Navy Yard
October 5, 2009
Admiring Admiral's Row
Admiral’s Row, the 19th-century, Second Empire-style officers' quarters at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, has been receiving attention from preservationists for some time now. The Fort Greene Association, for example, has been campaigning for at least four years to save these historic buildings. And The New York Times this weekend profiled another preservationist, Scott Witter, an architect who runs Brooklyn’s Other Museum of Brooklyn—an eclectic homage to Admiral's Row, Brooklyn, and forgotten times, which is run out of a private home near the BQE. The article recounts the recent plans for the 11 buildings of the row: the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation will raze nine of them and develop the land for a supermarket, parking, and retail. The city says the buildings would cost too much to rebuild, and the federal government condemned most of the row last spring—a verdict that Witter and groups like the New York Landmarks Conservancy and the Historic Districts Council oppose, especially since, according to the Times, "a 2008 report commissioned by the Army Corps of Engineers found the superstructures of the Admiral’s Row houses to be generally 'sound, level and plumb.'" B.O.M.B., Witter's museum, is open at 102 Steuben Street on Tuesdays from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m.
A Tiny Museum's Mission: to Still the Wrecking Ball [NY Times]
September 17, 2009
$15 Million for Two Navy Yard Projects
Yesterday it was announced that the State Senate has approved $15 million to fund two green redevelopment projects at the Brooklyn Navy Yard: a 220,000-square-foot "Green Manufacturing Center" from adapted WWII buildings and an exhibition and visitor center, the Brooklyn Navy Yard Center at Building 92, which will include the reuse of the former Marine Commandant's house. This is in addition to the news in April that Mayor Bloomberg had opened a green industrial facility there, the Perry Building, and announced plans for another one, the Duggal Building. The $15 million comes from the NYC Council, the Borough President, and the State Environmental Protection Fund. Construction on the green center will begin in Spring 2010, predicted to last 18 months, and work on the visitors' center is set to begin in October, ending mid-2011.
Bloomie Announces Navy Yard Historical Center [Brownstoner]
July 10, 2009
Navy Yard Kicks Off Supermarket RFP Process
With the fate of Admirals Row all but set in stone, the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corp. moved ahead yesterday with its plans to find a developer to build a 40,000-square-foot supermarket and an additional 60,000 square feet of additional retail and light industrial space on the six-acre plot of land at the southwest corner of the Navy Yard that is still controlled by the Federal Government but is expected to come under the BNYDC's control in the near future. "We think this is a very unique opportunity for a developer to secure a long-term lease on a site where you can put a large supermarket,” said Navy Yard chief Andrew Kimball. The winning developer would have to also finance and perform the rehabilitation of the Timber Shed and one of the Admirals Row houses, a task that could cost $25 million or more. The deadline for responses to the RFP is October 19. A complete press release is included on the jump.
Grocer to Edge Out Admirals in Navy Yard [Crain's]
Proposals requested for Brooklyn Navy Yard [TRD]
Continue reading "Navy Yard Kicks Off Supermarket RFP Process"
June 19, 2009
Admirals Row House Collapses from Water Damage
One of the ten former officers residences along Flushing Avenue known as Admirals Row began collapsing from water damage yesterday, and the fire department was brought in for safety reasons to finish the job. Luckily for those concerned with preserving the group of historic structures, the house affected was Building C, which the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers recently reported "does not appear to retain historic integrity to the historic significance of the BNY." (You can see a pre-collapse photo of Building C here—it's the one on the right.) Here's what happened: A pedestrian walking down Flushing Avenue in the late afternoon called the Brooklyn Navy Yard headquarters saying that is looked like pieces of Building C had fallen. BNYDC called the Feds, DOB and FDNY. When they got down there they discovered that almost the entire building had detached from the facade and collapsed; DOB determined that the remaining facade itself did not pose enough of a safety risk to take it down. FDNY also determined that there had not been any homeless people in the structure at the time of collapse. The collapse is certainly a reminder that, however many buildings ultimately get slated for preservation, it's time to get some resolution.
