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December 29, 2006
Taking Stock at the Two-Year Mark
Note: We're moving this post up from yesterday to encourage more input. It's that time of year when we ask you to tell us what you've liked and haven't liked on the site over the past year and what you'd like to see more and less of going forward. We've said it before, but we'd like to have more architectural appreciation posts. Given our own lack of formal training, we'd be interested in hearing from anyone who would be interested in writing occasionally about the borough's architectural past and present. Other than that, we have an exciting (we think) new feature coming out in January that will being some order to the service component of the Forum. Also on our wish list: Video house tours of brownstones. And while there are times we wish there were less bashing of new developments on the site, we feel duty-bound to continue to hold bad developers' feet to the fire. And, of course, we wish people could be a little nicer to each other in comment threads, but that comes with the anonymity of the medium.
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Comments
I think you're doing a fantastic job. I'm in the process of buying a house in Bklyn, and I've found Brownstoner an enormous help in getting to know my new hood--and hoods I had never heard of before. It's become an addiction, and my partner is getting concerned. I think it is crucial to hold cheesy developers' feet to the fire (if only you could throw them all the way into it)--keep after the craptastic shit sandwiches, please. The reno blogs are inspiring (if sometimes terrifying--love ya, Bed-Stuy kids!), and generally the civic spirit and geniality among your readers/posters is impressive--even the snarkiness speaks to the passion people have for this place. Brownstoner is edited with open-mindedness, attitude, and a good sense of journalistic integrity; this is what community newspapers used to do, or try to do, anyway. I also like the photography. Sheesh, what don't I like? When you take the day off, that's what. It would be nice if the forums/bulletin boards could be better organized and better searchable for resources (great plumbers, electricians, iron guys); I'm surprised, for example, that I can't more easily find discussion about what it's like to convert a gas/coal fireplace to wood (haven't lots of people tried this, some successfully, some disastrously?) Am I doing something wrong? Anyway, thanks, and rock on.
Posted by: Bob999 at December 27, 2006 10:15 AM
I'll jump in and start with a thanks for two years of fun. I always enjoy the blog even when the trolls attack and slime the place up. My favorite entries are the featured houses, I liked the neighborhood explorations that give context to the properties. The least useful to me are the NY Times excerpts as I read them in their original, but the Post and News, etc are always interesting.
Great job.
Posted by: Anonymous at December 27, 2006 10:16 AM
I'm an addict too! I'm ashamed to let my husband see that I'm on the site, whenever I'm checking out the latest featured houses. It's a great site, unique, and I bet many copycat sites like this will pop up all around the country eventually (you shoulda done like Craigslist did spreading it all over the country after it started in San Fran; but maybe franchise it so you don't have to oversee other location's sites). Bob999's suggestions are good, I'd agree with them. Also I would suggest to keep up with the new "featured apartment/condo" you started fairly recently because even though the original intent of the site is to be all about brownstones, many co-ops and condos ARE inside old brownstones and mansions. Plus when analyzing the brownstone market, you gotta include the luxury condo market because just as those condo's realtors say in the listings, they are "brownstone alternatives" for big spending buyers. Maybe that falls under an idea like "Featured Brownstone Alternatives" where you list condos, and houses in other areas like Staten Island or that historic section of the Bronx with all the old mansions. Just for fun and for context. As for reno videos, maybe once a month link to a video on Youtube of a "house and garden tour" of a recently finished brownstone, limestone or Victorian someone offers to show off.
Posted by: Anonymous at December 27, 2006 10:30 AM
Oh and 10:23's suggestions is really good too.
Posted by: Anonymous at December 27, 2006 10:33 AM
"...we feel duty-bound to continue to hold bad developers' feet to the fire"
Besides being a wonderful architectural/brownstone-centric resource and forum, THE MOST IMPORTANT WORK you have done is repeated in your statement above.
Building in Brooklyn WILL ALWAYS BE HERE: whether it be historic architectural reno's to Brownstone Bklyn, clean-up and refurbs in emerging nabes, responsible new construction/development in "up-in-coming" and existing tony nabes AND the unfortunate ever-present dirt-bag development projects looking for the quick "in-and-out" with cash in hand...no matter the illegal activity, dangerous work sites (another worker dead in the Bronx yesterday!) and the eventual destruction to the nabe!
