's 3,000-square feet above ground plus a basement level that currently houses an office and apartment. Not sure we'd pay $925,00 for this, but if there's some wiggle room on price, might be worth a look. To check it out, call 347-248-5609.
Large Townhouse for Sale [Craigslist] GMAP
CH For Sale: 863 St. Marks Avenue
This newly built house on St. Marks Avenue between Brooklyn and Kingston Avenues ain't our cup of tea but we've seen worse. To be fair, it looks like the developer did make some effort on the aesthetic front. At least you'd be surrounded by beautiful old buildings. GMAP P*Shark
Boro's First Free WiFi Park
Now you can jump online and enjoy a pleasant breeze together at Brooklyn Bridge Park in DUMBO - provided you own a laptop, that is. Although it has been in testing since late May, the park's wireless access was formally unveiled this week.
Two Trees Management covered the costs of installation, and the Dumbo Improvement District, a BID, will handle the costs of administration. NYC Wireless, a wireless advocacy non-profit, installed the system. By the end of the summer, Prospect Park is scheduled to have wireless access as well.
First Free Wireless Park [Wireless Community]
Deadline Set for Wireless Internet in Parks [NY Times]
Big Plans on Vanderbilt?
As far as we can ascertain, a couple of buildings were torn down to clear the slate for a new ground-up development on Vanderbilt between Myrtle and Park. What kind of development we don't know. Do any of you? GMAP P*Shark
CH Tour: Use Your Illusion
One of my favorite groups of houses is an amazing piece of architectural optical illusion. The houses on this block of New York Avenue look crooked, yet they are all structurally sound, and have always been this way.
CH Tour: From Slate to Shingle
The great part about Crown Heights is the variety of architecture. In addition to the usual Italianate, Queen Anne and Renaissance Revival row houses, we also have these wonderful English cottages with slate roofs...
...a group of Colonial Revival houses
...below, a group of neo-Georgian houses at 828-836 St. Mark's Avenue
...and a group of houses that remind me very much of parts of London. 
NYC Not the Best?
CNN Money has their best places to live index up, and it's really quite fun. You can compare New York - although not the boros - to other places around the country in a variety of categories, or even just by stats. NYC doesn't fare to well, but I'm sure if you play around with it long enough, it's possible to get it ranked in a higher area in some category or another. It's even 10th in the big cities index, below Wichita... Since when is Wichita, Kansas a big city?
Best Places to Live [CNN Money - via The Real Estate]
Just Sold in Brooklyn!
BUSHWICK $330,000
964 Flushing Avenue
Two-family townhouse on a 25-foot-by-66-foot lot with two-bedroom, one-bath unit with balcony over two-bedroom, 1 1/2-bath unit; home features unfinished basement and garage. Taxes $1,134. Asking price $325,000, on market 26 weeks.
Broker: Esther Delince, Citi Habitats
FORT GREENE $249,000
101 Lafayette Avenue
Prewar studio co-op, 400 square feet, with new galley kitchen, bolted ceiling, casement windows, new bath, hardwood floors and eastern exposure; Griffin building is pet-friendly and features full-time doorman and laundry. Asking price $249,000, on market eight days. Broker: Rodolfo Lucchese, The Corcoran Group
Just Sold! [NY Post]
Bushwick Artists and Illegal Lofts
Over at Bushwick is Beautiful, Erica Lies maps out a section of Community Board 4 in an attempt to assess the extent of the illegal conversion of buildings zoned for industrial use into residential units.
Looking to be an edgy pioneer? Just follow her map: Make a right on Vicious Rat Way and then a left on Oil Hazard Place... Names have been concealed to protect further encroachment.
Cited for Sale [The Wick]
Tuesday Links
Newtown Creek, Circa '67. Photo by Arthur Tress
10 Taxi Shelters for Outer-Boros [NY Post]
Water Taxi as Status Symbol for Williamsburg [NY Sun]
Celebrity War Over Ratner in Brooklyn [Village Voice]
Weekend Getaway at Sunny Newtown Creek [Curbed]
St. Marks Modern on Sale [Set Speed]
30 Community Groups Make Demands From Transportation Officials [Streets Blog]
Nightmare Landlord [Hunt Grunt]
July 17, 2006
House of the Day: CH 8-Family Shell
A lot will depend on its exact location, but this shell of a building might be an interesting play at $150 a square foot. The 6,200-square-foot 8-family house needs a full gut renovation but it's certainly a nice looking building. Condos? Apparently the current owner already has submitted plans for 8 units. Enterprising souls may want to throw a call into Geraldine Harper of Paramount Realty Services at (845) 401-1396. If anyone finds out where this is, please let us know.
Vacant 8-Family Townhouse [Craigslist]
CH For Sale: 1284 Pacific Street
This 35,0008,400-square-foot building on Dean Street Pacific Street just off New York Avenue looks to us like a great conversion candidate. Of course, we've got no idea what the asking price is, so we've got no idea if the numbers ad up. What do people think a nicely done condo conversion around here would fetch on a per square foot basis? Any good comps? Interested parties can reach Prospect Heights Realty at 718-789-6511. GMAP P*Shark
CH Tour: House on the Park
The homes that surround the park were once home to successful doctors, lawyers and businessmen. Most of them--including those on St. Marks (top) and New York Avenue (bottom)--have been very well kept up during Crown Heights’ troubled years, and are still the homes of successful people. One street, St.Marks Avenue between Brooklyn and Kingston Avenues was known as “Doctor’s Row” because of all of the doctors who lived and practiced on that street.
Atlantic Yards Update: Housing Prices and Rallies
We're glad to see that Atlantic Yards Project is getting plenty of attention in the press and around the blogosphere. According to the Brooklyn Papers, more than 2,000 New Yorkers attended Forest City Ratner's "affordable housing information meeting" last week at the Brooklyn Marriot:
Many in the predominantly black crowd came from outside of Brooklyn and saw the development from beyond the prism of local controversy that has pitted residents of Prospect Heights and Fort Greene — who believe it will destroy the neighborhoods’ character — against Ratner boosters like Markowitz, who cheer the affordable housing and jobs the project may create.
Many attendees were disappointed that only 225 apartments will be reserved for families of four that earn between $21,270 and $28,360. The majority of the units will go to families that earn above $42,540." This news also helped fuel the fire of the DDDB (Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn) anti-Ratner rally on Saturday, which featured speeches from Park Slope's Steve Buscemi and Brooklyn native Rosie Perez...
Continue reading "Atlantic Yards Update: Housing Prices and Rallies"
CH Tour: Brooklyn Museum and Brower Park
The Brooklyn Children’s Museum (above) is Crown Heights’ most famous public space. They are currently in the middle of a huge expansion. The Museum is on the northwestern corner of Brower Park (below).
Suzanne's Crown Heights
For the next three days, we'll be running a series of photos that give one woman's take on the architecturally distinguished neighborhood of Crown Heights. We'll finish off the week with a couple of days of our own Crown Heights picks. Please enjoy, discuss and be respectful.