It's Curtains for Most of Admiral's Row [Brownstoner]
Ugly Politics May Trump Reason in Admiral's Row Saga [Brownstoner]
Admiral's Row: Up Close and Personal [Brownstoner]
MAS Floats Plans to Preserve Admiral's Row & Build Market [Brownstoner]
Public Hearing on Admiral's Row Held Last Night [Brownstoner]
Pratties Have 'Cake-and-Eat-It' Design for Admiral's Row [Brownstoner]
Guard Starts Talks 'To Come Up With Alternatives' For Row [Brownstoner]
James Opens Door to (Partial) Admiral's Row Preservation [Brownstoner]
Officers’ Row Supermarket Not Happening Anytime Soon [Brownstoner]
Admiral's Row: Feds Must 'Consider' Preservation [Brownstoner]
Admiral's Row: "Extremely High Level of Historic Integrity" [Brownstoner]
Officers' Row: Let's Have Our Cake and Eat It Too [Brownstoner]
Officers' Row Preservation Coming to a Contentious Head [Brownstoner]
For Officer's Row, Supermarket All But Certain [Brownstoner]
May 29, 2009
Experience 'Shanty Living' at the Navy Yard
The art piece profiled in the vid above was slated to be moved from an Orchard Street gallery to the Navy Yard at the beginning of this month and be available for rent for $199 a week. While we can't find evidence on the web proving that it is, in fact, somewhere in the Navy Yard, the description is fascinating: "Maison des Cartes, [is] a show model 'shanty timeshare' built from 52 separate pieces of found materials...Sales representatives present the viewers with the chance to buy into the private residence club. Upon the show’s completion, the structure will be rebuilt in the scenic Brooklyn Navy Yard."
Lisa Kirk: House of Cards [Vernissage TV]
May 28, 2009
It's Curtains for Most of Admiral's Row
Despite the best efforts of preservationists, who generated a number of proposals detailing how the Admiral's Row structures could be maintained while also allowing for the construction of a supermarket, most of the historic buildings on the Navy Yard site are slated to be demolished, according to Crain's. The Timber Shed (above) and one of the 10 other buildings on the site will be preserved, according to a statement released by Andrew Kimball, president of the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corp, who also said that a request for proposals for a developer to build a supermarket and manufacturing space will go out in the next 90 days. The process will result in the redevelopment of “what has become a blighted eyesore that has burdened the community and the Brooklyn Navy Yards for decades,” said Kimball. While the news is a blow for preservationists, it's certainly not an unexpected one.
Admiral’s Row Demolition Near [Crain's]
Ugly Politics May Trump Reason in Admiral's Row Saga [Brownstoner]
Admiral's Row: Up Close and Personal [Brownstoner]
MAS Floats Plans to Preserve Admiral's Row & Build Market [Brownstoner]
Public Hearing on Admiral's Row Held Last Night [Brownstoner]
Pratties Have 'Cake-and-Eat-It' Design for Admiral's Row [Brownstoner]
Guard Starts Talks 'To Come Up With Alternatives' For Row [Brownstoner]
James Opens Door to (Partial) Admiral's Row Preservation [Brownstoner]
Officers’ Row Supermarket Not Happening Anytime Soon [Brownstoner]
Admiral's Row: Feds Must 'Consider' Preservation [Brownstoner]
Admiral's Row: "Extremely High Level of Historic Integrity" [Brownstoner]
Officers' Row: Let's Have Our Cake and Eat It Too [Brownstoner]
Officers' Row Preservation Coming to a Contentious Head [Brownstoner]
For Officer's Row, Supermarket All But Certain [Brownstoner]
May 27, 2009
MAS Continues to Push for Admiral's Row Preservation
The Municipal Art Society has put together the video above in advance of a meeting representatives from the group will attend tonight to advocate for the preservation of the Admiral's Row buildings at the Navy Yard. The organization, which has come up with plans to preserve the structures as well as build a new supermarket and retail space, calls the rumors that only the site's timber shed will be preserved an "inadequate solution."
