Winterizing Cafe Windows

Actually, cloth awnings were a fixture on most brownstones in BK up until the 50's. I don't dislike the cloth awning look, but I find those metal ones to be really ugly, not to mention that they age horribly.

Posted by: LC Arnett at November 19, 2009 3:24 PM in response to Development Watch: Turnaround at 424 Waverly Avenue

If I'm not mistaken, the house to the left was an old wood frame which was redone 5-6 yrs ago. It was always a little two story place, similar to some that are down on Dean/Pacific streets. I don't personally like the smaller windows that they put in, but its actually not a bad looking house considering its tar paper and shingle beginnings. Whoever the owner is keeps its clean, neat and tidy, and it appears that there are actually 3-4 units (its got entrances on both Underhill and Prospect. It may actually have started out life as a carriage house or a garage, given its small stature in relation to the neighboring homes.

Posted by: LC Arnett at November 16, 2009 3:51 PM in response to Development Watch: S#!tbox on Underhill

"Does anyone know why they changed the name??? Seems like a stupid waste of money to me."

There's a pretty interesting thread on the shenanigans of the previous owner over at Brooklynian. Given the information that's there it seems like a smart move to separate completely from the old owner and make a fresh start.

Posted by: LC Arnett at November 3, 2009 11:25 AM in response to Tavern on Nostrand RIP

Thanks everyone for the suggestions. I'll let you know how it works out.

Posted by: LC Arnett at October 22, 2009 11:00 AM in response to Winterizing Cafe Windows

Not sure that drapes are an option. There will be a business operating in the space and the tenants have already stated that they want to keep the view unobscured so as to encourage customers to come inside. Whatever solution we come up with will have to be temporary only as they want to be able to reopen the windows come spring.

The photo is of a bookstore in Manhattan. The picture was taken on their opening day and I believe those are customers waiting to come inside for the grand opening.

Posted by: LC Arnett at October 21, 2009 4:11 PM in response to Winterizing Cafe Windows

Re: Car thefts in the "sketchy" parts of Bed-Stuy

There was very little vandalism of cars in Bed-Stuy back in the day because the fancy rides "the Lex coupe, the Beemers, and the Benz" often belonged to people who were involved in unsavory lines of work. The big car theft racket in the ghetto was stealing the computers out of American-made Fords, Chevys, etc and reselling them. Those cars tended to be owned by older working class folks who were less likely to shoot you if you were messing with their car. Prior to that it was the hubcap scam where guys would steal your hubcaps, go sell them on Atlantic Avenue where you could go buy them back by the end of the day.

This still pretty much holds true in the hood. So long as you don't have one of the top 10 car theft cars you're probably not going to find your window broken or your tires missing. Living in a neighborhood with lots of foot traffic and many streets with people on them at all hours of the day and night has its advantages.

Posted by: LC Arnett at September 25, 2009 11:44 AM in response to Look, Ma, No Wheels

Just taking a shot in the dark, but I think the problem is not that its a school, but that its a private school for the hyper-wealthy. While the Quakers may once have been open to educating all and welcoming all, its now a school that charges $18,000 for pre-school tuition and a whopping $29,500 for high school. While there aren't a lot of poor people left on State Street, I bet there are plenty who can't afford to drop an amount equivalent to their housing costs on an annual basis for school.

I'm in no way, shape, or form anti-private school, but I do think that in a neighborhood that lacks many things, neighbors have a right to voice their opinions about who their new neighbors will be.

Posted by: LC Arnett at September 21, 2009 11:47 AM in response to Friends' Expansion Making Enemies on State?

Many years ago when LPC started seriously trying to landmark neighborhoods, one of the stumbling blocks was the fact that homeowners were pursuing low-cost solutions to upkeep and maintenance on their homes rather than those solutions that were in keeping with what landmarks wanted to see. Examples were painting brownstone to prevent decay, replacing wood framed windows with storm windows, adding modern exterior lighting fixtures rather than period appropriate fixtures, putting gates on previously ungated yards, etc. Community activists claimed (rightly) that lower and middle class homeowners should not be sentenced to living in drafty, falling down homes simply because they had purchased a home in a community that was subsequently landmarked and they could not afford expensive restoration or repairs.