So, the good, the bad and the ugly should ALL still be reported-on and commented-to on this great blog.
Keep up the great work in 2007.
I, my wife and our community are indebted to this blog as a solid resource...and a damn good read!
Posted by: lostinbrooklyn at December 27, 2006 10:34 AM
You know what I'd like to see more of (in Bklyn, and celebrated on the blog)? Attractive, functional, context-sensitive architecture for regular people, not just the rich. (It's rare, I know.) A concerted effort to hunt down and praise those special developers that manage to do this--that would be a good thing.
Posted by: bob999 at December 27, 2006 10:48 AM
It's true it's necessary to hold bad developer's feet to the fire in Brooklyn. Because Brooklyn is still (relative to Manhattan) inexpensive for bad developers to make a fast buck on selling units in cheap, badly made buildings, Brooklyn needs watchdogs. Or else these bad developments will be eyesores that hurt the market and blight the blocks they're located on. G-d knows the DOB isn't doing anything about bad or illegal construction.
Posted by: Anonymous at December 27, 2006 10:48 AM
Bob999: Great comments. Regarding resources, I generally find what I want by searching on the categories in the forum on the left--you have to scroll down...
Posted by: Anonymous at December 27, 2006 10:49 AM
bob999: ..."Attractive, functional, context-sensitive architecture for regular people"
Agreed, but good luck:) If you find any, please let us all know. In all seriousness, I'd like to have some positive examples. We have a few of upper income/luxury developments with decent developers and their architects, contractors, etc. But none are affordable in the "middle to low" income bracket. :(
Posted by: lostinbrooklyn at December 27, 2006 10:53 AM
I love your site. It has given us the courage to renovate our home which we have owned for many years, and which is comfortable but needs work. The many contributors to your site give us the enthusiasm and couirage to go on. Please keep after bad developers. Someone was killed at a site being demo'ed in Harlem yesterday.
And finally, one request. You seem to keep a rolling 2 year archive of the forum -could you keep the even older archives around on the site somewhere where they can be searched - some info and recommendations don't get stale and would be good to be able to find them.
Happy New Year, Mr. B.
Posted by: Anonymous at December 27, 2006 10:59 AM
I love your site. It has given us the courage to renovate our home which we have owned for many years, and which is comfortable but needs work. The many contributors to your site give us the enthusiasm and couirage to go on. Please keep after bad developers. Someone was killed at a site being demo'ed in Harlem yesterday.
And finally, one request. You seem to keep a rolling 2 year archive of the forum -could you keep the even older archives around on the site somewhere where they can be searched - some info and recommendations don't get stale and would be good to be able to find them.
Happy New Year, Mr. B.
Posted by: Anonymous at December 27, 2006 10:59 AM
I found your site when I moved to Cobble Hill over a year ago, and have loved it since. I can only imagine how much time you put into it.
Here are a few suggestions for improvements:
1. Include tags with each post, and then links to search on those tags. Thus, when visiting the site, readers could click on the "Park Slope" or "Williamsburgh" or "Renovation" links and see just the posts that have been tagged as such.
2. The above feature would help readers get "neighborhood feels" better. Another way to do this might be to, once in a while, devote a week to a specific neighborhood.
3. Any extra info about school districts is helpful. I know that in a couple years, when I move (within Brooklyn) again, that'll be as big a concern as the quality of construction...
Thanks for a great site!
Posted by: Frequent Reader at December 27, 2006 11:08 AM
I love your site as well and thank you for it. I too would welcome you posting examples of what you consider 'good development'. Your editorials lose some credibility as it seems like you hate virtually everything.
Posted by: David at December 27, 2006 11:10 AM
I'll just repeat what everyone has said above: love the site and read it daily. One feature I hope you continue (and maybe expand) would be your trips to nabes outside the BH/BoCoCa/Slope/Clinton Hill/Fort Greene area. For someone who doesn't time to explore, it's great to get a feel for all the great buildings that I've yet to see firsthand. Again, great job and keep up the good work in the new year!