Admiral’s Row Update [MAS]
Ugly Politics May Trump Reason in Admiral's Row Saga [Brownstoner]
MAS Floats Plans to Preserve Admiral's Row & Build Market [Brownstoner]
April 17, 2009
Upper Level of Sands Street Gate House Gone
A week after we broke the news that the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation was launching a historic restoration of the Sands Street Gate House, the upper floor of the non-original wooden structure that's covered up the original gates houses for several decades has been removed. You can even see one of the original castle-like turrets poking its head up now. Exciting!
Navy Yard Launches Restoration of Sands Street Gate [Brownstoner]
April 13, 2009
Green Lamp Posts Coming to the Navy Yard
As part of its ongoing Green initiative, the Brooklyn Navy Yard is set to begin installing 90 wind- and solar-powered lamp posts. What makes the lamp posts even greener is the fact that they are designed and built by Navy Yard tenant Duggal Visual Solutions, which plans to convert a one-story, 30,000-square-foot building in the Yard into a two-story, 60,000-square-foot LEED Platinum certified facility for manufacturing eco-friendly products. Other fun facts: The street lights will save the BNYDC $600,000 dollars or so in the first year and $11,000 a year going forward on its electricity bill.
April 10, 2009
Navy Yard Launches Restoration of Sands Street Gate House
Yesterday was a big day at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, with Mayor Bloomberg and numerous other officials in attendance to cheer a number of initiatives that have taken form or been announced in recent months like the Perry Building, which is the nation's first multi-story green industrial building, as well as the impending state-of-the-art renovations for the Duggal and Agger Fish buildings. (More on those projects here, here and here.) While we're enthusiastic about all of those projects, the unpublicized story of the day was the most exciting to us: The restoration of the two original gate houses at the Sands Street entrance to the Navy Yard. We spied workers atop the structure earlier this week (photo) and got confirmation from Navy Yard president Andrew Kimball yesterday that the restoration had just begun. The current structure that most people are familiar with is actually a wooden exterior that was added over the two gate houses about 40 years ago and appropriated more recently by the tow pound. The entire wood skeleton is coming down and the brick and marble gate houses are going to be restored to their original splendor, minus two turrets that appear to be permanently gone. We give the BNYDC a lot of grief over Admiral's Row but in this case they deserve a lot of praise for this worthwhile preservation effort. It should be exciting to watch! Update: We just got our hands on a rendering of the aerial view of the Sands Street entrance when the restoration in complete. Click through to check it out.
Continue reading "Navy Yard Launches Restoration of Sands Street Gate House"
April 1, 2009
Ugly Politics May Trump Reason in Admiral's Row Saga
We wish this were an April Fool's joke but it's not. Despite protracted efforts by the preservation world and a number of alternative proposals, one of the most important pieces of Brooklyn's history may be destined for destruction. According to a report in Crain's yesterday afternoon, the National Guard and the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation have worked out a deal that would demolish all but one of 10 historic former naval residences that form Admiral's Row along Flushing Avenue; the timber shed (above) would be spared the wrecking ball as well. If this is indeed the case, the short-sightedness and lack of imagination on the part of both parties is truly unconscionable. “If the reported compromise on the future of the Admiral’s Row buildings is true we are deeply disappointed because the majority of these buildings could and should be saved," wrote Lisa Kersavage of the Municipal Art Society in an email last night. "We will continue fighting to save these important structures.” And Peg Breen, president of The New York Landmarks Conservancy, hit the nail on the head when she said that “The Navy Yard made this an either-or situation, and it didn’t have to be that way.” Indeed, the decision to frame the debate as preservation for the elites versus fresh food for the poor was a disgusting, though disappointingly effective, display of populist politics that conveniently pushed all the class and race buttons it was designed to and made it close to impossible to any politician to work towards saving the buildings. There's supposed to be some kind of hearing to announce the "compromise" later this month. Let's hope Crain's got its information wrong.
