Boerum Hill
November 2, 2009
First Resale at 14 Townhouses
It had to happen sometime! The 14 Townhouses on State Street received a lot of attention, most of it positive, when they hit the market back in 2005. It took a little while (and some time off the market) to get the job done, but ultimately all of them sold for prices of between $2 and $3 million. More than four years after, we've arrrived at a milestone in the project's history: The first resale. The house in question is 267 State Street, the one on the corner of Smith Street. It's got more than 4,000 square feet of space and doesn't look any worse for the wear. The asking price? $3,600,000. We shall see.
267 State Street [Corcoran] GMAP
14 Townhouses, After Slow '06, Go Gangbusters [Brownstoner]
14 Townhouses Update: Slow Going, At Best [Brownstoner]
October 22, 2009
Carroll Gardens Rezoning Close, Boerum Hill Wants In
Boerum Hill wants what Carroll Gardens is about to get. The Brooklyn Paper reports that Carroll Gardens is reaching the end of a long rezoning road, as the City Council is expected to approve the downzoning of the brownstone neighborhood when it meets on Monday. Meanwhile, The Paper's sister pub Courier Life says that residents in neighboring Boerum Hill want a piece of the rezoning action: “We feel that it is imperative to rezone the 19 “orphaned” blocks of Boerum Hill from R6 to R6B in order to preserve and enforce contextual development throughout our entire neighborhood,” Boerum Hill Association President Howard Kolins wrote to CB 2 District Manger Rob Perris. The rezoning would place height limits on the area regardless of how much FAR a developer accumulates.
Boerum Hill Looks to Rezone the Nabe [Courier]
Carroll Gardens Downzone on a Roll [Brooklyn Paper]
October 15, 2009
House of the Day: 295 Pacific Street Revisited
295 Pacific Street was on the market for a month last January, during which time it was featured as a House of the Day. Despite the Boerum Hill location, the 14-foot-wide house did not find a receptive audience for its $1,899,000 asking price and the listing was pulled. It just re-emerged this week with a new, more market-friendly price tag of $1,595,000. Think it'll fly?
295 Pacific Street [Douglas Elliman] GMAP P*Shark
House of the Day: 295 Pacific Street [Brownstoner]
October 8, 2009
Corn Porn in BoCoCa
You know those new corner sidewalk extensions that DOT's been creating in recent months? Their utilitarian raison d'etre's pretty clear but the vast expanses of concrete aren't much to look at so a local artist has an idea to pretty them up. One word: corn. Yes, corn. According to the brand-spankin'-new Boerum Hill Blog, Christina Kelly has floated a plan to the city to plant native corn on five street corners throughout Boerum Hill. The first spot she wants to do it is at the northwest corner of Bergen and Smith Streets. Fun idea, but we'll be a-maized if she can pull it off.
Native Corn May Grace Smith St. [Boerum Hill Blog]
October 6, 2009
Brooklyn Friends Relocation Gains Support
As we first reported in September, Brooklyn Friends School, a pre-K through 12 private school based on Quaker principles, has been looking to relocate and one site on their list is the corner of State and Hoyt, currently owned by the IBEC Building Corporation. IBEC had originally bought the site promising to build townhouses, back in 2004, and some residents, calling themselves Keep State Street Residential, have opposed Brooklyn Friends' possible schoolhouse (which would be five stories and 55,000 square feet), arguing that it could lower property values and increase traffic to their carefully planned neighborhood. Now, the Brooklyn Eagle reports, hundreds of residents and businesses have signed a petition to support the school, arguing that a well-regarded private school would only attract families, increase property values, and benefit overall quality of life. Brooklyn Friends has said that they are considering multiple sites, and for the school to take the State/Hoyt site, IBEC would have to nullify the contract it signed with the city in 2004 to build 29 residential townhouses.
Friends' Expansion Making Enemies on State? [Brownstoner]
Brooklyn Friends on State Street? [Brooklyn Eagle]
October 5, 2009
Closings at Green on Dean
Things have gone remarkably well for Green on Dean, the 6-unit condo project at 357 Dean Street on the edge of Boerum Hill. The first four closings that happened in September just hit public records, and as far as we can tell from the confusing data on StreetEasy, one other unit is in contract. Given the market over the past year, an .833 batting average ain't bad.
Price Cuts at 357 Dean Street [Brownstoner] GMAP
357 Dean Street Hits the Market [Brownstoner]
Development Watch: 357 Dean Street [Brownstoner]
House of the Day: 357 Dean Street [Brownstoner]
Optimism on State Street
New York Magazine has a feature in its real estate section this week called "Hey, This Might Work," in which the mag asks six optimistic developers for their strategies for coping in this market. One of the six properties featured: The planned six-townhouse development at 345 State Street. Says developer Hesky Brahimy, "We're not worried. It's six, not 600." As far as we're aware, no one's given him a deposit yet for any of the new homes, which are priced at over $3.5 million a pop.