Welcome to Crown Heights North. The entire neighborhood of Crown Heights is huge, and runs from the area east of Washington Ave, with Atlantic Ave. on the north, Empire Boulevard on the south and East New York Avenue on the east. Our borders are with Bed Stuy, Prospect Heights, Prospect Lefferts Gardens, Flatbush and East New York. I live in Crown Heights North, roughly between Atlantic Ave, Kingston Ave, Eastern Parkway, and Rogers Ave, most of which will soon to be largest historic district in the city. Crown Heights North was once one of the wealthiest neighborhoods in Brooklyn, and the architecture of the homes, churches and apartment buildings rivals Clinton Hill, Park Slope, and Brooklyn Heights. We have wonderful rows of brownstones, limestones and brick houses, stand alone mansions, and magnificent churches. Many of the finest homes center around Brower Park, and that is where our photo tour begins...
Residential Sales in Brooklyn
PROSPECT HEIGHTS $620,000
535 Dean Street (Newswalk)
2-bedroom, 1-bath, 1,200-sq.-ft. duplex condo in a renovated prewar building; 24-hr. doormen; common charge $490; 100% tax-abated; listed at $669,000, 26 weeks on market (broker: Brenton Realty)
PARK SLOPE $849,000
470 Third Street
3-bedroom, 1½-bath, 1,150-sq.-ft. co-op in a brownstone; living room with fireplace; maintenance $754, 40% tax deductible; listed at $849,000, 4 weeks on market (broker: Brooklyn Properties of 7th Avenue)
WINDSOR TERRACE $300,000
147 Prospect Park Southwest
2-bedroom, 1-bath, 700-sq.-ft. co-op in a prewar building; eat-in kitchen; needs work; live-in superintendent in building; maintenance $595, 60% tax deductible; listed at $315,000, 8 weeks on market (broker: Orrichio Anderson Realty)
Residential Sales [NY Times]
Atlantic Yards Protest
Photo by rsguskind
After carpet-bombing the area with flyers for the protest, it finally went down at Grand Army Plaza on Sunday. While the NYPD estimated 600 to 700 people showed up, the Times and CBS estimated about 2,000. Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn - one of the organizers - had an even higher head count that came in at 3,200, revised downward from 4,000. Make of all that what you will. As always, Atlantic Yards Report has the most extensive coverage out there, and all with that anti-Times flare that only Norman Oder is capable of.
Event Coverage Wrap-Up [Gowanus Lounge]
Photo Album [Flickr]
Another Injured Construction Worker
It seems like every time you open the paper (metaphorically, I suppose) there's a story about an injured construction at some development or another. This time, a worker at 3360 Shore Parkway (GMAP) fell through a hole and down an entire story. The injuries were non-life threatening, but DOB records show three environmental control board violations and seven complaints at the site. Henry Radusky’s Bricolage Designs firm - one of Brownstoner's favorite sources of loathing - designed the building, and the demo crew is Staten Island based MMG.
BSA Hearing: 182 15th Street aka Katan Towers [Brownstoner] GMAP
Monday Links
'D Train' Photo by Matthew Krautheim.
Gowanus Canal Conservancy Formed [NY Post]
A Couple's Venture Into Sunset Park [NY Times]
Fed's Outlook on Region Too Rosy? [City Journal]
SRO's Billed as Hotels Squeeze Affordable
Housing Market [City Limits]
Phoenix Realty Sets $250 Mil Affordable Housing Fund [Crains]
NY Water Taxi to Begin Serving N. Brooklyn Next Week [NY1]
Fort Greene CB Votes Down Bike Lane [Brooklyn Papers]
Ground Breaking for First Residential Development in
N. Brooklyn Rezoning [Greenpoint Star]
July 14, 2006
Open House Picks
Cobble Hill
301 Baltic Street
Corcoran
Sunday 12-2
$1,495,000
GMAP P*Shark
South Midwood
814 East 15th Street
Halstead
Sunday 2-4
$1,195,000
GMAP P*Shark
South Slope
56 16th Street
Brown Harris Stevens
Sunday 11:30-1
$985,000
GMAP P*Shark
South Slope
68 16th Street
Century 21
Sunday 12-2
$929,000
GMAP P*Shark
Condo of the Day: Greenpoint, Address Unspecified
Though the listing for this Greenpoint doesn't provide an address or an exterior photo, we're guessing that it's located around Franklin and Greenpoint Avenue. The interior is plain, plain, plain but certainly not offensive or blatantly shoddy. It'll be interesting to see whether this 900-square-foot two bedroom will find any takers at $498,000. We suppose it's possible.
Spectacular Apartment Living [Aptsandlofts] GMAP
A Taste of Gramercy: Loving These Lintels
We found ourselves on East 18th Street in Manhattan recently and were struck by the design and repetition of the decorative lintels over these windows.
Summer Holidays
We're going to be taking a much needed vacation for the next ten days. We've got a bunch of architecturally-oriented posts cued up for your viewing pleasure. Plus, we're going to have a guest dj named Mike Muller spinning a few tunes.
See you on the flip side.
Brownstoner
Fighting to Save Remains of Underground Railroad
Families United for Racial and Economic Equility (FUREE) held a rally last Saturday to raise awareness about the what's at stake on Duffield Street. As we've discussed before, the city wants to turn the site of the 19th century homes into a parking lot for a proposed condo and hotel project nearby; residents, who believe several of the homes were used as stops on the Underground Railroad, are fighting for preservation. Charles Barron, Letitia James, Tony Avella and David Yassky (pictured) were all on hand to show their support of the preservationists. The Downtown Star article has some good color on the discovery of the Underground Railroad link:
The entire saga surrounding Duffield Street began over two decades ago, when a jeweler on Greenstein's block told him that his home had once been used as a safehouse for escaped slaves. Greenstein never thought much about the jeweler's claim until he was trying to stop a persistent leak in his basement. He tapped on the fieldstone wall and it gave way, revealing a three-foot square shaft that led up towards the ceiling to the ground. Under the debris there appeared to be the remnants of an old ladder...
...Greenstein's house isn't the only one with attributes that would suggest Duffield Street was a major thoroughfare in the Underground Railroad. [Joy] Chatel's house has a similar shaft in the original fieldstone work, and many of the homes on Duffield Street have a trap door in the front, which leads to a void underneath the sidewalk. Greenstein and Chatel believe this was so all of the houses would be interconnected, and escaped slaves could travel from cellar to cellar without appearing at street level.
Next up: The EDC's report followed by a final vote by the City Council.
Underground Railroad or Parking Lot? [Downtown Star]
Stepping Out On FG Park (For Almost $4 Mil!)