Time Runs Out for Brooklyn’s Admiral’s Row [Crain's]
Report: Admiral's Row Discharged [Curbed]
Admiral's Row: Up Close and Personal [Brownstoner]
MAS Floats Plans to Preserve Admiral's Row & Build Market [Brownstoner]
Public Hearing on Admiral's Row Held Last Night [Brownstoner]
Pratties Have 'Cake-and-Eat-It' Design for Admiral's Row [Brownstoner]
Guard Starts Talks 'To Come Up With Alternatives' For Row [Brownstoner]
James Opens Door to (Partial) Admiral's Row Preservation [Brownstoner]
Officers’ Row Supermarket Not Happening Anytime Soon [Brownstoner]
Admiral's Row: Feds Must 'Consider' Preservation [Brownstoner]
Admiral's Row: "Extremely High Level of Historic Integrity" [Brownstoner]
Officers' Row: Let's Have Our Cake and Eat It Too [Brownstoner]
Officers' Row Preservation Coming to a Contentious Head [Brownstoner]
For Officer's Row, Supermarket All But Certain [Brownstoner]
March 10, 2009
Naval Hospital Between the Wars
Everyone seemed to get a kick out of the photos we ran a couple of weeks ago from the Kingston Lounge's visit inside the Brooklyn Navy Yard that we thought we'd show you this one from back in the day. According to the Navy Yard archivists, this was taken in 1920 in the reception area for visiting nurses. The photo can be found here.
February 27, 2009
Close-Up on the Commandant's House
Built in the first decade of the 19th Century, the Commandant's House on the western edge of the Brooklyn Navy Yard holds great allure, in part because it's so hard to get a full glimpse of. On Gowanus Lounge today, read about its history and find out how you can get a closer look at the privately-owned Federal Style mansion starting this weekend. More history on the jump.
February 20, 2009
Inside the Naval Hospital
The Kingston Lounge, a relatively new blog on the block, yesterday posted some incredible photos from inside the hospital at the Navy Yard along with a nice historical overview of the property dating back to 1824 when it was a farm purchased by the Secretary of the Navy. The first two photos above are from the Surgeon's Residence and the other three are from the Hospital itself. Click through the link below for more great photos.
The Brooklyn Navy Yard Hospital Complex [Kingston Lounge]
February 4, 2009
Admiral's Row: Up Close and Personal
Over the weekend, Gothamist's Jake Dobkin photographed the interior of the Admiral's Row houses inside the Brooklyn Navy Yard. The shots are incredible so we encourage you to click on each one above to see the full-size version. We also thought the commentary he provided on his personal site, Bluejake, was worth repeating here:
I was surprised how messed up these buildings were on the inside. The rear ends of many of the houses had collapsed, leaving a tangled mess of wood. Interior staircases were hanging a few feet off vertical, and large holes dotted many of the floors. Almost all of the windows were open or blown out, and the wind and rain had taken off most of the paint on the inside walls. Still-- some romantic details were still extant-- dozens of fireplaces and cedar-lined closets, handsome plaster work and ornamental detailing, and one enormous, empty ballroom. It'd be a shame if we let these buildings get demolished. I know the neighborhood needs a supermarket and more jobs, but there's got to be a way to bring that stuff without destroying the past.
There's also a related post on Gothamist from Monday. Incredible. Wish we could take photos like these.
Admiral's Row Photos [Bluejake]
Inside Admiral's Row [Gothamist]
Admiral's Row Archives [Brownstoner]
January 27, 2009
Channel 13 Vids Out on the Navy Yard
Channel 13 has just put together a neat video about the history of the Brooklyn Navy Yard narrated by Rubena Ross, who has the distinction of not only having worked at the Navy Yard circa WWII but having owned the house in Prospect Heights that is now the subject of the latest This Olde House series. Check it out!
January 12, 2009
Navy Yard Manufacturers Thriving, More Space Planned
A ray of light among the darkening clouds: According to The Times, some niche manufacturers are doing just fine right now. Scott Jordan, whose workshop is in the Brooklyn Navy Yard, for example, told the Gray Lady that sales of his $2,600 sleeper sofas and $3,000 beds have actually risen of late. In fact, because of demand from small businesses like this, the Navy Yard plans to add another 1.5 million square feet of space and another 2,000 workers in the next two years, recession be damned.
