Fort Greene
May 9, 2008
Carlton Mews Back on Track, Ready to Dig
Rumors of Carlton Mews' demise have been greatly exaggerated, it appears. A couple of months ago, very well-placed tipster sent word that the developers of Carlton Mews, the landmark-compliant new townhouse development (plus church conversion) at 233 Carlton Avenue in Fort Greene, was "on life support." The project has been a long time coming and the developers have patiently worked closely with the community and LPC on the plans for a couple of years, so this was sad news to say the least. So we were psyched to get a tip yesterday that there was some new activity at the dormant site. We biked over and, sure enough, a contractor was getting ready to remove the trailer in anticipation of excavation work beginning within the next week. Turns out the New Building application was approved on May 6. Evidently, whatever financing troubles (if any) they'd been having have now been solved. Rock'n'roll!
Carlton Mews "On Life Support"? [Brownstoner] GMAP P*Shark DOB
LPC Gives Go-Ahead to Carlton Mews Project [Brownstoner]
May 8, 2008
Co-op of the Day: 7 South Portland Avenue, #5A
Stunning building, mediocre apartment. That kinda sums up the situation with this fifth floor co-op at 7 South Portland Avenue. The 7,000-square-foot, 8-unit building is on what's been called the best block in the city. Bereft of historic detail, the apartment, however, has a boxy, 1980's vibe to it. As for the $425,000 asking price, guess it's possible but wouldn't be surprised if it came in a little under $400,000. Waddya think?
7 South Portland Avenue [Brown Harris Stevens] GMAP P*Shark
Clinton Hill, Fort Greene Street Cleaning Days Reduced
The Department of Sanitation has agreed to reduce street cleaning days in Commuinty District 2, most notably Fort Greene and Clinton Hill. Other parts of the district, like Brooklyn Heights, already have street cleaning only once a week on each side. "As a general rule, the commercial streets will continue to have street cleaning six days a week and most of the residential streets will go down to once a week [on each side]," said District Manager Robert Perris. "We have brought this subject up a few times a year for the past several years and when [the Department of] Sanitation changed their operational schedule for CD6, we reiterated our prior requests, and have now received reduced frequency and reduced duration of street cleaning." Councilwoman Letitia James told us about the change earlier this week. Some residents in her district previously had to move their cars four times a week. Sanitation spokeswoman Kathy Dawkins said the department agreed to the change because the district achieved a 90 percent cleanliness score for several years in a row. Perris said the affected streets will be announced at the June 11 monthly board meeting, and changes would happen this fall.
May 6, 2008
House of the Day: 297 Cumberland Street
At the risk of sounding like a broken record, we will once again ask the rhetorical questions, Why in the world would any seller use a real estate brokerage firm that didn't have a good website? While on the Fort Greene House Tour on Sunday, we noticed the For Sale sign out in front of 297 Cumberland Street, a charming Civil War-era wooden house between Greene and Lafayette Avenues. First we Googled the broker listed in the sign, Cornerstone Properties, only to learn that it either has no web site or the worst search engine optimization in the history of the Internet; we tried calling the phone number listed on the sign once in the morning yesterday and once in the afternoon only to be greeted by a message saying we could not leave a message. Finally, after combing the NY Times, we found the listing—only it had been posted by a different broker, Prospective Properties. Whatever. At least we now know that the asking price is $1,499,000 for the 2,800-square-foot house that needs a lot of work. Annoying marketing aside, kinda interesting, no?
297 Cumberland Street [NY Times] GMAP P*Shark
May 5, 2008
Fort Greene House Tour Wrap
Like the Brooklyn Flea, the Fort Greene House Tour yesterday benefited from some much overdue sunshine. We were only able to hit about half the stops on the tour, but there was nary a clunker among them. As expected, the highlight (for us at least) was a look inside the modern studio building designed by British architect David Adjaye. Unfortunately no interior photos were allowed. It was a modern design that employed cool (as in temperature) colors and clean lines while also feeling extremely livable. As for the more traditional homes on the route, we were most seduced by 219 Carlton Avenue, whose judicious use of European fixtures and some impressive cabinetry enabled the house to be at once comfortable in its traditional shoes and a little lighter and less stuffy than your average townhouse. As you'll see from the slideshow, we also made it to 237 Cumberland Street (a condo project with quite a backyard) as well as 297 Cumberland Street and 98 South Oxford Street, both of which had some serious old-school charm. What were your favorites?
