Cobble Hill
October 28, 2009
Closing Bell: The Pumpkins of Cobble Hill
It's time for what's become an annual Cobble Hill tradition: the great Kane Street pumpkin line-up. Every year (except one) since 1998, local artist Jane Greengold along with home owner Chip Gray have carved 100 or so pumpkins to line the fence of 176 Kane Street at the corner of Strong Place in Cobble Hill. They're lit on Halloween night and then left their to atrophy and die. As the tipster who sent this in wrote, "It's a very temporary, very local work of public art."
Co-op of the Day: 200 Congress Street, #1A
This FSBO at 200 Congress Street in Cobble Hill has a nice feel to it. The corner one-bedroom is decently-sized but the first-floor location may not be for everyone. Likewise, the built-ins give it a bit of a retro feel but the kitchen and bathroom are new. What do you make of the $499,000 asking price?
200 Congress Street, #1A [FSBO] GMAP P*Shark
October 6, 2009
House of the Day: 417 Sackett Street
417 Sackett Street was an Open House Pick last March when it was with Corcoran asking $2,875,000. After a reset, the four-story brick house in Carroll Gardens is now getting the marketing treatment from Brown Harris Stevens and has the benefit of a new asking price of $2,595,000. In our humble opinion, the price is still too high. The recent gut renovation looks perfectly nice but there's no wow factor, either for old house devotees or modern architecture lovers. Agree?
417 Sackett Street [Brown Harris Stevens] GMAP P*Shark
September 22, 2009
StreetLevel: Ghang Opens Court Street Outpost
Ghang, the Smith Street Thai restaurant, opened a new location on Court Street a few days ago in the old Miriam space. Appetizers (dumplings, summer rolls, calamari, etc) mostly run $4-$6; noodle dishes cost between $8 and $12; and curries run between $9 and $15. As the Cobble Hill Blog noted, unlike the Smith Street restaurant, the new Ghang is not BYOB. GMAP
September 21, 2009
Co-op of the Day: 242 Baltic Street, #17
This one-bedroom co-op at 242 Baltic Street in Cobble Hill has a very nice feel to it. Open, a little modern but still characterful. Maybe the photography is making the place look better than it is, but it feels spacious and light in a way that railroad-style layouts often don't. The kitchen is also tastefully done. The asking price is $549,000 (down from $585,000 last summer) and the maintenance is a quite manageable $500.
42 Baltic Street, #17 [Brown Harris Stevens] GMAP P*Shark
What to Do with the BQE Ditch
The Columbia Waterfront Association mentioned last week that a primary concern for the land use committee this fall will be the fate of the one-mile stretch of the BQE, known as The Ditch, that separates the Columbia Waterfront from Cobble Hill and Carroll Gardens. The Brooklyn Paper reported in 2008 that Representative Nydia Velazquez (D–Gowanus) had obtained $300,000 in public funds for a study to explore possible solutions. Ideas being thrown around at the time included the mayor's call for housing decks above the highway, or parks and pedestrian bridges. The Paper reported again last June that the Economic Development Corporation had much less ambitious concepts for The Ditch: planted buffers, new street furniture, sidewalk repairs, and other primarily aesthetic improvements. What would you like to see?
Fix the Ditch [Columbia Waterfront Association]
Locals Want BQE Cover-up [Brooklyn Paper]
City Plan for BQE: Less Clean, Less Green [Brooklyn Paper]
Image of early proposal by dlandstudio
September 18, 2009
New Toy Store on Atlantic
A new kids store opened a couple of weeks ago at 152 Atlantic Avenue in Cobble Hill. In addition to toys and books, the new spot, called Mini Max Toys and Cuts, also offers hair cuts, performances, arts and crafts, as BHB points out. It was started by four local mothers in the space formerly occupied by Pomegranate Looms and Cook's Companion. Anyone check it out yet? GMAP
September 10, 2009
Streetlevel: Big Green Space on Baltic Now for Rent
We heard about this from a tipster on Monday but didn't get photos until yesterday by which point Pardon Me For Asking was already all over the story...Remember that eye-catching commercial structure on Baltic Street just off Court that we drew your attention to last February and that had more recently been rumored to be on its way to becoming a Chinese restaurant? Well, turns out the owner/developer had some kind of personal crisis (PMFA says a death in the family) and has put the place up for rent.