Wow. What can you say? A perfectly restored 4-story brownstone on what the ad claims to be the best block in Fort Greene. No one's going to argue (we don't think) with what a beauty this house. (Some of you have probably seen it first hand as it was on the house tour this year.) The price of $3.995 million, though, is staggering. Embedded in that price is the bold assertion that Fort Greene is now as desirable as, if not more than, Park Slope or Cobble Hill and that it is safely ahead of Boerum Hill. Granted, the parkside location ads something to the value, but we're not sure South Portland isn't a preferable address. 10 South Portland, which we discussed here, is an interesting comparable: It just went into contract this week for $2.65 million (interestingly enough, after being reduced from $3.495 million to $2.495, which in turn sparked a 4-way bidding war. Told ya so!) This Washington Park listing is clearly worth a good deal more than the South Portland one, but the asking price is clearly a Hail Mary. It remains to be seen whether anyone will catch it in the end-zone or whether the seller will have to start over and work the ball down the field the old-fashioned way. (Did that football analogy hold water? Bit of a stretch...)
Update: The address is 181 Washington Park just in from Willoughby.
"On The Park" [Brooklyn Properties] GMAP P*Shark
Friday Links
Tower, Flatbush Avenue. Photo by bondidwhat
Housing in Rehab Crisis [NY Post]
Outrage Over Red Hook Death [NY Daily News]
Staving Off a Scar for Decades [DDDB]
W'burg, We Hardly Knew Ye [Gothamist]
Red Hook/Park Slope Food War [Curbed]
Wamu Cans Residential Appraisal Dept [Soapbox]
When Reality Hits [Gates Reno]
Bat Watching in Prospect Park [Dope on the Slope]
Rotor Window Panels [Design Sponge]
July 13, 2006
Thursday On The Record
Bushwick Inlet, Greenpoint. Photo by Jim Striebich.
Events: Today in Brooklyn
Lucy Liu on Smith Street?
Punk Rock in Polka Dots
Three-Wheeling Around the Burg
Fake Chicken in Real Good at Stir It Up
Number Five Is No Spring Chicken
New Luna Lounge Digs in the Burg
House of the Day: Carlton Avenue For Less
Thanks to a reader for bringing this Carlton Avenue house to our attention (it's the semi-detached house, by the way). As the reader pointed out in her email, this is probably a beneficiary of a Foxton's discount, i.e. if Corcoran or one of the more entrenched brokers in Brownstone Brooklyn had this listing, it would probably be a couple hundred grand more. While the kitchen's not going to do it for a lot of people, the house otherwise appears to have lots of attractive original details. No word on when the house had a major infrastructure upgrade (plumbing, electric, etc.) but at this price, we think you could put $100,000 into tune-ups and still be ahead of the game.
Carlton Avenue House [Foxtons] GMAP P*Shark
Fake Chicken is Real Good at Stir It Up
Yup, that's some fake chicken on that plate, and it was delicious. We visited Sonia Gordon's Caribbean spot, Stir It Up (514 Atlantic Avenue at Third Avenue, 718-643-3716) in hopes of trying her highly recommended goat roti, but the kitchen was fresh out of goat during our lunchtime visit. Thankfully, a sip of the housemade ginger beer washed away our disappointment. Cool, slightly creamy, and just spicy enough to cut through the hazy July heat, the ginger beer alone is worth a trip to this brightly decorated Boerum Hill restaurant. Their top-knotch Caribbean menu and surprising selection of vegetarian dishes offer reasons to stick around...
Greenpoint Rising
Man-about-North-Brooklyn justiNYC sent along this fresh shot of a new development rising at the corner of Eckford and Engert in Greenpoint. Anyone know anything about this project? GMAP
Rebuilding on Fulton Street
Who knows what this project on Fulton between Classon and Franklin is going to be? It's not a particularly scenic stretch of Fulton. GMAP
Guess Who Made The Latest Best Of List?
Somewhere between the Best Place to Trespass and the Best Industrial Zone on the Downtown Star's recent list was one entry that made us blush. Just a little. See if you can find it.
The Best of Brooklyn [Downtown Star]
Breakfast Porn, Puppet Libraries and More [Brooklyn Record]
Anti-Atlantic Yards Rally on Sunday
If you roll this way...
Rally Against Skyscraper City [DDDB]
Lefferts Hotel Hearing Postponed Til End of Month
The bus trip organized by Tish James (pictured) to Brooklyn Supreme Court was over before it started yesterday, as the Lefferts Hotel owners were able to postpone their appeal until July 27. Several people from the block and the area show to show their support for the permanent closure of the hotel. We'll keep you posted on the next hearing.
Roadtrip with Tish [Brownstoner]
Drugs and Ho's Bring Down Hotel [Brooklyn Record]
Using Typekey: Just a Little Patience
So the Typekey registration is working again but the whole thing is a little fickle. We've found that it generally takes opening a couple of different post and refreshing the page a couple of times after signing in before the system shows that you're signed in. Strange, but it seems to work. Thanks for your patience.
Brownstoner
CB6 Tells Architect To Shove It
"We fought to get this area contextually zoned," said CB6's Landmarks Committee Chair Robert Levine. "I don’t see a need for a sixth floor." And so the design for that architect Shell Shapiro wanted to build for his two sons was rejected by the community board. The Shapiros tried to sell the committee a sob story about how the irregular shape of the 213-square-foot lot at 638 President Street between 4th and 5th Avenues created unusually difficult conditions that only addition height and bulk on the building could compensate for. Sounds to us like someone overpaid for a property and now wants the community board to bail him out. Of course, in the end, the community board vote is merely advisory and the way the BSA has been handing out gifts to developers recently, there's no reason to think it'll carry much weight.
CB6 Jeers 6-Story Conversion on President [Park Slope Courier] GMAP
Thursday Linkage
Facade, Greenpoint. Photo by justiNYC
Out of College, Still in Dorm [NY Times]
NYC's Economic Rebound Since 9/11 [NY Times]
Street Noise Number One Problem [NY Post]
Slope Intersection Named for Activist [NY Daily News]
Dan Goldstein Charges On [NY Observer]
Angry Residents Call Pacific Makeover Unsafe [FG Courier]
It's Tough All Around [The Real Estate]
Blogging Barbara Corcoran [BarbaraCorcoran.com]
The Vest Case Scenario [Downtown Star]
New W'burg Condos Offer Prewar Throwback [Brooklyn Eagle]
Machiavellian Broker in Carroll Gardens [Curbed]
East Williamsburg Art Studio [Apartment Therapy]
July 12, 2006
Wednesday On The Record
Scaffolding, Park Slope. Photo by Frank Lynch.
Events: Today in Brooklyn
Sneak Preview of Gowanus Holiday Inn
Weekly Food Round-Up
Catbird Coming to Bedford Avenue
Walmart Attacks!
Summertime Special Drinks at Trout
A Thank You Note to Brooklyn
Summertime Specialties at Trout
Trout, the newest outdoor drinking enclave of Cobble Hill, has successfully captured its relaxed and inviting atmosphere in two of its specialty summer drinks. We ask: What can be more refreshing on a hot summer evening than sun-brewed iced tea or fresh-squeezed lemonade? Trout answers: Brooklyn Iced Tea and Bourbonade. Think of your favorite summer memories of drinking homemade iced tea or lemonade when you couldn’t bear another hazy-hot-and-humid moment. Now, add an interesting kick to those drinks and imagine yourself sipping on one in Trout's welcoming open-deck bar...