As a remedy, money was set aside to assist homeowners in landmark districts with repair costs. The reasoning was that people would be more likely to accept landmark-type renovations if they could be made affordable.

This type of program was intended to allow architectural preservation to continue in ALL parts of the city. Contrasting this with the 2nd Ave subway (a subway line which will run only through Manhattan, does not connect with any transportation hubs and which has been in the works for over 20 years) is folly. This $84,000 is less than 1/10th of the total compensation package for the new head of the MTA.

I'd like to see more money spent on infrastructure. In my world we'd have new water tunnels in Brooklyn, light rail in South Brooklyn, a tunnel from NJ to Brooklyn, a new bridge from LI to CT and a freight rail system east of the Hudson. But in order for that to happen we'd have to give up something. I don't want the city to stop funding public education, close more hospitals, shut down libraries, stop providing public housing or decide that the answer is less police or fire protection. So my question Rob and Benson is assuming we stop funding all landmarks grants (which I'm sure total less than a couple million a year), what would you be willing to give up to get your subway and other infrastructure?

Posted by: LC Arnett at September 18, 2009 4:12 PM in response to LPC Makes It Official at Alice & Agate Courts

Many years ago when LPC started seriously trying to landmark neighborhoods, one of the stumbling blocks was the fact that homeowners were pursuing low-cost solutions to upkeep and maintenance on their homes rather than those solutions that were in keeping with what landmarks wanted to see. Examples were painting brownstone to prevent decay, replacing wood framed windows with storm windows, adding modern exterior lighting fixtures rather than period appropriate fixtures, putting gates on previously ungated yards, etc. Community activists claimed (rightly) that lower and middle class homeowners should not be sentenced to living in drafty, falling down homes simply because they had purchased a home in a community that was subsequently landmarked and they could not afford expensive restoration or repairs.

As a remedy, money was set aside to assist homeowners in landmark districts with repair costs. The reasoning was that people would be more likely to accept landmark-type renovations if they could be made affordable.

This type of program was intended to allow architectural preservation to continue in ALL parts of the city. Contrasting this with the 2nd Ave subway (a subway line which will run only through Manhattan, does not connect with any transportation hubs and which has been in the works for over 20 years) is folly. This $84,000 is less than 1/10th of the total compensation package for the new head of the MTA.

I'd like to see more money spent on infrastructure. In my world we'd have new water tunnels in Brooklyn, light rail in South Brooklyn, a tunnel from NJ to Brooklyn, a new bridge from LI to CT and a freight rail system east of the Hudson. But in order for that to happen we'd have to give up something. I don't want the city to stop funding public education, close more hospitals, shut down libraries, stop providing public housing or decide that the answer is less police or fire protection. So my question Rob and Benson is assuming we stop funding all landmarks grants (which I'm sure total less than a couple million a year), what would you be willing to give up to get your subway and other infrastructure?

Posted by: LC Arnett at September 18, 2009 3:22 PM in response to LPC Makes It Official at Alice & Agate Courts

Rob-

What is the matter with homeowners getting grants to from LPC? LPC has money set aside to assist qualified homeowners in historic districts with improvements that would otherwise be cost prohbitive given the guidelines of LPC. Why is this a bad thing?

Posted by: LC Arnett at September 18, 2009 10:55 AM in response to LPC Makes It Official at Alice & Agate Courts

"NYC is pretty much a democratic town but if anyone thinks the Republicans don't make robocalls, you are delusional. Think back to the robocall fiascos of the campaign run by Republicans. Everyone makes robocalls. Everyone. I've gotten tons of them from Bloomberg and I am sure as hell not a Republican."

Bxgrl-

I didn't say Republicans didn't make robocalls. I said that outside of the national elections, registered Republicans in NYC don't RECEIVE robocalls. The bottom line is that Republican candidates know they can't win in NYC by only getting Republican votes. Therefore, they focus on getting moderate Dems to vote for them. Ask any Republicans you know and they'll tell you they don't get calls every week leading up to local elections. No one cares about us.

Republicans in New York City. The lonliest people in the world...

Posted by: LC Arnett at September 16, 2009 2:45 PM in response to Democratic Primary Results

First, the last article linked above is from last year (September 2008).