Hey, This Might Work [New York Mag] GMAP
Six More New Brownstones for State Street? [Brownstoner]
Boerum Hill: In a Nutshell
The New York Times profiled Boerum Hill this weekend (timed, perhaps, to coincide with yesterday's Atlantic Antic), focusing on the neighborhood's boutiques and its transformation from shady ("rooming houses, drugs, and prostitution" in the 1970s and '80s) to chic. On the real estate front, prices in the neighborhood are dropping as they are everywhere else, but still, nothing's cheap in Boerum Hill: townhouses selling for over $1.5 million, condos and co-ops between $600,000 and $1 million, and rentals starting at $1,300 for a studio. New construction in the area includes Green on Dean and the Nu Hotel on Smith, as well as several planned or unfinished projects on the periphery of the area. Beyond the housing market and the area's commercial offerings, the profile gives a nod to yesterday's Atlantic Antic and it profiles Boerum Hill's schools with their test scores of varying levels. Did the writer miss anything?
Subway Lines Galore, But Who's Leaving? [NY Times]
Atlantic Antic photo by Jim in Times Square
September 29, 2009
312 Dean's Cleanup Almost Done
After taking a break last month, workers resumed powerwashing the paint off 312 Dean, and most of the building's original facade was visible as of the middle of last week. Looks pretty spiffy. A reminder of what the old paint job looked like is right here.
Powerwashus Interruptus at 312 Dean Street [Brownstoner]
312 Dean Street Cleaning Up Its Act [Brownstoner] GMAP
September 25, 2009
Listings Up For 93 Nevins Street
Listings have finally appeared for the eco-friendly conversion project at 93 Nevins that was dubbed the "Health House." So what's for sale? Only two three-bedroom homes, both of which top 3,000 square feet and cost a cool $2,595,000 apiece.
93 Nevins Listings [Halstead]
Development Watch: 93 Nevins More Fully Revealed [Brownstoner] GMAP P*Shark
Scaffolding Down, Listings Imminent at 93 Nevins [Brownstoner]
Development Watch: Progress at the Health House [Brownstoner]
Development Watch: 93 Nevins Street [Brownstoner]
OHNY Report: Double Your Eco-Friendly Pleasure [Brownstoner]
September 23, 2009
Advertising Begins for Big Boerum Hill Development
A banner has gone up on the large, under-construction development with frontage on Boerum Place, Atlantic Avenue, and Pacific Street announcing that it will be called 225 Pacific. So far, the condo's website says the following: "225 Pacific is a welcome addition for buyers who are looking for well-proportioned, functional and fashionable one, two and three bedroom homes. Designed to reflect pre-war architecture, it is built to blend the best of the traditional form with the conveniences of contemporary amenities. This elegant five story building will feature available parking spaces, a fitness center, storage and bicycle room, public roof top area, private roof top cabanas and a virtual doorman." Corcoran's going to be handling the sales.
225 Pacific [Official Site] GMAP P*Shark
Development Watch: 238 Atlantic Avenue Gets Glassy [Brownstoner]
Development Watch: 238 Atlantic Avenue [Brownstoner]
Development Watch: 240 Atlantic Avenue Revisited [Brownstoner]
Development Watch: 240 Atlantic Avenue [Brownstoner]
September 21, 2009
Friends' Expansion Making Enemies on State?
As you may recall, IBEC, the developer behind the State Renaissance Court, recently floated the idea of building six multi-million-dollar new townhomes on an empty lot they still own on State Street between Hoyt and Bond; while some people question the viability of the high-end project in this market, the neighbors are generally happy with the use for the space. But the developer also owns a second empty lot on that block, on the corner of Hoyt, and its plans for it aren't sitting as well with some homeowners in the community. According to a letter we received, the developer is apparently close to doing a deal with Brooklyn Friends School, which wants to build a five-story, 55,000-square-foot academic building on the site. In order to do this, however, IBEC needs New York State to void the restrictions it placed on the property when it sold the land to IBEC in 2004. As part of that deal, lots along State Street were to be low-rise residential. Here's how the opposition put it:
A school won’t have the positive impact that housing will on a neighborhood likes ours, rebuilding after years of blight and hemmed in by downtown Brooklyn and Atlantic Avenue to the north and south, and the jail and courts to the west. Unlike a nonprofit private school, residents pay property taxes that support our public schools. Residents patronize local businesses morning and evening, weekdays and weekends, summer and winter. They help keep the street safe at night. Homes make a neighborhood more cohesive and more desirable.