House of the Day: 28 Willow Street
Willow Street is one of our favorites in all of Brooklyn so maybe we're not being as critical as we should be, but $2.6 million doesn't seem like a crazy amount to pay for this well-appointed, albeit a bit narrow (at 18 feet), townhouse. Even if you give the house no credit for the basement level, it is still priced at about $720 a foot, cheap by Brooklyn Heights standards, no? Plus, the duplex-over-triplex configuration also creates the potential for meaningful income. Has anyone been inside?
Willow Street House [Brown Harris Stevens] GMAP P*Shark
Development: Time Running Out For Undertaker
This beautiful old brick manufacturing building in Gowanus, whose current tenant is a supplier of undertaker provisions, recently was sold to a developer for $15 million. Or so we hear. What's in store? GMAP
Deprived Of Our Transfer
Blogging from behind a corporate firewall sucks. Big time. From one day to the next, you never know which go-to link is going to be deemed unsuitable for viewing. Take one of our favorites, Transfer. After 12 months or so of access, it suddenly was blocked as of a few weeks ago. So we've been remiss in not linking to this post of late June about a book Mr. Marston's been reading called Sense of the City: An Alternative Approach to Urbanism. One stand out quote from the book: "A well-paved asphalt road is the greatest missionary of civilization at our disposal to-day." So spake Pedro Juan Manuel Larranaga (whoever that is) in 1926. Another interesting tidbit. Something we sometimes wish we were a member of, the Society of the Suppression of Unnecessary Noise was founded in 1906, way before Mr. Softee even existed.
Summer Read [Transfer]
Weekly Food Round-Up
Let us introduce you our new favorite food blog — The Clean Plate Club. The blog covers the whole NYC food scene, but it's run out of Cobble Hill by the same fine folks who run Blognut. Check out their latest reviews:
The Good Burger
"The only complaint I have is geometrical in nature. The Good Fork patty is a near perfect circle, as if formed in one of those plastic burger molds, and thus puts forth a synthetic air usually reserved for the Egg McMuffin." [Clean Plate Club]
Nutting With the Devil
"One morning last month, during a visit to the dreaded Seattle-based roastery, our eyes were met with a colorful and summery looking little ring labeled 'Pina Colada Doughnut.' We ordered a small iced coffee (fine, Tall!) and, full from the morning's bagel, knew we must return once more." [Blognut]
After the jump: Endangered fried chicken, Culpepper's, and spots that serve one taco at a time
Big Turnout For AY Housing Forum
While Marty Markowitz played cheerleader for Bruce Ratner last night at the Brooklyn Marriott, many of the 2,500 people who showed up to learn about getting in on the affordable housing portion of the Atlantic Yards project expressed concern that, well, it really wasn't that affordable. "It’s still not too affordable," said Edan Greenidge, 29, a salesman who attended with his mother, Merlyn. "I’m still skeptical." "I think that certain things weren’t taken into account when they came up with the income bands," echoed Sharon Reid, a college administrator. Under the current proposal, twenty percent of the 6,860 rentals are earmarked for households that earn $21,270 to $35,450 while 30 percent are for families that make $42,540 to $113,440. City employees and people with disabilities will get preference in a housing lottery to be run by the city.
Promise of AY Draws Thousands to Meeting [NY Times]
Casting a 'Net' For Brooklyn Apartments [NY Post]
South Slopers Protest Two Pending BSA Appeals
From what we hear, there was a large turnout, including politicians like Assemblyman Brennan and Councilmember Avella, at the protest yesterday against the upcoming appeals by the developers of 182 15th Street and 614 7th Avenue (the Minerva building). On 15th Street, Isaac Katan wants to build 131 feet but recent zoning changes limit him to 50 feet; on 7th Avenue, developer Chaim Nussencweig is under fire for having violated a number of DOB regulations in his rush to try to get the building grandfathered under the previous zoning rules. "If the BSA grants these appeals ... it sends a message to all developers that illegal and unsafe practices will be rewarded," said advocate Aaron Brashear at the protest yesterday. The BSA is slated to make a decision on the 7th Ave. site July 18, though that could be pushed back to Aug. 22, Mulligan said. A decision on the 15th St. site is due July 25.
Condo Tower Plan Illegal, Charge Locals [NY Daily News]
Wednesday Links
Metal Skin, Bond Street. Photo by Alexis Robie
Moving Hamilton's Home [NY Times]
Explosion May Have Increased Property Value [NY Post]
Rain Delay for East River Park [Curbed]
Shaker Peg Trim [Apartment Therapy]
Are 'Liars' Loans' Bad for Country? [Hot Property]
National Foreclosures Up 72% [Haute Blog]
July 11, 2006
Tuesday On The Record
Nineteenth Street, Sunset Park. Photo by Frank Lynch.
Events: Today in Brooklyn
Cell Phone Shop Owner Faces 20 Years in Jail
Big Hair and Big Fun at Fort Greene Festival
A Tribute to ODB in Bed Stuy
Williamsburg: Brooklyn's Beer Capital
Restaurant Review: Rice Is Nice
Site Registration for Commenting
We've resisted requiring registration to the site until now because we've wanted to keep things as open as possible. Given some of the rudeness and vitriol that happens more frequently than we'd like and the recent uptick in troll activity, we have little choice but to require anyone who wants to comment to create a Typekey username. (Hopefully it should reduce the amount of spam comments that we have to waste time deleting too.) We just enabled this requirement a few minutes ago so we're not exactly sure how it's going to go from a technical standpoint. When you open the Comments of a post it should prompt you to sign in or create an identity. If you have trouble, though, please drop us an email. After you've logged at the beginning of a session, you should be recognized and not have to keep logging in every time you comment. Sorry for the inconvenience but hopefully this will result in a more respectful dialogue among those who actually have the site's, and the community's, best interests at heart.
Thanks,
Brownstoner
Restaurant Review: Rice is Nice
Having failed to get our act together to pack a picnic, we adjourned from the harsh midday sun of Fort Greene park last Sunday morning to the cool interior of Rice, conveniently located at the corner of the park at Dekalb and Cumberland. We hadn't eaten at a Rice restaurant since we lived near the original location in Nolita several years ago and were pleasantly surprised to find that the brunch menu offered a lot more than the variety of curries we subsisted on back in the day. Our shrimp dim sum was nothing to complain about but left us far from satiated. Good thing the kids' coconut-crusted french toast — airy but sweet — was more than they could handle. We were also able to mooch a few bites of Mrs. B's cross-cultural Eggs Benedict that included pork instead of ham as well as healthy dollops of guacamole and salsa. The combo was enough to fill us up. Luckily, it was still early and the pleasant staff was able to take the kids' mess and noise in stride. Looks like most Clinton Hill residents can't get delivery from Rice. Big bummer.