In NYC, No Crisis for Niche Manufacturers [NY Times]
Photo by amybabyamy on Flickr
October 9, 2008
Video: Further Inside the Brooklyn Navy Yard
The NY Post sends a videographer to document the Navy Yard, including a tour of the 1838 Naval Hospital and the chief surgeon's residence. Nice servants' quarters (they call them "cute and cozy"). For those of you who feel it's off limits, Navy Yard folks say they want the public to come inside.
October 7, 2008
An Inside Look at the Navy Yard
The photographer/blogger known as Bluejake took advantage of this weekend's Open House New York, and offers these in-depth views of the Navy Yard. More can be seen on his Web site.
August 20, 2008
MAS Floats Plans to Preserve Admiral's Row & Build Market
Earlier today, the Municipal Art Society presented six different plans to the U.S. National Guard that would allow for both the preservation of Admiral's Row (which includes 10 19th-century houses and a timber shed from the 1830s) and the creation of a new supermarket and additional retail and industrial space; the plans also call for more green and community space than the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corp's current proposal. “BNYDC’s plan calls for a sea of nearly 400 parking spaces in the fashion of the suburban-style supermarket model," said MAS's Lisa Kersavage. "By contrast, MAS’s alternative plans show that by reconfiguring or even reducing the parking and shifting the location of the new buildings, a greener and more pedestrian-friendly site can be achieved.”
From the MAS press release:
In the MAS alternative, the historic houses along Flushing Street are retained and are used on their ground floor as retail to encourage pedestrians to walk between the houses into a central green space. Additions connecting the upper floors in the rear of the historic buildings could enable them to be used as a business incubator or startup business center. The timber shed in this scheme is elongated and used as a farmer’s market. By contrast, the same viewpoint in the BNYDC’s plan (rendering on the jump) simply shows the suburban-sized supermarket and acres of asphalt and concrete.
The MAS proposal joins an earlier plan put forth by Brent Porter of Pratt. We expect there will be more calls for creative have-your-cake-and-eat-it-too plans in the near future. To view the Admirals Row study commissioned by the National Guard, click here.
Update: We got our hands on renderings of five of the plans; they were created by Russell Crader and were funded by the Daniel K. Thorne Intervention Fund of the Northeast Office of the National Trust for Preservation.
The Morning After Update: See a slideshow of the entire MAS presentation here; read Gowanus Lounge's heartfelt editorial on the issue here.
Public Hearing on Admiral's Row Held Last Night [Brownstoner]
Pratties Have 'Cake-and-Eat-It' Design for Admiral's Row [Brownstoner]
Guard Starts Talks 'To Come Up With Alternatives' For Row [Brownstoner]
James Opens Door to (Partial) Admiral's Row Preservation [Brownstoner]
Renderings by Andrew Burdick of the studio collaborative and Architecture for Humanity New York
Continue reading "MAS Floats Plans to Preserve Admiral's Row & Build Market"
Fire at the Navy Yard
A reader who happened to be at the Brooklyn Navy Yard on business yesterday was able to snap a shot of the fire that happened at Building 269. According to a BNYDC official, the fire was likely the result of welding activity. Anyone else see it up close?
August 19, 2008
Closing Bell: Spiffing Up the Navy Yard
While major new construction projects go up around the Navy Yard, some of the older buildings are getting spruced up as well. Work on the facade at Building Three, for example, was coming to a close when we passed by last week.
July 23, 2008
Public Hearing on Admiral's Row Held Last Night
Following up on last December's public meeting, the National Guard held another informational forum last night at Borough Hall to solicit public input about the future use of the site; since the Guard has already determined that the row of ten 19th-century houses is eligible for listing on the National Historic Register of Historic Places, it is required by law to consider all the possible outcomes and implications that a transfer of the property would have. Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corp's publicly stated plan to fully demolish the site is considered an "adverse effect" and so, by Federal law (Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act), the Guard is required "to develop and evaluate alternatives or modifications to the undertaking that could avoid, minimize, or mitigate" those adverse effects, such as requiring preservation of some or all of the houses.
