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What Price Admirals Row? $2 Million
The deed for Admirals Row was recorded in pubic records yesterday, and it reveals that the city paid $2 million to “The United States of America” for the 6-acre site, which has an official address of 2 Wallabout Street. The deed also contained a couple other interesting tidbits. For one, it documents that one of the buildings on the site, #198, was demolished in December 2010 (it’s pictured above) and that some soil with high levels of PCB had to be removed from where the building stood; it also says that construction debris containing asbestos was removed from the area north of the Timber Shed last May. Not surprising, but the two pieces of information bring to mind that the developing the site will involve a not-inconsiderable level of environmental remediation. The other noteworthy thing included in the deed is a diagram of all the Admiral’s Row buildings; click through to see it.
Shedding a Final Tear for Admirals Row [Brownstoner]
Transfer of Admirals Row to City a Done Deal [Brownstoner] (more…)
01/31/2012 9:00 AM
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Rental of the Day: 80 Grand Avenue
Grand Avenue, between Park and Myrtle avenues, has seen a crop of new developments go up in the past year or so, including this rental building at 80 Grand Avenue. We’ve always been curious about how much newer units in the area rent for. This two bedroom is asking $2,850/month. The apartment looks standard but well-done. The building also has a health club, roof terrace and parking. Think it’s worth the rent?
80 Grand Avenue [Viza Group Real Estate] GMAP P*Shark
01/26/2012 12:32 PM
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Is Wallabout Having a Moment?
This weekend’s “Living In” column in the real estate section of the Times is about Wallabout, with the article making the case the area sandwiched between the northern boundaries of Clinton Hill and Fort Greene and below the Navy Yard has been “coming into its own of late”—or, that it’s increasingly being seen as an actual, and desirable, residential neighborhood. Evidence in support of this view includes the recent landmarking of a block in the neighborhood; the construction of the Navy Green development; new restaurants and businesses that have come to Myrtle Avenue; and Pratt and the Navy Yard’s ongoing investments in the area. A broker says the average house price in Wallabout is $975,000. Some residents and neighborhood leaders are raising concerns about longtime residents getting pushed out. Adam Friedman, director of the Pratt Center for Community Development, is quoted as saying the following: “It does feel like the area is primed, but we want to make sure the development doesn’t lead to displacement.”
Where History Meets Industry [NY Times]
01/23/2012 10:30 AM
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A Tour of the Navy Green’s 45 Clermont
Yesterday we toured 45 Clermont, the first completed building in the Navy Green development, where move-ins just began. There were more than 13,000 applications for apartments in the 100-unit affordable rental building. The building has high-end finishes, spacious apartments, a community room, bike storage and a nice outdoor space. The outdoor space will expand as the development does, eventually with a public plaza fronting Flushing Avenue. The next two buildings in the development are expected to be finished this year. The red building on Vanderbilt will begin renting in a few months. After that, construction should wrap on the third building, on Flushing and Clermont, in September. That building will also be affordable, but with a higher income bracket and units up to three bedrooms. It’ll also have ground-floor commercial space. Beyond the first three buildings, a market-rate condo on Vanderbilt and Flushing is planned, as well as 23 single-family townhouses that will be built on both Clermont and Vanderbilt. The whole shebang will take another three years to complete. So far, though, everything’s looking good.
Move-Ins Have Begun at First Navy Green Building [Brownstoner]
01/12/2012 10:00 AM
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Move-Ins Have Begun at First Navy Green Building
According to the developer of Navy Green, move-ins started during the last week of December at 45 Clermont Avenue, the first completed building of the multi-property development. The building is a 100-unit affordable rental building. The second Navy Green building, 40 Vanderbilt Avenue, should be complete by February or March. The Pratt Area Community Council is renting out affordable studio apartments to individuals and the chronically homeless. A lottery for affordable units at a third building in the complex, 7 Clermont Avenue, should take place this summer.
Applications Available for 45 Clermont’s Affordable Rentals [45 Clermont]
01/06/2012 10:00 AM
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Art Collective Uprooting Over Neighbors’ Complaints
The group of artists known as Rubulad that has been throwing popular parties in a warehouse on Classon and Flushing since 2005 is looking for a new home following complaints from Hasidic neighbors, according to the Brooklyn Paper. The article says Orthodox neighbors have “complained about scantily costumed revelers,” so they’re looking for a more welcoming area to throw their parties. One of its founders says the complaints are overblown: “The people surrounding us felt really upset about ‘public nudity,’ which was actually just people wearing shorts.” The group has a Kickstarter campaign going to raise funds for the move to a new space.