House of the Day: Overpriced on St.James?
This five-story house at 286 St. James Place in Clinton Hill is nice enough but for $1.65 in this location we'd hope to get more than 16 feet of house. Plus, although the listing says the interior of this four-family place is in good shape, we'll remain skeptical until some photos go up on the site. Unless the interior is really spectacular, this feels more like a $1.45 million house to us. And when you consider that the new owners will have a massive construction project going on out their rear window for the next two years, maybe less. Thoughts?
Lefferts House [Prudential Douglas Elliman] GMAP P*Shark
Williamsburg: Brooklyn's Beer Capital
The Better Borough Beer Guide, Volume 1
It's no surprise that Brooklyn's former brewing center is now home to some of the best beer drinking in town. For a proper beer tour, start out on a Friday evening or Saturday afternoon at the Brooklyn Brewery for its Friday night happy hour or Saturday tours.
Mugs Ale House is the place to go when you want to geek out with other beer connoisseurs. The Malted Barley Appreciation Society meets here monthly. The crowd is older than at many of the other bars in the area, and there is a strong contingent of regulars who may seem aloof to a first-time visitor, but they warm up pretty quickly to beer talk. The food is standard pub grub — no better, no worse. (125 Bedford Ave.; L to Bedford Ave.)
Spike Hill, Spuytin Duvil, and Barcade after the jump...
Condo of the Day: Stretching on Wyckoff?
Even if we give the seller the benefit of the doubt that 88 Wyckoff is indeed a lovely "art deco style" building, we have a hard time understanding how to justify the asking price of almost $900 a foot in Boerum Hill. There's another similar listing in the same building (that we've written about before) that's been languishing on the market for three months or so despite a series of price cuts that has brought the price down to $799,999 from the original ask of $850,000. This one's asking $875,000 for 985 square feet. Are they over-reaching in a big way or are we out of touch with the co-op market in Boerum Hill? You can see for yourself on Sunday at the open house from 1 to 4 pm.
88 Wyckoff Street Loft [Brooklyn Heights Real Estate] GMAP
Roadtrip With Tish to Lefferts Hotel Hearing
As promised, Council Member Letitia James is sponsoring a bus to the Supreme Court (located at 360 Adams St., Courtroom 461) for the hearing about the Lefferts Hotel. The bus will leave tomorrow, Wednesday, July 12th from in front of the Lefferts Hotel (at the corner of Classon and Lefferts Place) at 8am and return around noon. Please call her office at 718-260-9191 to reserve a seat ASAP. Way to go, Tish!
Moon River Chattel Expands Into Remilled Flooring
Whenever we pop over to Williamsburg to refuel at
Uva Wines and the Bedford Cheese Shop, we try to pop in to another of our favorite stores in the nabe, Moon River Chattel. When we stopped by on Saturday (with three bottles of Wolffer rose under our arm) after a long absence, we were interested to see that the store's remilled flooring business, which we knew was in the works, was clearly off the ground. We haven't heard from customer feedback yet, but if proprietor Paul Sperduto expends the same care and attention to detail on the wood operation that he does on curating his retro interior design offerings, it's bound to be a good bet.
Architecture 101: Inniss Franciscan House
We've been admiring 834 Pacific Street (aka 703 Dean) for some time now, but only recently got close enough to read the plaque on the side of the building. Turns out the 27,000-square-foot building, known as the Inniss Franciscan House, is a transitional housing facility that tries to help homeless people get back on their feet by offering job training and substance abuse programs. Our gut reaction was that this would be categorized as Queen Anne style, but we consulted one of the architecture buffs on the site who weighed in that he thought Victorian Gothic was closer to the mark. Anyone else have an opinion?
Inniss Franciscan House [Franciscan Foundation] GMAP P*Shark
Overview of the Proposed Rezoning of FG & CH
Brooklyn Papers had a good round-up last week of the proposed zoning changes for Fort Greene and Clinton Hill. The city has been having a dialogue with groups like the Fort Greene Association and the Society for Clinton Hill for the past couple of years and it sounds like most parties are pleased with the result. Like other downzoning plans in recent memory, this one trades a height cap in residential blocks--in this case, fifty feet high--for increased size along a major thoroughfare--in this case, 120 feet high, up from 80, along Atlantic Avenue. “This will allow developers to build, but require them to build in context,” said Sharon Barnes of the Society for Clinton Hill. “They’ll have to respect what’s in the immediate vicinity.”
Nabes To Join Downzone Club [Brooklyn Papers]
Photo by ultraclay
Bushwicker Makes Top Ten Landlord List
July 5, 2006 -- David Melendez owns a swath of dilapidated, vermin-infested, crime-ridden slums hidden on a forgotten block of Jefferson Street in Bushwick. The surrounding area is gentrifying, and just a few blocks away from Melendez's buildings, new condos are selling for six figures. In contrast, rats rule the apartments of Melendez's mostly Mexican and Ecuadorian tenants, and drug addicts get in through the unlocked doors, using the hallways in which to get high, while the tenants' infants struggle to sleep through unheated winters. Melendez's four buildings at 253, 255, 258, and 260 Jefferson have a total of 473 pending code violations. He appears to be in no rush to fix them: HPD has recently made 49 emergency repairs to those buildings and charged Melendez $23,029.
More on the link...
NYC's 10 Worst Landlords [Village Voice]
Tuesday Linkerati
Brooklyn Bridge. Photo by jacktheass
Brooklyn Legistlator Charged in Land Deal [NY Times]
Independent Oversight for Atlantic Yards [Park Slope Courier]
Serra's Rooftop in Carroll Gardens [Apartment Therapy]
What Will The Neighbors Say? [New York Mag]
Rally Today Against South Slope Developers [South South Slope]
Village Voice Dispensers Flood Red Hook [Calla Lillie]
One Small Project: Wes Janz [Archinect]
Restoration of 'Little Liberty' at Bkln Museum [Newyorkology]
July 10, 2006
Monday On The Record
Graffiti, Gowanus. Photo by Tulpe_NY.
Events: Today in Brooklyn
Drugs and Ho's Bring Down Lefferts Hotel
Brooklyn Celebrates Italy's Big Win
In the 11th District, the Plot Thickens
Les Savy Fav Makes a Splash at McCarren Pool
Fish-Tank Fever Sweeping Brooklyn
$4.5 Million Makeover for Fulton Street
$4.5 Million Makeover For Fulton Street
You might have noticed that Fulton Street in Bed Stuy and Clinton Hill has been one giant construction site for the past few weeks. The reason? We can only guess it has something to with the Transportation Safety Act that resulted in a$4.48 allocation to repair Fulton Street from Clinton Avenue to Bedford Avenue as well as "upgrade the streetscape for pedestrian use." The goal, presumbly, is to create a more shopper-friendly experience. Bring it on, we say.