Posted by: Anonymous at December 27, 2006 11:24 AM
Add a garden design section
Posted by: Anonymous at December 27, 2006 11:27 AM
I think the site is fantastic. My husband thinks I'm obsessed! We have been in the process of looking for a house in a specific neighborhood over the past year and this site has been extremely helpful to us in our search. I think this site is a great resource!
Thanks and have a wonderful New Year!
Posted by: KAE at December 27, 2006 11:39 AM
I've been hooked since I discovered the site over a year ago. I've learned a great deal about neighborhoods, building codes,attitudes about gentrification, and especially about preservation and development in all parts of Brooklyn. The latter may not have been my initial interest, but as things develop here in Brooklyn at the rapid pace that this last year has seen, it's very important to have one source that keeps up with it all, either through Mr. B's reporting, or the information given by posters. We all, owners and renters alike, have a huge stake in knowing what is happening around us.
As to improvements - I would like to see more articles about neighborhoods, especially those outside of the usual haunts, as well as the interesting posts that would pop up occasionally asking or giving information on buildings of historic or architectural interest.
I don't want the site to be like Apartment Therapy, but occasional articles on interior design are good, especially as relates to combining old house charm and detail with 21st century needs and equipment. I especially like DIY suggestions, as we all can't afford to just hire people to do everything, nor do we all want to. I especially enjoy comments from people like Yente, who have great hands-on and creative suggestions on a multitude of topics, because of their own renovations/restorations.
In that vein, it would be great to be able to post pictures, if only in the forum section. I love seeing other people's homes and projects.
Lastly, at some points this last year, you had a weekly post with interesting stores and businesses listed. Please bring that back. I think you must have run out of stores, or no one was contributing, but perhaps if it was expanded to businesses other than retail stores or restaurants? I think that would be a great resource for all of Brooklyn.
All in all, I enjoy the site very much, trolls not withstanding. I had no problem with registration, but I understand why that didn't work too well. I guess if someone takes the time to constantly hijack one's identity, it means I'm doing something right by pissing them off. Good. Best of everything to you Mr. B, and everyone else here, in the new year.
Posted by: CrownHeightsProud at December 27, 2006 12:04 PM
This site was a huge help in my recent purchase of a brownstone in Boerum Hill, and I'm still reading it daily. In particular, I don't know what I would have done without the recommendations in the forum.
One thing that might be cool, if a bit time intensive, would be a page for each property on the market with space for specific comments and feedback for each one (I was addicted when the my house was up for discussion a few times). Maybe keep track of price adjustments, time on market, and final prices once it's sold. Could gain a lot of good data about what's actually happening in the market in a few months' time.
Posted by: Anonymous at December 27, 2006 12:08 PM
Great site, one of my absolute favorites.
How to make it better?
-- Labels/tags on each post so people can explore the site by category.
-- Move the blog-like "forum" to the proper message board software you use for the Brooklian boards. Currently the same questions get asked too often on the Forum because old questions and helpful answers scroll away and are not very explorable.
-- Create some sort of directory of Brooklyn tradespeople where people can rate their work (a la Servicemagic or Angie's List).
Keep up the great work!
Posted by: Peter at December 27, 2006 12:19 PM
Hi Brownstoner -
I have been reading your blog for a while now and it has been helpful in learning about what is happening in the area and how the market is shaping up (or down). I think a new, interesting angle would be to interview and photograph the people who eventually move into the apartments, brownstones, and townhouses that you profile and produce a photo tour of the space. There are always comments, both positive and negative, about the properties' potential so I think it would be of value to see how the owners create within the space. It might help readers to gain a better vision of what "could be" in a seemingly uninspiring or throw-away property, or vice versa depending on their view.
Posted by: RiCH at December 27, 2006 12:31 PM
I think there are many readers more interested in real estate who don't understand the passion that some of us have for antiques, and that's OK. But for me, the center is the house as a labor of love. An antique is sometimes defined as anything older than 100 years, as are most of our houses. The doorknob to the bedroom has survived one hundred and five years and we still turn it every night. The patina on the woodwork, the glow of the yellow pine floor, etc. Some people are obsessed with old wooden sailboats, or classic sports cars. We love our old houses, especially when our own blood, sweat and tears become part of the patina for the next hundred years.