Large Restaurant Space Rising on Baltic [Brownstoner] GMAP
Big New Glass Building at 269 Baltic For Rent [PMFA]
September 8, 2009
Streetlevel: Provence en Boite Shuttered by DCA
Provence en Boite, the french bistro at 263 Smith Street on the Carroll Gardens/Cobble Hill border, was shuttered by the Department of Consumer Affairs yesterday for "operating illegally." The news was first reported last by the Cobble Hill Blog (the source of the small photo) and a reader nicely sent in this large photo of the sign that's been placed in the window. No word on the specific offense. Anyone know? GMAP
August 27, 2009
House of the Day: 86 Douglass Street
This two-family brownstone at 86 Douglass Street in Cobble Hill is currently a rental. And it shows. There's not original architectural detail in sight and the backyard clearly hasn't had the love of an owner in some time. The bigger questions, though, are (a) what the parlor floor looks like, since it doesn't appear to have been featured in any of the photos, and (b) what would it cost to combine and upgrade the two existing apartments into a single-family house. Without a little more info, it's hard to know what to make of the $1,275,000 asking price.
86 Douglass Street [Heights Berkeley] GMAP P*Shark
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 21, 2009
Fires Break Out in Cobble Hill
We received a tip last night at 7:29 p.m. that Smith Street was shut down with fire trucks outside of Brooklyn Industries at Atlantic Avenue. Our tipster said there was no visible smoke, but a plethora of firemen and trucks. No one seems to have an image yet, but we learned that another fire broke out this morning around 6:45 a.m. (this is an estimate) at Smith and Warren, at the new townhouses. Flickr user happyrobot captured the fire and uploaded the image to our Flickr pool. These are obviously two unrelated incidents, but does anyone out there in cyberspace know more about either fire? Let us know in the comments section.
Photo by Rich at happyrobot.net, Brownstoner Flickr pool
August 4, 2009
Lease Signed, 288 Court Back on the Market
The blog Lost City brings us the latest chapter in the drama known as 288 Court Street. As you may recall, when Blockbuster vacated the space a couple years back, there was some speculation that McDonald's would replace it; that turned out not to be the case. The property then changed hands last summer and proceeded to sit on the market unrented for another year until we reported last month that Union Market would be moving in. Now that it's leased up, the owner has put the property on the market for nearly $5.5 million. As a bonus, we all get to see what the store front will look like when Union Market is all moved in.
Court Street Listing Looks Like Union Market Is Already There [Lost City]
Court St. Blockbuster Changes Hands; Future Unclear [Brownstoner]
Union Market Coming to Court Street! [Brownstoner] GMAP
288 Court Street Listing [Massey Knakal Realty]
Photo from Massey Knakal Realty
July 30, 2009
Condo of the Day: 44 Cheever Place, #505
This two-bedroom, two-bath at 44 Cheever Place in Cobble Hill was on the market for a while last summer for over a million bucks. It didn't sell and is now making another go of it at $895,000. The living space of the 1,587-square-foot space in the former elementary school is pretty sweet, as are the large windows. The kitchen's fine but not going to knock anyone's socks off. Given the size of the apartment, the combined monthly expenses of $1, 092 is quite good. You like?
