« Tuesday Links Touring Brooklyn on the Cheap »

October 21, 2008

For Dowtown Brooklyn to Thrive, Bring 370 Jay to Life

370-jay-1008.jpg
If downtown Brooklyn is to be home to the creative class, one thing has got to stop standing in the way: 370 Jay Street. That's the word from Brooklyn Borough Hall and the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership, which are both trying to lure businesses and re-brand the area as a "college town" (Urban Outfitters and Trader Joe's are a start, says Gothamist). But in the middle of this renaissance (no matter how nascent) sits the decrepit, largely abandoned 14-story MTA building, which Markowitz called a "blight on the face of downtown Brooklyn" in a Daily News article. How about office space for small business, some folks ask. One MTA vision for 370 Jay is to invest $150 million in renovations and house scattered MTA workers, though the Brooklyn Paper reports it's only worth $100 million. The subway station below it is also a mess; the MTA says the $106 million to fix it will be in the next capital improvement plan.
Brooklynites Plead with MTA to Fix Building, Stop [NY Daily News]
Downtown to MTA: Sell 370 Jay St [Brooklyn Paper]




Posted by lisa at 9:02 AM | Comments (14)
Categories: Downtown Brooklyn

Trackback Pings

TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.brownstoner.com/mte/mt-tb.cgi/6795

Comments

Joe & Marty are so right. Buildng should be small tenant office building with service retail at base. Part of structure is 80' wide, so lends itself to small spaces.
A column forest as they say, it is not suitable for large modern tenants. Classic modernist building designed and built by NYState I believe.

Posted by: chrishavens at October 21, 2008 9:16 AM

Heehee, the Brooklyn Paper reporter called the subway station here 'rancid'.

Typical MTA economics - spend $150 mil renovating a building worth $100 mil. This place is a blight, an eyesore, a carbuncle and everything else derogatory you can come up with. I cringe every time I have to catch a train at this station.

Posted by: zeebee_in_bklyn at October 21, 2008 9:47 AM

The building should be demolished and replaced with something more modern, functional, and aesthetically pleasing.

It is not worth renovating. I really, REALLY hope they don't put some horrid glass curtain on the thing.

Posted by: Polemicist at October 21, 2008 10:22 AM

This building could also house a middle school, and then we can evaluate "Dock Street DUMBO" on its own (lack of) merits.

I'm confused about references to a future renovation. There have been contractors all over this station for months. Isn't that the planned overhaul that is going to include a connection to the Lawrence Street R train station?

Posted by: altervoce at October 21, 2008 10:23 AM

While we're at it, Marty Markowitz should also be demolished and replaced with something more modern, functional, and aesthetically pleasing.

Posted by: SnarkSlope at October 21, 2008 10:29 AM

Hear hear, Snarkslope.

Brownstoner, can Snarkslope's comment be the "Quote of the Day"?

Posted by: traditionalmod at October 21, 2008 10:37 AM

btw, Polemicist, there are some people (not necessarily me) who believe that 370 Jay is an excellent example of early Modern architecture.

Posted by: altervoce at October 21, 2008 10:50 AM

The MTA has to keep this building empty so that they can sell it to Bruce Ratner for 50% of its worth once he's ready to buy it.

Posted by: werner at October 21, 2008 11:28 AM

There are those who believe this is a very important work of American Modernism. I am not one of them. I believe it is a poster child for how the MTA treats everything it owns. Both the building and the station it sits on are indictments agaisnt our dysfunctional Transit Authority.
Where does the money go?
How can these people steal so much and not get caught?

Posted by: sam at October 21, 2008 12:01 PM


"home to the creative class"

Huh? To whom are you referring?

Posted by: East New York at October 21, 2008 12:30 PM

From The Brooklyn Heights Association and the Municipal Arts Society's joint list of 28 of the most important buildings to preserve in downtown Brooklyn:
"370 Jay Street, designed by
William Haugaard and Andrew Thomas, 1950

Just after World War II the city commissioned this limestone structure articulated by a simple pattern of window openings. This is one of New York’s earliest examples of a Modern style office building."

Properly preserved (this means, most importantly, NOT replacing the windows) this building could be a modern beacon in downtown, part of the richly diverse collection of buildings in the area. If cleaned up and rehabilitated it would shine.

Posted by: mhamilton at October 21, 2008 1:27 PM

William Haugard?
Andrew Thomas?

Not exactly Mies, Aalto, or Breuer.
This building is mildly interesting. But no one will miss it
twenty minutes after it is demolished.

Posted by: sam at October 21, 2008 1:53 PM

I was under the impression that work was underway to rehab this station. You can see where they have already done some wall tiling, have removed a layer of the platform floor and I think there are new lights also. Hasn't been much progress for the last several weeks though.

Posted by: zgori at October 21, 2008 2:17 PM

It is an architecturally interesting building for the time it was constructed. It could look great as is. We really do need some more schools in the area. Our schools are so overcrowded. How about housing a few schools within it's walls... an elementary and middle school combined. With all the high rises going up nearby, our public schools are going to experience a tremendous influx of students in the next 5 to 10 years. How about looking ahead for a change.

Posted by: BrooklynSteve at October 22, 2008 10:26 AM

Post a comment

Please be patient while your comment is published. It may take a moment.

Latest Restaurant Additions