May 2, 2008
Closing Bell: Flea and House Tour Pray for Sun
We'd be lying if we said we weren't just a little bit irked at Mother Nature right now. While precious few rain drops have actually fallen on the Brooklyn Flea during market hours, all four Sundays to date have had the threat of rain and have been unseasonably cold. And it looks like more of the same for this weekend. Argghh! Luckily we have a hearty bunch of vendors who roll with the rain-or-shine punches to get to what's real. The organizers of this year's Fort Greene House Tour must also be watching the weather report closely. Both events happen Sunday. The Flea runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and is located at 176 Lafayette Avenue. Closest trains are the C and G to Washington/Clinton. Or you can take any of the number of trains that go to Atlantic Station and make the 10-minute stroll up Lafayette Avenue from there. The house tour is from noon to 5 p.m.; you can pick up your tickets in the BAM Garden at Fulton and Lafayette or at the flea market. If you're in the neighborhood on Saturday, make sure to stop by the Habana Outpost Block Party.
UPDATE: The sun has decided to shine upon The Flea for the first time and the place is hopping. Come on down! It's open 'til 5 o'clock.
April 29, 2008
House of the Day: 52 South Oxford Street
Um, no. An unrenovated SRO, five stories or not, on South Oxford Street for $2,500,000 in this market? Don't think so. There's some nice detail left and, according to the listing, 6,000 square feet of space, but given the headaches and delays associated with the SRO status and the time value of money, we think the sellers of 52 South Oxford Street are going to have to come down in price to get a deal done, especially given the unfortunate facades of its two neighbors (both of which serve as useful reminders of the importance of landmarking).
52 South Oxford Street [Clinton Hill RE] GMAP P*Shark
Development Watch: Atlantic Terrace
While the future of affordable housing at Atlantic Yards is unclear, there's been some progress on Atlantic Terrace, the mixed-income development a stone's throw from the AY footprint. There was a ceremonial groundbreaking for the project back (rendered at right) in October, and workers have dug the big hole that'll eventually get filled with 80 co-ops, 50 percent of which will be affordable to low-income families and 20 percent of which will be affordable moderate-income earners. Last year there were stories in the Observer and Post about how plans for solar panels on the building's roof had to be scrapped because the looming shadows of AY high-rises would interfere with harnessing sunshine. Perhaps dark days for AY help that design facet see the light of day.
AY-Area Affordable Housing: Made in the Shade [Brownstoner]
Mixed-Rate Building Next to Atlantic Yards [Brownstoner] GMAP
April 23, 2008
Wednesday Food & Drink Round-Up
Angry Wade's Gets a Makeover
224 Smith Street (at Butler Street); (718) 488-7253
Haven't been inside in a while, but doesn't this place look better in red?
Five Guys Burgers in Park Slope: Hot or Not?
Says one Chowhound: "I was walking past the corner of 7th Ave and 6th street (where that ugly Bank of America is going in) and I saw a work permit on the space next door (the old D'Agostino's) that says a Five Guys is going in. Yea!"
But another replies: "Or is it another nail in the coffin for the charm of Park Slope?"
Opening and Closing Report
According to Eater, Jesse's Brooklyn Kitchen will be closing shop on Smith Street, and Manhattan's Cheyenne Diner will reopen in Red Hook, but Red Hook's 360 is officially gone for good.
After the jump: Luz turns out the lights for Earth Day (and today), bargains at Barrio, and Andrea Strong's move to Brooklyn...
April 22, 2008
Streetlevel: What's Going On at June?
What's going on at June? The exterior of the Fort Greene restaurant recently began getting a makeover in anticipation of a change of stewardship. A source tells us that the owner of the restaurant (and the building) at 229 Dekalb Avenue decided to get out of the food biz himself and has rented the space to somebody "from Manhattan." This is a pretty sweet corner location—it'll be interesting to see what they come up with. GMAP