House of the Day: 371 Hancock Street
Here's a house in wonderful original conditions on one of the best streets in Bedford Stuyvesant. The woodwork is to die for and there appears to be no shortage of ornate moldings as well. We'll leave it up to those of you who attended yesterday's open house, though, to opine on whether it's worth the $995,000 asking price. How was the turn-out?
371 Hancock Street [Corcoran] GMAP P*Shark
Ungrand on Grand: $2,200 a Month for That?
We've been watching with a mix of horror and resignation as this build has gone up over the past year. No point in belaboring its aesthetic shortcomings, though it never ceases to amaze us how developers persist is picking such butt-ugly types of brick. Now it will be interesting to watch as these 650-square-foot one bedrooms rentals languish on the market at their monthly asking price of $2,100 to $2,200. With similarly sized one-bedroom brownstone floor thrus in the area renting for $1,400 to $1,500 a month, it's hard to see where the demand for these soulless places will come from.
309 Grand Avenue [Prudential Douglas Elliman] GMAP
Sounding the Alarm on Architectural Gems
Hats off to the New York Landmarks Conservancy for launching a website that tracks its list of endangered buildings. Click through to the Brooklyn section, for example, and see pictures of 245 Greene Avenue (which gets a Red rating) along with several others from the Fort Greene and Clinton Hill, the most highly represented areas. The page for each endangered property provides a form for users to submit information about the building.
Endangered Buildings [NYLC]
Brownstoner Garden: Now We Can Eat
After being on the lookout for the past several weeks for a teak table for the garden, we stumbled across a great buy over July 4th weekend at this From The Source warehouse sale in Dumbo. The table plus four chairs ran us about $800. Up to that point, the only other tables we'd seen that we liked were $1,400 and up.
Police Up The Ante At The Lefferts Hotel
Why was there a police car stationed in front of the Lefferts Hotel all weekend? Click here to find out.
A Big F-in Mess on Spencer Street
For those of us who've been following this story for the last year or so, there wasn't much new info in yesterday's article on the scandalous Spencer Street condo situation. Just that the process has inched along to the point where the developers, a group that includes such beacons of the community as Mendel Brach, Moshe Okin and Moses Roth, have agreed to transfer 26,025 square feet of air rights from other properties on the block to help make up for their deceit in filing the Spencer building as a educational housing while simultaneously filing with the Attorney General to convert it to condos. Unfortunately for the owners of the condos who are now stuck in limbo with no final C of O, there are still fire code issues that the developer needs to remedy and it sounds like it won't be done anytime soon. We share the condo owners shock that the Attorney General isn't coming down hard on these developers. How about some jail time, Eliot? The DOB, as usual, ain't looking too good through all of this either.
At Spencer Street, Solution Meets Skepticism [NY Times]
Lock Him Up and Throw Away the Key [Brownstoner]
Monday Linkage
Drain Pipes, Boerum Hill. Photo by cms
$150 Tree House in Williamsburg [NY Times]
In Praise of Sort Of Famous Men [NY Times]
Nixzmary's House For Sale [NY Post]
Accident In Red Hook Spurs Outcry [NY Daily News]
Habana Outpost Owner Sells S. Portland House [Set Speed]
Oatmeal Walls for Design*Sponge [Design Sponge]
Beacon of Brooklyn Shines in CI [Gowanus Lounge]
More Tsuris in Crown Heights [Hunt Grunt]
The Sanctuary Is Real, We Think [Curbed]
July 7, 2006
Open House Picks
Park Slope
285 Garfield Place
Warren Lewis
Sunday 1-3
$2,280,000
GMAP P*Shark
Boerum Hill
229 Bergen Street
Cobble Heights
Sunday 12-2
$1,795,000 $1,595,000
GMAP P*Shark
Bedford Stuyvesant
464 Willoughby Avenue
FSBO
Sunday 12-3
$899,000
GMAP P*Shark
Prospect Lefferts Gardens
256 Lincoln Road
Alexis
Sat 10-2; Sun 2-4
$850,000
GMAP P*Shark
Bedford Stuyvesant
643 Jefferson Avenue
Corcoran
Sunday 1-3
$775,000
GMAP P*Shark
Heard on Third: The Brits Are Coming!
We heard that a British woman recently paid $8 million for this group of buildings on the corner of 3rd Street and 3rd Avenue. Not sure what her plans are for the building but she's contemplating a "green" roof. GMAP
Architecture 101: Public School That Went Private
How beautiful and majestic is the former P.S. 9 on Sterling Place in Prospect Heights? V-E-R-Y . The Renaissance Revival structure stopped us in our tracks as we strolled by on Vanderbilt the other day. Built in 1887, the building had fallen into severe disrepair by 1989, the year that, gasp!, Forest City Ratner struck a deal with the city to convert it into co-op apartments. As part of the conversion, the facade, which is a mix of brownstone, sandstone, terra-cotta and brick, was meticulously restored under the watch of LPC. Nine of the 22 apartments were taken by artists who had been displaced by the Metrotech project. Guess how much the 3,150-square-foot loft cost back in '89? $500,000. Yowza.
From Classes to Co-ops [NY Times] GMAP
The Gradual Greening of New York
That the building industry in New York City will become increasingly green seems like a no-brainer. How long it will take is the bigger question. There have been a couple of high profile projects in downtown Manhattan--a rental building in Battery Park and now 7 World Trade--and now there are two developments in Williamsburg slated to come on line at some point next year. Of course, plenty of individuals have been doing smaller-scale green renos for years. The big barrier is an increase in up-front costs--estimated at 10% to 15%--but as David Schleifer (pictured) is finding, you can still make money on a green flip.
Smells Like Green Spirit [NY Post]
Friday Links
Courtyard, Bushwick. Photo by Mercurial N
Brooklyn Names Street After Bob Marley [1010 Wins]
Nets Making Contingency Plans [Stamford Advocate]
Accident on Van Brunt and Wolcott [The Real Estate]
Church Condos Come to Fort Greene [Curbed]
David's Brooklyn Garden [Apartment Therapy]
July 6, 2006
Thursday On The Record
On The Roof, Park Slope. Photo by Kurtrik.
Events: Today in Brooklyn
'Other Worlds' Opening at 31 Grand
Breakfast Porn, Puppet Libraries and More
Fort Greene Pool Opens
Coney Island Phish Show Hits DVD
As French As You Can Get on Smith
House of the Day: Possibility on Decatur
Every now and then Craigslist yields something interesting. This three-family on Decatur Street looks like it would be worth checking out for $600,000. Of course, the lack of interior pics gets a red flag (or yellow card, given it's World Cup time) and there's not much description. Still if there really are "some details" as the ad promises and the house isn't a complete wreck, you might have something to work with. No mention of an agency so maybe this is a poached listing. Anyone know anything?