The group thinks that one of the nearby lots on Schermerhorn Street would be more appropriate. Do you agree? The group is reachable at keepstatestreetresidential@gmail.com.
Six More New Brownstones for State Street? [Brownstoner]
September 16, 2009
Brooklyn Food & Drink Round-Up
The Best of Hot Plates Live
We checked out Metromix's premiere Hot Plates Live event at the Bell House on Monday night, sampled beer and cheese, ate lots of great food from new Brooklyn restaurants, and wholeheartedly recommend that you check out the next Hot Plates tasting event. (We'll keep you posted when Metromix plans another.) Our favorite bite of the evening was the Chinese sausage and sticky rice with chili-lime sauce (pictured above) from Umi Nom. We've been long-time fans of this dish at Kuma Inn on the LES, so we're excited that chef King Phojanakong has brought it to Brooklyn. Sui Ren's quail egg wrapped in seaweed and maguro was another favorite. We'll be adding both spots to our restaurant database shortly.
Opening This Week: Mercat Negre
65 Grand St between Kent and Wythe Aves, Williamsburg; no phone yet
"This sister location of the East Village’s Mercat features an open kitchen in which [Barcelona's chef Oriol Sala] Colomer will cook shareable dishes, such as grilled red mullet with eggplant puree and marinated endives," says Time Out New York.
No Reservations: NYC Outer Boroughs
In case you missed Tony Bourdain's recent romp around the boroughs, you can check out all the places he visited on the No Reservations website. We thought it was a pretty solid episode, featuring stops at Tortilleria Mexicana Los Hermanos in Bushwick, East Harbor Seafood Dim-Sum Palace in Sunset Park, and Diner and Marlow & Sons in Williamsburg.
After the jump: Hecho en Dumbo is leaving Dumbo, Chicago dogs, dumplings, Chickadee Chick's menu, Spanish wines, and more...
September 9, 2009
New Retail Tenant at The Smith
File under: The more things change, the more they stay the same. The building that houses The Smith condos and The Nu Hotel finally has landed a retail tenant and it ain't gonna make the anti-jail contingent very happy. As per a few different tipsters yesterday, a brand spankin' new bail bonds business appears to be preparing to open in one of the new spaces. Can't be good for hotel business. GMAP
September 4, 2009
Be@Schermerhorn Hits Another Snag
Bad news for the developer of be@schermerhorn, the too-late-too-the-party 246-unit project at 189 Schermerhorn Street on the intersection of Downtown Brooklyn and Boerum Hill. After a dismal initial effort to sell units at crazy-high prices, the sales effort was relaunched last spring with 10 to 20 percent price cuts. According to an article in yesterday's New York Post, sales were subsequently "strong" but it was too little too late. "We're in stalled mode right now," says Mario Procida of developer SDS Procida. "We had a time [limit] we had to sell out." As a result, those in contract are now able to get out. All hope is not lost, though. The developer stays he still may be able to reach an agreement with the bank that would let him move forward with the sales process.
Welcome to Downtown Brooklyn's Hottest Pocket [NY Post]
The Be@Schermerhorn Price Cuts We've Been Waiting For [Brownstoner]
What's Going On at Be@Schermerhorn? [Brownstoner]
Checking In On Be@Schermerhorn [Brownstoner] GMAP
Price Cuts at Be@Schermerhorn [Brownstoner]
Inside Be@Schermerhorn [Brownstoner]
August 26, 2009
StreetLevel: Court Street Boutique Closing Down
The small clothing boutique AliKat NYC, on Court Street near the corner of Warren, is shuttering. According to a store employee, September 20th will be its last day of business. The employee said the closing wasn't due to lease negotiations but was happening "because we decided it's time." PMFA, which also took note of the closing, says the shop specialized in clothing for teens. GMAP
August 13, 2009
Powerwashus Interruptus at 312 Dean Street
Remember a few weeks ago when we noted that we were happy to see workers at 312 Dean Street powerwashing the old paint away to reveal the original red brick underneath? Well, it looks like they ran out of water. Or the workers went on vacation. Or they need a taller lift to reach those upper floors.
312 Dean Street Cleaning Up Its Act [Brownstoner] GMAP
August 6, 2009
Development Watch: 307 Atlantic Avenue
Although 307 Atlantic was recently hit with a partial SWO for doing "work contrary to approved drawing," it appears to have gotten past the DOB's slap on the wrists and reached its full height. The building will have 25 rentals.