Posted by: Hal at December 27, 2006 12:35 PM
Good point that anonymity encourages rudeness. One suggestion: add a reminder to the "post a comment" box viz: "Please be polite, especially when disagreeing" I think you may be surprised how such a simple and obvious reminder might go a long way toward encouraging civility.
Posted by: Anonymous at December 27, 2006 12:40 PM
I love the site and think that you do a great job. I agree with 12:40's suggestion, the level of rudeness and lack of respect for others' opinions on some (and just some!) of the posters on the site is rather out of control, and takes away from the ability to have interesting discussions.
Posted by: Anonymous at December 27, 2006 12:44 PM
would love to see follow-up blurbs on what houses actually sell for vs their asking price
Posted by: Anonymous at December 27, 2006 1:10 PM
I agree, Hal. I think my favorite post ever on Brownstoner was the one that had all of the pictures of a house on Hancock St in Bed Stuy. They were sent in by reader who had fallen in love with the house, but did not buy it. The house was chock full of built-ins, woodwork and period detail, and otherwise empty. What a canvas of the old to preserve and cherish, and the opportunity to bring back a gem of a house, with needed repair and upgrades then add one's own personality and personal possessions. To me, that's what brownstone living is, and I enjoy seeing those types of entries whenever they appear on this site.
Posted by: CrownHeightsProud at December 27, 2006 1:16 PM
Something else for the suggestion box: make it impossible for more than one person to use the same handle. Many forums have this feature. CrownHeightsProud is being plagued as we speak by somebody posting under his/her name. This might also tamp down troll behavior, maybe?
Posted by: bob999 at December 27, 2006 1:18 PM
It's a wonderful site. I read it every day and I haven't even lived in Brooklyn for several years.
Posted by: John Podhoretz at December 27, 2006 1:29 PM
The imposter stuff (esp. w/ CrownHeightsProud) is EXTREMELY tiresome and chock full of negative and racist vibes, and I don't think that simply expecting everyone to ignore the problem is the right solution.
This constant unwarranted blather is making me weary, and I am rapidly losing interest in future interaction with the brownstoner site if not corrected soon.
Please, is there not an effective way to eliminate this troll problem? Can he/she not be publicly humiliated to end further bogus posts?
And yes, it is always easy to spot the bogus posts within a NY second, and not terribly difficult to pity the cretin that does this, but that doesn't excuse the bad behaviour, IMO.
Anyway, thanks for a great site.
Jimmy
Posted by: Anonymous at December 27, 2006 1:33 PM
Brownstner, a huge thanks to you for all the effort you put into this site. I'm utterly addicted to it and think you do a great job. Suggestions: 1 - what about a meetup for all the Brownstoner fans? A 2nd anniversary party, perhaps? 2 - Along the same lines as RiCH's post above...I love the NYTimes RE audio/photo slideshows...if you wanted to offer content like that, I'd love to work on it. Reply back if you want to discuss.
Posted by: brenda m at December 27, 2006 2:14 PM
I've said it before, and I'll say it again: As a real estate agent, this site has been and invaluable resource. I haven't missed a day in the last two years. I can't tell you how many times a customer has asked me a question about something I've just read about here. The comments are fun too (although we agents can really take it on the chin sometimes...which is okay).
Is there any way to set up a real estate agent forum? A place where agents could anonymously express their thoughts on the market? It's tough for us to speak freely; our intentions can easily be misconstrued. Maybe a monthly market report from agents invited by Mr. B to contribute. That might be fun, I think. It would no doubt inspire lots of debate.
All-in-all a great site. Keep it coming.
Thanks, Mr. B.
Nick Ferrone
Posted by: nick at December 27, 2006 3:04 PM
Cheers Mr. B. Keep up the good work!
One thing I long for is a real holding of feet to the fire... how can you really turn up the heat?
I would love to see interviews with "good" architects and developers and get their insights on how to influence development in Brooklyn.
Insights from HDC, Landmarks, and other preservation groups. Insights from other cities that have dealt with growth in a positive fashion.
And I think there needs to be action items, not just complaints. There needs to be that list of 10 things everyone can do today to make sure bad things don't happen to our neighborhoods... like at the end of Inconvenient Truth. Certainly if there are 10 things everyone can do today to help Global Warming, there are 10 things to do to stop bad development.
In other words, I'd love to see you use the power of this forum you've created to help push and prod the powers at be even more.