Three Family Brownstone [Craigslist] GMAP
Condo of the Day: Cobble Hill Penthouse
We don't have as much info as we'd like on this one--like an address, to start with--but we're betting that one of you can i.d. this place. From the one photo provided by broker Loft Industrie, this penthouse in Cobble Hill has a nice feel to it, though we suspect it's the beneficiary of a good apartment stylist. At the asking price of $995,000 for 1,300 square feet, the asking rate is $750 a square foot. How does this strike people?
Cobble Hill Penthouse [NY Times]
BS Reno: No Downtime This Weekend
Our Bed Stuy Reno bloggers were busy, busy, busy over the weekend, tackling the demolition of the old ground-floor kitchen and unearthing some surprises in the process. They've got some questions for you about vapor barriers and palimpsests. Check it.
State of the Lower Level [Bed Stuy Reno]
Residential Sales in Brooklyn
GREENPOINT $737,500
118 Oak Street
2-family, 116-year-old, wood-frame house; 2 bedrooms, 1 bath, dining room, family room, screened-in porch in primary unit; 2 bedrooms, 1 bath, fireplace in the other; eat-in kitchen, hardwood floors, tin ceilings, original moldings and detail in each unit; needs work, 18-by-70-ft. lot; taxes $1,800; listed at $800,000, 4 weeks on market (broker: Bellmarc Realty)
PARK SLOPE $320,000
333 Fourth Street
1-bedroom, 1-bath, 550-sq.-ft. co-op in a prewar building; elevator; kitchen with windows, high ceilings, hardwood floors, 2 exposures; maintenance $525, 48% tax-deductible; listed at $359,000, 12 weeks on market (broker: Coldwell Banker/Hunt Kennedy & Garfield)
WINDSOR TERRACE $882,500
88 Prospect Parkway Southwest
2-bedroom, 2-bath, 107-year-old, 3-story, attached, wood-sided house; eat-in kitchen, home office, French doors, beamed ceilings, wide-plank floors; south garden, 17-by-76-ft. lot; taxes $2,749; listed at $885,000, 11 weeks on market (broker: Warren Lewis Realty)
Residential Sales [NY Times]
Fliperati: Lapsed Banker Turns to Reno-blogging
A reader just turned us on to this new renovation blog called Fliperati. Started recently by a banker who'd had enough of the Wall Street slog, the site is chronicalling his recent purchase and impending renovation of a suburban New Jersey house. A recent post of his mulled over the wisdom of spending the extra time and money on preserving original details. So far, he hasn't gotten any feedback and we're worried that he may have already opted for trashing the moldings. We bet he'd appreciate some feedback on the subject. Check that specific post out on the link below.
Flipping and Preservation Mutually Exclusive? [Fliperati]
Money Pit With a Happy Ending
"I got a hole in my wall the size of a Buick." Not exactly what you want to hear when you answer a call from your next door neighbor. For David Petersen, who'd recently purchased the 1,100-square-foot house on 18th Street near Greenwood Cemetery for $260,000, these words bck in 2004 were the beginning of an overwhelming process that, among other things, involved him begging and borrowing several hundred thousand dollars more than he initially intended to fix the ailing house. Although his inspector had picked up on a bunch of structural imperfections, he hadn't pointed out the fact that the house had, literally, no foundation. Two years later, though, Petersen and his girlfriend are ensconced in their 12 1/2-foot-wide house finished in a "comfortable modern" style. Perhaps the best news of all? The house was recently reappraised for $1.25 million, allowing Petersen to pay off all his credit cards and second mortgages and even have a nice chunk of equity left over.
Brooklyn Bargain? First Check the Cellar [NY Times]
Heavy Metal in Clinton Hill
When we read The Times story on Sunday of the junkyard-inspired design for 46 Putnam Avenue, we decided to check it out for ourselves. "It's a context I'm not used to," said architect David Ling, whom The Times had asked to design a makeover for the three story brick building, "but it's exciting, especially the car wreck. It's like a Chamberlain sculpture." The result is kinda cool: a curtain wall of glass on the front and a Serra-esque sheet of metal enveloping the side of the building. At a projected cost of $950,000 to $1.5 million (the building itself is listed for $1.14 million), it seems unlikely that this will ever get built.
On the Crest of a Metal Wave [NY Times]
GMAP
46 Putnam Avene [Corcoran]
Thursday Linkage
Grace Church, Brooklyn Heights. Photo by Wally G
Wireless Web Comes to Parks [NY Times]
Little Shift in Manhattan RE Prices [NY Times]
Brooklyn Woman Charged With DOB Fraud [NY Times]
Brooklyn and Walmart: Perfect Together [Brooklyn Papers]
The View from the Water [Curbed]
BUILD Goes Begging [NY Observer]
Atlantic Yards and the Oder Effect [Our Times]
Norman Oder's Rebuttal [AY Report]
Visit to Jose Campo's Tire Shop [Sonja Shield]
View From My Kitchen Window [Eating For Brooklyn]
July 5, 2006
Just Sold in Brooklyn
KENSINGTON $680,000
604 E. Eighth Street
Prewar three-family house, 24-foot-by-38-foot home on a 33-foot-by-120-foot lot, with three-bedroom, one-bath first-floor unit with dining room and eat-in-kitchen; two-bedroom, one-bath second-floor unit with kitchen; and one-bedroom, one-bath unit; home features front and back porches, unfinished basement, backyard and sprinkler system. Taxes $3,779. Asking price $750,000, on market four months.
Broker: Alexandra Reddish, Mary Kay Gallagher Real Estate
KENSINGTON $184,000
179 Ocean Parkway
Prewar one-bedroom, one-bath walk-up co-op, 620 square feet, with windowed galley kitchen with pantry, windowed bath, walk-in closet, entry foyer and hardwood floors; building is pet-friendly and features patio, laundry, storage and bike room. Maintenance $401.09, 34 percent tax-deductible. Asking price $188,000 on market three months. Broker: Robert T. Frye, Brooklyn Bridge Realty
MIDWOOD $550,000
2034 New York Avenue
Three-bedroom, 1 1/2-bath duplex, 1,534 square feet, with formal dining room, eat-in kitchen, basement and garage. Asking price $609,000, on market five months.
Broker: Tracey Real Estate
PROSPECT HEIGHTS $561,111
20 Plaza Street
Prewar one-bedroom, one-bath co-op, 925 square feet, with foyer, den, dining alcove, refinished hardwood floors, windowed kitchen, renovated bath and N/E exposures; building is pet-friendly and features full-time doorman, garage and storage. Maintenance $805, 40 percent tax-deductible. Asking price $499,000, on market one week.