44 Cheever Place, #505 [Apts & Lofts] GMAP P*Shark
July 29, 2009
StreetLevel: New Restaurant Opening on Court Street
A restaurant called Cafe Mei Mei is opening in the Court Street space formerly inhabited by Jill's Cafe. The restaurant also shares a wall with the shuttered Miriam, which is being revamped, but the two ventures appear unrelated. Cafe Mei Mei's placeholder website says it will have a seasonal menu. GMAP
July 21, 2009
House of the Day: 455 Henry Street
This house at 455 Henry Street has a very nice feel to it (or at least the renovated owner's duplex does), but the fact that the house is less than 17 feet wide and has two rental units make the asking price of $2,250,000, in our mind, pretty aggressive. The house will be delivered vacant but converting it to a one- or two-family house won't be free. Thoughts?
455 Henry Street [Douglas Elliman] GMAP P*Shark
July 17, 2009
Brooklyn Heights Montessori School Expanding
The Brooklyn Heights Montessori School is expanding its campus to include the old fire patrol station at 12 Dean Street. The school paid $1.9 million for 12 Dean in a deal that was recorded in public records this week. According to a press release sent out on the expansion, "the fire patrol station sits directly behind BMHS’s existing Bergen Street property. It is expected that the new property will be open and ready to admit as many as 40 to 50 new students in the next two years." The fire patrol building has an interesting history that the Eagle wrote about recently: "The Brooklyn firehouse was, in fact, one of three remaining fire fighting operations of what was once a large network belonging to the New York Board of Fire Underwriters. Fire Patrol members acted as an auxiliary force in the city for over 200 years...Despite its union’s claim that it saved $80 million worth of assets annually, the consortium of insurance companies that paid for its operation, decided it was too costly to maintain and voted to disband the last three units of the Fire Patrol in 2006." GMAP P*Shark
Photo from Property Shark.
July 13, 2009
Streetlevel: Food for Shakespeare's Sister?
This doesn't qualify as anything more than a rumor at this point, but we're hearing through the Cobble Hill grapevine that the former Shakespeare's Sister space at 270 Court Street is being turned into a full-on restaurant (PMFA has some current shots of the interior) by the guy behind Bocca Lupo and Nectar. Can anyone confirm and speak to what kind of food it'll be? GMAP
July 6, 2009
Half-Stake in 370 Clinton Sells—For Half the Listing Price
This one just seems like a big ouch: 370 Clinton Street, the six-family house that a buyer plunked down $2,650,000 for last September, traded hands again for $1,325,000 in a deal recorded last week in public records. The House of the Day writeup on this in January went as follows: "A victim of the downturn? Given the timing and circumstances of this new listing at 370 Clinton Street in Cobble Hill, it sounds like the seller is in trouble. She closed on the 6,000-square-foot house last September for $2,650,000 and in the last four months has gutted the interior and commissioned complete architectural drawings for a planned make-over. The plans are part of the package for anyone willing to come up with the asking price of $2,995,000. It is a pretty exciting opportunity for someone who wants to create a living space from scratch: great location, beautiful shell. The only question: Price." Update: As pointed out by commenters below, it was a 50 percent interest in the house—and not the whole house—that sold for $1,325,000.
House of the Day: 370 Clinton Street [Brownstoner] GMAP
June 17, 2009
Condo of the Day: 44 Cheever Place
This one-bedroom apartment at 44 Cheever Place has high ceilings and large windows, both of which get it high points in our book. We suspect the owner put a lot of care into the paint job but suspect that the listing might fare better with something more neutral. The832-square-foot floorplan is reasonably laid out and there are approved plans for a mezzanine over the kitchen (paging Scarano). And if you're a driver, you can pick up a space in the building for $35,000. Monthly common charges are $570 and the asking price is $560,000. Waddya think?
44 Cheever Place [Corcoran] GMAP P*Shark
Condo of the Day: 44 Cheever Place [Brownstoner]
June 11, 2009
Cobble Hill Towers Condo Plan Drops
We're hearing that some tenants at the historic Cobble Hill Towers have begun receiving their Red Herring Condo Offering Plans in the mail. The wheels for the conversion were set in motion a little more than a year ago when long-time owner Frank Farella entered into a joint venture with the Hudson Companies to reposition the 186-unit complex. From what we gather, current tenants (or any new tenant that rents an apartment before the condo plan is approved by the Attorney General towards the end of this year) will have the option to purchase their units at an insider price of $500 per square foot; they'll have 90 days from when the plan is approved to exercise this option.