Thanks and Happy New Year.
Seamus
Posted by: SeamusMacD at December 27, 2006 3:46 PM
I love your site and I think you're doing a fabulous job. I've turned several friends onto Brownstoner.com and they've since become regular readers. Well done!
Posted by: Brownnoser at December 27, 2006 3:47 PM
As a NON real-estate broker, I would LOVE to read discussions about the market between such professionals. Nobody knows real-estate better than, you guessed it, realtors. I would especially love to see a debate (heck, maybe I'll start one now) on the bizarre, selfish, disservice-to-your-client practice of refusing to co-broke. Sooooo annoying to have a seller refuse to work with your buyer-broker. Bad mojo.
Posted by: anon at December 27, 2006 4:19 PM
I think it would nice if we went back to TypeKey registration. Then maybe Bob Marvin and I wouldn't be the only people who use their actual name. :)
If people had to use their name or the same handle each time they post, they would build up an identity through their posting history that would give the blog more of a community feel. It would eliminate people troll-ing with other users names, and each new comment could be put into context by that posters' previous perspectives.
Great job overall though, I hope all of your plans and goals for 2007 come to fruition Mr. B.
Posted by: Shahn Andersen at December 27, 2006 7:46 PM
Agree with many of the other good suggestions made so far but I just wanted to add another kudos to the list. The posters here are usually chock full of nastiness for other posters as well as Mr. B himself so its nice to see everyone being generous with their praise.
Signed,
another addict ;)
Posted by: Anonymous at December 27, 2006 8:09 PM
it looks like the trolls took time off for the holidays. how nice! i agree with the idea of including a little reminder about being polite so that everyone has to read it before they post, maybe even put a little picture of an eye and a "this site is checked frequently for trolling and any inappropriate comments will be deleted by mr b himself..." or something similar. i dunno. i read a study that said that that kind of thing works more often than you would think.
but other than that, good work! thanks for all your hard work, and happy hannukwanzmas!
Posted by: sylvia at December 27, 2006 9:01 PM
I think it would be nice for brownstoner to do some sort of actual reporting on some of the insane things that some of the people posting on this site make about listings. I don't think it's okay for anonymous, uninformed people on this site just spreading lies about properties. It's one thing to make an allegation, but it shouldn't be published unless it is accurate. And if it is proved inaccurate then it should be taken off the site. Otherwise this site is doing just as much harm as it is good, if not more. Part of the problem is that much of what is written is about money and value. And nobody knows more about what a property ought to be worth than a real estate agent. And so while it seems like a fine sport to just trash a property that doesn't mean that it's not actually worth its price. It could be that you are an uninformed person who thinks you know more than you do. I know I sound incredibly grumpy. But the better route would be for brownstoner to provide more information about what things actually sell for that he's talked about. I can't tell you how many listings I've seen trashed on this site go for quite a lot more money than was originally asked (yes, even in this market.)
Posted by: Anonymous at December 27, 2006 9:19 PM
I don't think TypeKey registration should be mandatory--when it was bit really cut down on comments.However, if it was available (which hasn't been the case for many weeks) it would let people like me or Shahn Andersen, who use our actual names do so without fear that our identity will be spoofed. I imagine tyhat would also work for vpeople like CHP whom post under a consistant handle.FWIW I wish everyone would post under some identity, not necessarily their actual name, but the plethora of anonymous posts is pretty confusing.
Posted by: Bob Marvin at December 27, 2006 11:53 PM
I think your site is too concern only about the property values of the upper middle class gentry and the rich!!!
Posted by: Anonymous at December 28, 2006 2:19 AM
I've posted on and off for quite some time and have never had any problem with people posting under my name. I didn't realize it was such a problem. How often does it happen?
Brownstoner, you're doing a great job. Best wishes to you and your readers in the new year!
Posted by: Katie at December 28, 2006 8:37 AM
I've also never found this to be a problem. So far as I can tell it only affects one or two people. The vast majority of posters never have a problem. IMHO discussion of the troll is far more distracting than the troll itself...but I guess I just committed the very offense I'm complaining about. Sorry!
Mr. B I enjoy your site very much. It was invaluable to my wife and I when we were searching for a place this past year. Many thanks.