Hasids Chase Party Space Out of Neighborhood [BK Paper]
12/08/2011 12:00 PM
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Third Building at Navy Green Tops Off
The third building to go up at the Navy Green along Flushing Avenue has topped off. Construction began on this 12-story, 112-unit build in February. According to early permits it’ll also have ground-floor commercial space. We wonder if the red facade will match the neighboring build 40 Vanderbilt. GMAP DOB
11/29/2011 2:40 PM
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Past and Present: The BQE at Washington and Park
A Look at Brooklyn, then and now.
Robert Moses had proposed a highway connecting Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx, as early as the mid-1930’s. Unlike some of his other parkways, the BQE was always designed to hold both commercial and non-commercial traffic, and was as much a vehicle for inter-borough commercial traffic as it was supposed to be a great connector of boroughs for the public.
In 1939, Brooklynites were able to cross the brand new Triborough Bridge, and motor to the 1939-40 World’s Fair in Flushing Meadow, Queens. By the 1940, Moses planned linking the Kosciuszko Bridge crossing to the Williamsburg and Manhattan Bridges, extending the BQE through the neighborhood of Williamsburg and Greenpoint. World War II put that idea on hold, and it wasn’t until 1946 that the project was continued in earnest, until its completion, in 1960. (more…)
11/11/2011 10:30 AM
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Residents Talk Safety Improvements for Park Avenue
Last night the Myrtle Avenue Brooklyn Partnership held a community workshop that involved proposing safety improvements for the stretch of Park Avenue between Navy and Stueben streets. We weren’t able to make it, but MARP Executive Director Blaise Backer gave us the lowdown. He said rather than proposing “pie in the sky” improvements, participants focused on practical matters, like the need for traffic signals, better signal timing and more crosswalks. Residents said the eastern end of Park Avenue, near Stueben, was of particular concern because of its dangerous merging and low visibility. The was also talk of how high volumes of traffic pass the nearby schools, and a back and forth on the need for bike lanes, since the greenway on Flushing Avenue is close by. Architecture for Humanity New York hosted the meeting and will use the recommendations and notes for a draft proposal on safety improvements. The recommendations, which should be pulled together early in the new year, will ultimately be passed up to city officials. Anything in particular you’d like to see improved on Park Avenue? Check out pictures of the meeting here.
11/04/2011 12:00 PM
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Former Navy Yard Cocktail Lounge Gets Glassy
The building at 38-44 Washington Avenue, at Flushing Avenue, looks a lot different than it did when it was the Navy Yard Cocktail Lounge. The ground-floor is being renovated into a new eating/drinking establishment, and the upper floors are being renovated for residential use. The building sold for $2,000,000 a year ago.
New Restaurant Coming to Flushing and Washington [Brownstoner]
Navy Yard Lounge Building Finds Taker [Brownstoner] GMAP
Curtains for Navy Yard Cocktail Lounge [Brownstoner]
10/24/2011 2:40 PM
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Building of the Day: 83 Vanderbilt Avenue
Brooklyn, one building at a time.
Name: Flats Building
Address: 83 Vanderbilt Avenue
Cross Streets: Myrtle and Park Avenues
Neighborhood: Wallabout
Year Built: 1850
Architectural Style: Italianate
Architect: Unknown
Landmarked: Yes, Wallabout HD (2011)
The story: You should have seen us out there, that rainy March morning, early this year. About 20 dedicated souls willing to be soaked by a heavy rain, in order to follow Andrew Dolkart around Wallabout, learning about this fascinating neighborhood.(It eventually stopped raining.) As watchers of Brooklyn real estate and history, we often reduce neighborhoods to their desirability in today’s market, and totally miss the historic significance of a place. That’s what happened, in part, to Wallabout. Instead of “too far from the subway”, or “too close to the BQE”, we were learning about the architecture and the people who built the waterfront, the Navy Yard, and the industrial hub that surrounds both. It was a fascinating lesson. (more…)
10/04/2011 3:30 PM
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Council OKs Wallabout Historic District
On Wednesday the City Council voted to approve the Wallabout Historic District, which is comprised of 55 wood and masonry buildings on one block of Vanderbilt Avenue between Myrtle and Park avenues. The homes were constructed during the mid-to-late 19th century and are a mixture of Greek Revival, Gothic Revival and Italianate styles. The LPC voted to approve the district back in July, a move that followed the designation of Wallabout state historic district this March. Patch notes that the homes that make up the Wallabout Historic District “represent one of the largest remaining concentrations of wood-frame houses in the entire city.”
City Council Approves Wallabout Historic District [Patch]
LPC Approves Wallabout Historic District [Brownstoner]
09/23/2011 10:15 AM
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House Listed for $2.2M Goes for $700K at Auction
PropertyShark alerts to the curious case of 33 Vanderbilt Avenue, a Navy Yard-area house that sold for $700,000 at auction last week (click through to see a record of the auction result). Until recently, the house was on the market for $2.2 million, with the listing calling it “truly grandiose: 3 Family used as a huge 1 family” and saying it had been fully renovated. The lien going into the foreclosure auction was $536,492, and though there was a second mortgage of $425,000 taken in 2007 that a lis pendens was filed on the same year, it’s unclear whether that lis pendens is still active. Is it possible someone just got a really great deal on this one?