Second, if you don't want robocalls register as a Republican, no one calls us outside of Presidential election years.

Third, Vann has been a waste of space for years. His agreement to swap his Assembly seat with the person holding the city council seat as a way to get around term limits was all but ignored by the media and his constituents when it happened. He's basically trying to pad his pension numbers at this point. Showing up for anything is beneath him, and his staff is a joke. But yet again, he gets elected. Which is a sign that those in the know in the district are all about looking out for themselves and have no interest in what is truly best for the community.

Posted by: LC Arnett at September 16, 2009 11:58 AM in response to Democratic Primary Results

Ditto what the chicken said, plus, in climbing you are supposed to use your largest muscles to do the majority of the work that means pushing with your legs and using your arms primarily for balance and stability. It takes a bit of getting used to because we are so conditioned to climb by pulling, but once you master that its fun and challenging.

Posted by: LC Arnett at July 23, 2009 11:14 AM in response to Gowanus Rock-Climbing Gym Readying Its Opening

Randolph- You are joking, right? They construct wood tanks by hand. Sawdust is a byproduct. The owner should not have wood in an open area when the entire business is building tanks out of wood? Please. And since when is someone in their twenties a kid?

Look, these jackasses were old enough to comprehend that it was forseeable that a roman candle shot onto someone's private property (house, business, etc) could cause a fire. That's why fireworks are ILLEGAL in NYC. Not to mention that there is a huge sign that says "Wood Tanks", so its not like they didn't know what was behind the fence. I hope that the cops identify who these idiots were, and that both the business owner and the insurance company sue these "kids" and their parents for every dime incurred in losses. This kind of behavior not only affects the business owner, but puts all the families that rely on this business to survive out of work as well.

Posted by: LC Arnett at July 6, 2009 10:21 AM in response to Rosenwach Fire The Morning After

"shalom Nagel?
Montrosse, maybe it is time to worry.
I doubt this is within walking distance of a good Orthodox shul."

It is actually within wallking distance of a bunch of good shuls. Remember 770 Eastern Parkway is the street address of the central headquarters of the Chabad-Lubavitch Hasidic movement in the US. This house is a mere four and a half blocks away. That having been said, as far as I know only a handful of hasidic families live on the northern side of EP and most of them live on the Parkway itself, and not deeper into the area. But, this is exactly the type of house large Hassidic families are looking for, so its not entirely out of the question that a hasidic family would purchase this property.

Posted by: LC Arnett at June 15, 2009 12:59 PM in response to 1094 Park Place Finally Sells

I call them "Romeo and Juliet balconies" since about the only thing you can do is stand on them and yell down to someone. Or, you can throw yourself off of them when you realize you paid a lot of money for your own pile of crap. Seriously, a balcony ought to be wide enough for a potted plant.

Here's the problem with these particular types of developments. They are usually-though not always-poorly designed and constructed. As such, serious buyers with money will chose to spend their $$s on places that are of higher quality and/or more astheticaly pleasing. So, these would make the most sense for renters living in older, poorly maintained building that are looking for newer construction in and around the communities they have always lived in. But the conversions from condos/co-ops to rentals means that the developers aren't able to get the returns they forcasted prior to the bubble bursting and they might need to be in the deal for many more years than originally projected.

So buildings sit empty while renters continue to have problems finding places and developers wait for the returns promised at the beginning of the Naughts. Everyone loses.

Posted by: LC Arnett at April 16, 2009 3:44 PM in response to Development Watch: 165 Havemeyer Street

I was thinking more about something like

http://www.brownstoner.com/brownstoner/archives/2008/04/foreclosure_of_7.php

or even something like this (although it is further north and $100k more)

http://www.brownstoner.com/brownstoner/archives/2008/12/house_of_the_da_607.php

Posted by: LC Arnett at February 23, 2009 3:38 PM in response to Condos of the Day: 417 Park Place

cwbuecheler- exactly! This isn't in PS, BH or prime Ft. Greene. This is off Washington Avenue. Closeset amenity is the Brooklyn North SVU. If you are going to live there for that price move another two blocks east and buy a house.

Posted by: LC Arnett at February 23, 2009 2:01 PM in response to Condos of the Day: 417 Park Place

You people are on crack. You can get a house for $899k in Brooklyn now. Why pay that for a duplex?