Cobble Hill Towers May Go Co-op [Brownstoner] GMAP
Exclusive: Hudson To Partner on Cobble Hill Towers [Brownstoner]
June 10, 2009
Development Watch: 238 Atlantic Avenue Gets Glassy
The large development that runs from Atlantic Avenue to Pacific Avenue along Boerum Place continues to proceed. Furthest along is the four-story building on Pacific Street, which already has some windows installed. Further east on Pacific, a one-story structure is partially complete. Anyone know what this is going to be? Parking? The entire complex will have a total of 55 residential units and none of the buildings will be more than six stories tall.
Development Watch: 238 Atlantic Avenue [Brownstoner]
Development Watch: 240 Atlantic Avenue Revisited [Brownstoner] GMAP P*Shark
Development Watch: 240 Atlantic Avenue [Brownstoner]
June 9, 2009
Sam's Pizza Maestro Hangs Up Apron
A Cobble Hill legend has hung up his spurs: According to Lost City, Mario Migliaccio, who has made the pizzas at Sam's Restaurant at 238 Court Street since he came to the U.S. from Italy almost 60 years ago, has passed the torch to his son Louis following the death of his wife recently. "No need to worry," says Lost City. "The place isn't going anywhere, and Louis doesn't plan to change a thing." GMAP
June 4, 2009
House of the Day: 143 Amity Street
We won't dispute the listing's claim that 143 Amity Street is a "timeless brownstone beauty," because that's certainly what the Cobble Hill house is, no doubt about it. But the asking price of $3,900,000 comes in at over $1,000 per foot which seems quite pricey for a 17-footer whose kitchen is "ready for a new touch," no? We're not even sure this house would fetch the ask if it were located on the Brooklyn Heights side of the tracks either. Thoughts?
143 Amity Street [Brown Harris Stevens] GMAP P*Shark
June 3, 2009
Brooklyn Food & Drink Round-Up
Cafe Tapeo Becomes Cyprus Avenue
52 5th Avenue, Park Slope
Tipster dwarbi reports that tapas joint Cafe Tapeo has reopened as an Irish pub: "Tapeo was struggling for a while — almost always empty. Every time we walked by it we wondered when it would close." The new pub, Cyprus Avenue, is presumably named after the Van Morrison song about the street in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Has anyone stopped in yet?
Upcoming Brooklyn Food Events
This Saturday, June 6 from 6-9pm, stop by the BKLYN Yard for music from Finger on the Pulse and $7 BBQ plates from Hapa Kitchen... Plus, tickets are available now for Brooklyn Based's screening of Food, Inc, a new documentary about the American industrial food system, at the Bell House on Wednesday, June 10. Doors are at 7pm and snacks will be provided by Roebling Tea Room, Sweet Deliverance, Nunu Chocolates, and McClure's Pickles, and there's a pre-show open bar courtesy of Brooklyn Brewery. Following the film, catch a Q&A with director Robert Kenner and author Eric Schlosser (Fast Food Nation), who also appears in the film.
Closings and Bankruptcy
A few Chowhounds are mourning the approaching closing of Park Slope favorite Tempo (Saturday will be their last night in business), while Zagat reports that "Garden Cafe, the No.1 rated Brooklyn restaurant in Zagat’s NYC Survey, closed last week after nearly 25 years in operation in Prospect Heights." And Crain's says that Elementi in Park Slope "filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection" but remains open for business.
After the jump: Openings in Bed-Stuy, Carroll Gardens, Park Slope, Williamsburg, and Bushwick; reviews of Cafe Pedlar and Farmer in the Deli...
Latest Restaurant Additions
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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