Development Watch: 307 Atlantic Really Cruising Now [Brownstoner]
Development Watch: 307 Atlantic Avenue [Brownstoner] GMAP DOB
Development Watch: 307 Atlantic Avenue, Post Demo [Brownstoner]
Development Watch: 307 Atlantic Avenue [Brownstoner]
StreetLevel: WingBar Takes Off on Smith
Judging from the number of reader emails that have come in about WingBar, the new venture in the former Paninoteca 275 space on Smith Street, a lot of folks are excited about this place's opening. A friend of Brownstoner reports the following about the bar, which opened last week and has $7.50 pitchers: "The wings were not killer spicy, but very meaty and tasty. And the tofu sub is actually a pretty good vegetarian option. It's huge and made with spicy barbecue sauce." An order of 10 wings also costs $7.50. Jam it Down Your Throat has a post on the joint with closeup pics of the food and they say its formula boils down to "good wings, cheap beer." GMAP
July 28, 2009
Six More New Brownstones for State Street?
Behind the mixed-income rental building they built together earlier this decade, Strategic Development and IBEC are considering erecting six new brownstones from the ground up on a now-vacant lot. In case that sounds completely nuts in this environment, the developers are only going to do it if they find some buyers upfront, so they've hired Corcoran Sunshine to test the waters. Are there buyers out there looking to spend up to $4 million for a new 5,000-square-foot pad on the Downtown side of Boerum Hill?
New Brownstones May Come to Boerum Hill [TRD] GMAP P*Shark
July 21, 2009
Jonathan Adler Stealth-Opens on Atlantic
When we cycled past the new Jonathan Adler shop at 378 Atlantic Avenue on Friday (whose planned opening we'd reported last month), we thought things were looking pretty pulled together so we decided to snap this photo. Turns out our hunch was right: A tipster reported, and we confirmed with a phone call, that the shop opened yesterday, a day ahead of schedule. Good times! (If anyone happens to be walking past today and can get a photo of the interior, we'd love to post it.) Update: A reader just sent in a photo of the window display that we've posted on the jump.
Jonathan Adler Coming to Atlantic Avenue! [Brownstoner] GMAP
July 14, 2009
Streetlevel: Rebecca's Latin Cuisine Opens on Hoyt
A new latin restaurant called Rebecca's Latin Cuisine opened a couple of weeks ago at 218 Hoyt Street; when we stopped in last week, the owner (whose name we doubt was Rebecca) told us that we was still making a few adjustments but that things were going well. Anyone grabbed a bite here yet? GMAP
July 13, 2009
312 Dean Street Cleaning Up Its Act
This residential building on the corner of Dean Street and 3rd Avenue has always felt a little seedy to us so we took it as a good sign on Wednesday when we cycled past and saw someone powerwashing the paint off the reveal the beautiful original brick underneath. Wonder why the owner's decided to spruce it up at this time? GMAP
July 10, 2009
Streetlevel: A Taste of Montreal for Hoyt Street
Earlier this week, BlackBook broke the news that a new Montreal-style restaurant is under construction at 97 Hoyt Street in Boerum Hill. What's the big deal? Evidently when the new spot, to be called Mile End, opens it will offer up a dish called Poutine, which is basically french fries topped with gravy and cheese curds. The restaurant also plans to serve a microbrew from Montreal called St. Ambroise. Sounds like a winner. GMAP
July 7, 2009
House of the Day: 113 Boerum Place
This house at 113 Boerum Place in Boerum Hill is a tough sell. It was in the process of being converted from a four-family to a one-family when the owner ran out of either money or patience and decided to put property, mid-renovation, onto the market for $1,599,000. Given that this is far from the most scenic stretch of Boerum Hill and that it'll still require a fair amount of blood, sweat and tears (not to mention money) to get this baby finished, that seems like an aggressive asking price. Kudos to the brokers for at least putting photos of the exterior up—we wish they'd given potential buyers a look inside while they were at it.
113 Boerum Place [Douglas Elliman] GMAP P*Shark
Latest Restaurant Additions
-
Chickadee Chick
added November 6, 2009 12:00 PM in Park Slope -
Vutera
added November 5, 2009 12:00 PM in Williamsburg -
Park Cafe
added November 4, 2009 12:00 PM in Park Slope -
Bahia
added November 3, 2009 12:00 PM in Williamsburg -
Aqualis Grill
added November 2, 2009 12:00 PM in Fort Greene -
Wombat
added October 30, 2009 12:00 PM in Williamsburg -
Organic Heights
added October 29, 2009 12:00 PM in Park Slope -
Giardini Pizza
added October 28, 2009 12:00 PM in Carroll Gardens -
Rye
added October 27, 2009 12:00 PM in Williamsburg -
Bati
added October 26, 2009 12:00 PM in Fort Greene