Posted by: LC Arnett at February 23, 2009 1:35 PM in response to Condos of the Day: 417 Park Place

So you end public housing. Then who is providing low cost housing? Do we revert to shantytowns?

Posted by: LC Arnett at November 18, 2008 7:20 PM in response to Tuesday Links

The story as I heard it was that the business was owned by two brothers. They decided to go their separate ways and one got the business while the other got the building. The one with the building then promptly sold it. No one got pushed out or run out, or was taken advantage of by Asshats.

Posted by: LC Arnett at November 13, 2008 10:53 PM in response to Streetlevel: Bye-Bye Bergen Tile

I believe that Eastern Parkway is the dividing line for police purposes. Everything on the north side is Brooklyn North and everything on the south side is Brooklyn South. Do we have any cops (or criminals) on here that can verify that?

Posted by: LC Arnett at October 20, 2008 11:52 AM in response to North Brooklyn Safer Than South Brooklyn?

I want to correct one assertion that was made earlier. My Jamaican grandparents came to the US in 1916 and settled on Glenarda Pl (a street which no longer exists) in Ft. Greene. My father was born in 1918 and the family moved to the area around Albany Ave and Fulton Street. Their block was extremely diverse with Italians, Jewish, Irish and Black families. According to my father and aunts, the Bed Stuy neighborhood they grew up in was 15-20% black and among that group there were southern blacks who moved north, caribbean families, as well as people who were third, fourth and fifth generation new yorkers.

My family is closing in on one hundred years of life in this area of Brooklyn. We've gone to school, married, raised children, purchased homes, opened businesses, and watched the neighborhood change in both good and bad ways. I for one, don't care who lives here so long as my neighbors are people who see this as their home, are vested in the community, respectful of its history, and respectful of the people who live around them. My issue is that it seems that a lot of people would like to move here and remake the neighborhood in their own image. "Why can't I find a decent bagel here?" and "Why is there a church on every corner? Who needs that many churches?" are just two of the questions that I've heard.

Part of what makes New York City what it is the the blending, melding, and forced interaction of people from a variety of races, places, and classes. Turning Brooklyn into Minneapolis, Ithaca, or Portland is going to negatively impact life here. I hope I never see that and that some of the flavor of the Bed-Stuy that exists today remains.

Posted by: LC Arnett at September 24, 2008 4:54 PM in response to New Bed-Stuy More Like Old Bed-Stuy?

Can you tell us what these are photos of? A couple of these look familiar to me, but I'd rather not guess.

Posted by: LC Arnett at September 19, 2008 3:02 PM in response to Brownstoner Book Club: Historic Photos of Brooklyn

Biff-

Let's say 15-20 minutes to BBG and another 5-10 to the park depending on how quickly you walk. I do it on a regular basis w/ a neighbor who says its about 3 miles although it feels a lot shorter than that.

Polemicist-

It was originally built as a single family. You need to see it in person, the exterior photos don't really do it justice.

Posted by: LC Arnett at September 12, 2008 3:24 PM in response to Open House Picks

Re: Man foound dead in bathtub. Can someone explain how the victim can have multiple stab wounds to the torso and yet "There is no criminality suspected"? Did the guy stab himself to death?

Posted by: LC Arnett at August 6, 2008 9:56 AM in response to Wednesday Links

Am I the only one confused by the pedestrian island that has appeared on Adams at the corner of Atlantic on the northbound side in front of the HOD?

The effect has been to create one lane for those turning left off Atlantic onto Adams and two lanes for those turning right off Adams. The first time I saw it was a couple of weeks ago and everytime I drive by, there are more tire tracks and skidmarks on it where cars have driven up on the thing. DOT put up one of those black and yellow striped signs on it to make it more obvious and that was also knocked down.

It was only three lanes of traffic before the median, and the lights were timed so that cars were not turning at the same time. Why exactly was $20k of cement needed when pedestrians only have to cross three lanes before they reach the median? The light is timed to allow pedestrians to make it across six lanes of traffic, so that even the elderly or those with strollers, small children etc should have been able to make it to the median.

Posted by: LC Arnett at July 23, 2008 3:06 PM in response to Boerum Place Median A Wrap