Posted by: Carlo at December 28, 2006 8:41 AM
Love the site and read it every day. I'm a "This Old House Guy", always working on old Brownstones. I've met and worked with many people through your site. It's kept me very busy and it's been lots of fun too! Thanks!!
Posted by: Rick at December 28, 2006 10:20 AM
B - Great job, great two years. I've spent most of that time looking/saving for my first place, and been on your site every day. The troll thing is annoying, but inevitable - I think stopping the mandatory Typekey thing was smart. You don't keep trolls out, you drown them out with comments from people who aren't trolls.
As for architectural reviews, I'd say let's keep it amateur, and hope to attract some professionals to the commenting mix in that area. Maybe a dedicated article per week, or something like that. Architecture is a multi-faceted discipline, and at least two of those facets (appearance, functionality) are accessible to the general public - so let's talk about them that way. If anything, I'd prefer to see more posts that speak to specific details (color, shape, features, room layouts, window placement, etc.) rather than conceptual details (non-contextual is one that has become increasingly meaningless).
Posted by: anon at December 28, 2006 10:32 AM
I agree with 10:32am. Though I'd be interested in hearing the opinions of professional architects, in the end when we're discussing the appeal of a property and whether its units will sell well, and if the building's neighbors will enjoy walking past it and looking at it out their window day after day on their block - those opinions come from ordinary folk, the laypeople.
Plus Philip Johnson started as simply an architecture fan before he became a working architect, right?
Posted by: Anonymous at December 28, 2006 12:05 PM
Congratulations on two great years.
As a suggestion, there are so many fine old buildings that are for all intents and purposes abandoned. They are in landmarked and not landmarked areas, in every neighborhood. In each case they are a problem and a concern for the neighbors. A weekly post on a prominent example would be interesting and might cast light on a path to rescuing it.
Posted by: Gary at December 28, 2006 12:14 PM
Great idea, 12:14. It's absurd to see abandoned, boarded-up brownstones and buildings. There are several like that in prime Park Slope. Maybe on this site we can "shame" the city into doing something about these buildings. Owners should not legally be allowed to simply abandon a building. The city should seize it, PERIOD. It's a fire hazard, it creates more vermin for surrounding buildings, and drives the value of the neighborhing houses down. If the city can seize perfectly fine buildings to build AY, the city can certainly seize an abandoned decaying dangerous building and pay the owner fair market price for the land on it. And if there's a dispute over who owns the building, like a will being contested, etc, then put the funds in escrow for whenever the heirs work it out. But why let their squabbling affect their neighbors adversely like that? Ridiculous.
Posted by: Anonymous at December 28, 2006 12:39 PM
I've been a regular reader of this site for the past two years and I think that it's incredible! My wife calls me a Brownstoner junkie!!
Brownstoner, thank you for providing Brooklyn with such a wonderful website. I firmly believe that in 10 years people will look back at the magnificent growth and development of Brooklyn and attribute many of the positives to this site and your hard work. You've introduced Brooklyn to a slew of people who knew nothing about this great borough, its wonderful neighborhoods and its residents. Brooklyn is very hot and Brownstoner.com has had a huge impact on the favorable perception of the borough inside and outside of NYC.
With respect to suggestions, I have a few.
1. I think it would be beneficial if you could cultivate a better relationship with the brokerage community so that perhaps they would be willing to provide Brownstoner.com with more real time information with respect to contract signings, price and actual closing dates. Though the daily papers (e.g., NYT, NY Daily and Post, etc.) do provide information on sales this data is very stale and other sources such as ACRIS and Property Shark sometimes takes months to get this information online. I think that it would be mutually beneficial if real estate firms provided you with this information on a real time basis.
2. I think that you should provide annual rankings and awards for the best and worst architects, developers, general contractors, local politicians, brokerage firms, agents, new buildings, restored buildings, etc. This would provide individuals or firms with a clear incentive to either get on one list or stay off the other. You can either make the picks or leave to the public via online balloting.