Brokers: Dulcie Lin and Heather Asencio, The Corcoran Group
Just Sold! [NY Post]
Wednesday On The Record
1 Main Street. Photo by Brownstoner.
Events: Today in Brooklyn
Returning Champ Sets New Hot Dog Record
Kevin Drops Out of Congressional Race
The Walkmen Play Warsaw
Weekly Food and Drink Round Up
TV On The Radio Packs Prospect Park
African Art Fair
House of the Day: 230 Greene Redux
We just got word that the June 26 House of the Day, the four-story (we called it three and a half) brick at 230 Greene Avenue, has had $200,000 slashed of its original asking price of $1.1 million. When we wrote about it a couple weeks back we thought it needed to come down by at least $100,000. Now that we've got some interior pics to look at we're going to go out on a limb and say that this looks like a very strong buy to us if the price has indeed been cut to $900,000.
230 Greene Avenue [Aguayo & Huebener] GMAP P*Shark
HOTD: Lesson in Poor Marketing [Brownstoner]
Weekly Food and Drink Round-Up
Cupcakes at Almondine Bakery by candiedyams
This Chowhound thread discusses the best places to buy a birthday cake in Brooklyn. Recommendations include Cafe Scaramouche, Court Street Bakery, and Almondine — but Fairway's cakes get a unanimous thumbs down.
Choice Market, Sushi D and Chez Oskar...
"Sushi D — the best thing about this place is the prompt, no-nonsense service, and the fact you can blunder in at 10:45 at night and have some kick-ass sushi 'n' beer." [Eating Clinton Hill]
The Hungry Cabbie Eats: Randazzo's Clam Bar
"You can dine indoors if you so desire at Randazzo's. But I prefer to sit at the picnic tables outside where I'm serenaded by barkers for the fishing vessels across Emmons Avenue who shout 'PORGIES AND BLACK FISH, POOOORGIES AND BLACK FISH... WE GUT 'EM, WEEEEEE CLEAN 'EM FOR YA' in an almost unintelligible Brooklyn fisherfolk accent." [Gothamist]
After the jump: Red Hook's Restaurant Row, Flatbush Farm, and Brooklyn Ramblings' Restaurant Guide
Gowanus Nursery To Get the Boot
The bloom is off the rose at 102 3rd Street. From what we hear, the owner of the lot that has been home to the Gowanus Nursery for the past several years is close to selling the lot, which runs all the way through to 4th Street. Word is that there are two bidders at around $1.3 million. Anyone have any suggestions for finding the nursery a new home?
Flower Shopping on Sunday [Brownstoner] GMAP
Ah, To Have Bought In 1996
For everyone who missed the chance to buy a house in Fort Greene or Clinton Hill ten years ago, Sunday's profile of Gitta Robinson and Richard Grisaru's Clinton Avenue Edwardian townhouse will be a little bittersweet. How much did the couple pay for the 4,000-square-foot house back in 1996? A whopping $270,000. Ouch! As the article describes, despite having been an SRO for years, the house had retained much of its original detail: oak paneling, claw-foot tubs, handsome fireplaces, a stained-glass skylight and a wall of casement windows topped by leaded-glass transoms stretching the width of the house. Even at what seems like a bargain-basement price today, the purchase was a stretch for the couple, both of whom are architects. Their strategy was to quickly fix up the top duplex to start generating rental income while they camped out amidst the renovation of the lower half. The process informed their outlook on architecture.
"When we work with clients on their own renovation projects, we design every square inch to perfection," Ms. Robinson said. "But I've discovered that I don't need that level of perfection in my own life. It doesn't bother me that this house shows its quirky age."
Amen, sista.
From the Beginning, It Felt Like Home [NY Times]
GMAP P*Shark
Sitt's Billion-Dollar Dream for Coney Island
Joseph Sitt's plan for Coney Island may not be quite as ambitious as the one Bruce Ratner has concocted for the Atlantic Yards, but so far Sitt's appears to be a whole lot less contentious. Perhaps it's because he's trying to build on the area's history, albeit to the nth degree, rather than trying to impose a vision that most locals don't share. Or maybe it's just because his project is not as far along, so the myriad community meetings and legal fights just haven't begun yet. "My mission is to create a one-stop amusement complex that would have great rides and interesting retail," Sitt has said. He's already spent $100 million buying property in the four blocks south of Surf Avenue, from 12th to 15th Streets. And he's already modified some of his plans based on community feedback. Our bet is that as long as he's smart enough to show a lot of respect for the preservation of the old-time outfits like Nathan's and Shoot the Freak that the rest will fall into place.
$1 Billion Revival Plan [NY Times]
Photo from New York Magazine
Housing Construction Rises Fivefold Since '95
July 3, 2006 -- The Big Apple's residential building boom is reaching historic proportions, with developers last year planning five times more private housing units citywide than a decade ago.
The city issued building permits for 31,599 new residential units - up 25 percent from 2004, 87 percent from 2001 and 515 percent from the paltry 5,135 units constructed in 1995, a Post analysis of census data found. The neighborhoods seeing the greatest growth in New York's biggest real-estate boom since the 1960s are Manhattan's Chelsea-Clinton area, Greenpoint and Williamsburg in Brooklyn, and the Rockaways in Queens.
"I think people are amazed at how the city bounced back after 9/11," said Steven Spinola, president of the Real Estate Board of New York, who attributed the housing boom to low interest rates and city streets becoming cleaner and safer. And there's no end in sight. The New York Building Congress, a trade organization, estimates that another 30,000 new housing units will be built in the city each year from 2006 through 2008. Census data examined for the first three months of this year supports the group's claim.
"There's unprecedented confidence in our city's future," Deputy Mayor Dan Doctoroff said. "People see it's safer, the educational system is improving, there's a record number of jobs being filled, and it encourages investment." City officials said a driving factor is that at least 30,000 new housing units are expected to be built through rezoning plans approved last year aimed at generating more residential growth in West Chelsea and Hudson Yards in Manhattan, Downtown Brooklyn and Greenpoint.
Housing Construction Rises Fivefold [NY Post]
Wednesday Links
Sneakers and Bars. Photo by justiNYC
Still Nine-Tenths of the Law [NY Times]
Keeping Delinquencies at Bay [NY Times]
AY Shapes Politics in Brooklyn [NY Times]
Absent Landlords Off Tax Hook [NY Daily News]
High Price of Housing Costs [NY Daily News]
Fed Treading on Thin Ice [CEPR]
Flophouse Riles PLG [Curbed]
Latest Restaurant Additions
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Manna
added November 24, 2009 12:00 PM in Williamsburg -
Piattini Ristorante
added November 23, 2009 12:00 PM in Bay Ridge -
Le Barricou
added November 20, 2009 12:00 PM in Williamsburg -
Der Schwarze Kölner
added November 19, 2009 12:00 PM in Fort Greene -
Oak Wine Bar & Café
added November 18, 2009 12:00 PM in Williamsburg -
Mr. Wonton
added November 17, 2009 12:00 PM in Park Slope -
Casa Rosa
added November 16, 2009 12:00 PM in Carroll Gardens -
Cousin John's Café & Bakery
added November 13, 2009 12:00 PM in Park Slope -
Elote
added November 12, 2009 12:00 PM in Williamsburg -
Miracle Grill
added November 11, 2009 12:00 PM in Park Slope