Prior to the public hearing, a press conference was held with just about every politician in town, including Councilmembers Letitia James and David Yassky, Senator Velmanette Montgomery, reps from the Borough President's office and Congressman Ed Towns' office; other speakers included Carl Hum from the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce, Andrew Kimball and Alan Fishman from the Navy Yard, and representatives from the Ingersoll, Whitman and Farrugut Houses. In our opinion, it was a disappointing display of political showmanship which rested on the intellectually-rickety concept that this matter is an either-or choice between preservation on the one hand and fresh food for the poor on the other when any reasonable person can see that there are a million (or at least ten, that is) shades of grey in between. One specific proposal that would enable preservation and the creation of a supermarket has already been floated by Brent Porter of Pratt. The Municipal Art Society also announced last night that it was working with the Historic Districts Council, the Fort Greene Association, the Society for Clinton Hill, the Historic Wallabout Association and the Myrtle Avenue Brooklyn Partnership to solicit concepts for a have-your-market-and-save-the-houses-too solution; more details should be forthcoming shortly. It was also whispered in our ear last night that the BNYDC had not received any specific proposals from a private developer for the houses (which take up only about two of the six acres of the site) but that BNYDC would consider such proposals. You can check out information on the Historic Preservation Act and the Admirals Row study commissioned by the National Guard here; to submit your testimony (which can be as brief as "I support a plan that would create a supermarket and preserve the Admirals Row houses"), you can send an email to AdmiralsRowBNY@usace.army.mil.
Pratties Have 'Cake-and-Eat-It' Design for Admiral's Row [Brownstoner]
Guard Starts Talks 'To Come Up With Alternatives' For Row [Brownstoner]
James Opens Door to (Partial) Admiral's Row Preservation [Brownstoner]
July 22, 2008
Public Hearing on Future of Admirals Row Tonight
Tonight the long-awaited follow-up to last December's public hearing on the future of Admirals Row takes place at Borough Hall. All we can say in advance of the meeting is that we hope that the spirit of creativity and compromise can win the day. At this point, there appears to be strong political support for including a supermarket on the site to address to current lack of options currently available to the residents of the nearby Farrugut, Ingersoll and Whitman Houses. There is also a large group of people who feel strongly that the Admirals Row houses deserve to be preserved, and a recent study commissioned by the National Guard gave weight to this view. (The report stated that the structures have a "high level of historic integrity.") So what's the answer? Find a way to create a supermarket while preserving most, if not all, of the houses. One such proposal has already been put forth by a team from Pratt. The one stakeholder that would be unhappy with that scenario would most likely be the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation, which wants to squeeze a new industrial building onto the site along with a massive parking lot for the market; the BNYDC has also said it does not want to assume control of Admiral's Row from the National Guard if it comes with preservation strings attached. As with most thing, the real rub comes down to dollars and cents. It should be an interesting evening. The meeting takes place at 7 p.m. tonight at Borough Hall.
Pratties Have 'Cake-and-Eat-It' Design for Admiral's Row [Brownstoner]
Guard Starts Talks 'To Come Up With Alternatives' For Row [Brownstoner]
James Opens Door to (Partial) Admiral's Row Preservation [Brownstoner]
July 16, 2008
James Opens Door to (Partial) Admiral's Row Preservation
Coucilmember Letitia James has modified her position on the preservation of Admiral's Row, the group of ten historic houses along Flushing Avenue, according to an article in The Brooklyn Paper. James had previously advocated razing the structures to make way for a supermarket, but the councilmember is now saying that "some" of the houses could be preserved and some kind of balance struck between preservation and addressing the lack of supermarket options for nearby residents. James told us that "the key to preserving some of the buildings is money. If the economics are resolved, we can move forward on preserving some of these buildings, but, my first priority is to meet the immediate needs of residents of Public Housing and Vinegar Hill." A formal public review of Admiral's Row redevelopment plans begins next Tuesday at a meeting at Borough Hall (209 Joralemon Street, 7 p.m).
James gets in middle of ‘Row’ [Brooklyn Paper]
Guard Starts Talks 'To Come Up With Alternatives' For Row [Brownstoner]
Photo by SmithersJones.
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