3. I would like an architect/contractor referral and ranking system on Brownstoner similar to the Franklin Report which focuses primarily on Manhattan. The Brownstoner Forum is helpful but you sometimes have to sift through too many posts to pull out a single recommendation. With the “Brownstoner Report” contractors, trades people and craftsmen would be included in various categories of expertise (e.g., masonry, millwork, plaster, iron work, etc.) and ranked according to submitted scores from the Brownstoner readership. The overall score would be comprised of scores from various categories (e.g., work quality, cost evaluation, value and client recs, etc.). You should also provide the ability for posters to include comments. You could provide this valuable service to the Brownstoner readership in various ways: (a) free and you simply pick a long list of local contractors for review (providing name, address and phone number) and we’ll do the rest; (b) charge contractors to include their company description/bio and contact info on this select and exclusive list; or (c) charge readers a small monthly fee ($2 per month) to access this premium service on the website.
You could also have a header at the top of each section "Brownstoner Platinum _______" highlighting the top 3 or 5 contractors for a particular category and/or “Brownstoner Value Pick” which would highlight the best contractors in terms of quality and price.
4. Another idea for the Forum would be to include “Brownstoner Handy Men” and break it down by various neighborhoods.
I think that #3 and #4 would drastically reduce the number of repeat inquiries on the Forum.
Overall, great job Mr. B. Keep up the good work. All the best to everyone for 2007!!!
Posted by: BrownBomber at December 28, 2006 1:00 PM
12:14, love the idea, and 12:39, point well taken about the hypocrisy of selective property seizure by the government.
Posted by: Anonymous at December 28, 2006 1:04 PM
Again, great site (I posted above). Another thought came to mind.
There's a lot of negative comments on posts because people are anonymous.
Maybe move to a proper registration system and help people develop identities. Usernames, photos, home ownership status, etc. It would go a long way toward people developing deeper affinity toward the site.
yes, it would cut down on the number of comments but I also think it would improve the signal to noise ratio.
I understand this would take some solid technical chops -- I don't know if you happen to have those skills or not.
Posted by: Peter at December 28, 2006 2:05 PM
And yet another idea -- take a long hard look at apartmenttherapy.com.
They do a GREAT job at coming up with themes, polls, photo contests, and all sorts of ways for people to participate in the site. As an Added bonus it creates compelling content that the writer doesn't really have to write AND it brings people back again and again to see results, etc.
Posted by: Peter at December 28, 2006 2:11 PM
Holy crap. Mr. B I hope you NEVER, EVER reinstitute registration, let alone collect information about home ownership status, photographs, etc.! I have enough 'big brother' in my life, thank you very much. This just sounds like a good way to drain the life from this blog.
Everything's working just fine...don't 'fix' it.
Posted by: Anonymous at December 28, 2006 3:16 PM
No, no, no to requiring photos and showing one's true identity. Not unless you want to invite creeps into this website's users' lives.
Posted by: Anonymous at December 28, 2006 6:10 PM
I think someone's suggestion to put a reminder directly over the "Comments" text box on "Post a Comment" telling people to be civil to one another, is a great idea. Sounds almost too simple, but I think it would help, truly.
Posted by: Anonymous at December 28, 2006 6:11 PM
Kick-ass site. More and more impressed with how you pull it off with a full-time gig.
SUGGESTION: A DATABASE OF RECENT (2001 to date) BROOKLYN BROWNSTONE COMPS broken down by year built, width, lot depth, stories, type (i.e. Italianate), date sold, sale price, etc., all push-pinned on a map like MS Local Live. Different versions of the map could be queried by playing with the various characteristics listed above (i.e. Brownstones sold in 2005). Each brownstone would have a comment section to work out any objections to or unknowns in the data. In fact, the bloggership could help you build it if you provide some type of interface for data entry.
If confidentiality (street address) becomes an issue (already not so on this site), brownstones could be lumped into street-blocks (i.e., St. James betw. Gates & Green).
Maybe sites like PShark already have this covered, but for a fee and not specialized for historic brownstones.
Posted by: Anonymous at December 29, 2006 2:23 PM
Call it "Clinton Hiller" instead of "Brownstoner" since clearly that's the focus.
Posted by: Anonymous at December 29, 2006 2:48 PM
Clinton Hiller sounds good to me since that is where we live! Love the site, the comments, everything. Husband is even getting into it. Happy New Year to you and your family and thanks for all the info you've given me in the past two years!
Posted by: anon at December 29, 2006 7:51 PM
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