33 Vanderbilt Ave [PropertyShark] GMAP (more…)
09/14/2011 11:00 AM
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More Affordable Units Available at Navy Green
The Pratt Area Community Council is now accepting applications for affordable apartments at the second building that will be completed at the Navy Green complex in Wallabout, 40 Vanderbilt. There are 38 studio apartments available that, according to a press release, will go to single adults with incomes ranging from $21,774 to $28,650. Monthly rents run between $492 and $664. More details about the application process are available on the development’s website. The building will also have another 59 units reserved for individuals who have been chronically homeless. On-site social services will be available to all residents and provided by the nonprofit Brooklyn Community Housing and Services. This round of applications comes about a month after the lottery began for units at another Navy Green building, 45 Clermont. A lottery for affordable units at a third building in the complex, 7 Clermont Avenue, should take place next summer.
40 Vanderbilt [Official Site]
Lottery Coming for Navy Green Rental [Brownstoner]
09/13/2011 11:00 AM
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Lottery Coming for Affordable Navy Green Rental
The Eagle reminds that applications for the first building at the Navy Green complex, 45 Clermont, are due on September 6th. The lottery is for 100 affordable rentals that run from $461 to $942 a month; they’ll go to applicants making between 40 and 60 percent of the area median income. The rental is part of the larger mixed-use Navy Green complex where three buildings are presently in various phases of construction. The development will have a total of 460 residential units when it’s finished, as well as retail and a community facility. The Eagle says the next Navy Green lottery, for 111 units at 7 Clermont Avenue, will probably take place next summer.
Lottery Apps Due for Navy Green Project [Eagle]
45 Clermont [Official Site]
A Tour of the Under-Construction Navy Green [Brownstoner]
08/16/2011 11:00 AM
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A Tour of the Under-Construction Navy Green
It’s been tough to keep up with everything happening at Navy Green, the large development that’ll someday boast 460 residential units as well as substantial commercial space. The first completed building, at 45 Clermont, is an affordable rental. Across the street, fronting Vanderbilt, an interesting red-and-white brick facade is bring put into place on the second building. (Construction started in December.) And, finally, the third building now being constructed, at 130 Flushing Avenue, has almost reached full height. Permits were first approved for the 12-story structure, which will have ground-floor commercial space, in January. When all’s said and done, the project will consist of four buildings and 23 townhomes.
Development Watch: Navy Green Trio [Brownstoner]
Development Watch: Navy Green Shows Itself [Brownstoner]
More Progress at the Navy Green [Brownstoner]
Another Building Green-lighted for Navy Green [Brownstoner]
08/12/2011 11:30 AM
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Development Watch: 38-44 Washington Avenue
There is something of a “yard sale” outside of 38-44 Washington Avenue, at Flushing, the former Navy Cocktail Lounge now getting gutted. The owner of the building is selling a spiral staircase and giving away a few other knick-knacks as demolition on the storefront continues. The ground-floor will remain an eating and drinking establishment and the upper floors are being renovated into apartments. The building sold for $2,000,000 last October.
New Restaurant Coming to Flushing and Washington [Brownstoner]
Navy Yard Lounge Building Finds Taker [Brownstoner] GMAP
Curtains for Navy Yard Cocktail Lounge [Brownstoner]
08/11/2011 2:40 PM
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Building of the Day: 44-60 Ryerson Street
Brooklyn, one building at a time.
Name: Industrial buildings
Address: 44-60 Ryerson St.
Cross Streets: Park and Flushing Avenues
Neighborhood: Wallabout
Year Built: 1907-1912
Architectural Style: Reinforced concrete factory
Architect: Albert Kahn
Other buildings by architect: Most of his career in Detroit area– Ford and Packard Motor Plants, much of U. of Mich. at Ann Arbor, Detroit area mansions, office buildings and manufacturing plants.
Landmarked: No, not yet.
The story: The Mergenthaler Linotype Company was one of the largest and most important manufacturers in Brooklyn’s history. Founded in 1886, by Ottmar Mergenthaler, linotype machines were invented to set type. Instead of a typesetter laying down individual letters to make a line of type, the machine created bars with groups of letters, called slugs, which could then be combined to create a page of type. This enabled a typesetter to set a page must faster and more accurately than before, making it perfect for newspapers and magazines. By the 20th century, almost all of the newspapers and magazines, as well as many other books and publications, were set on Linotype machines. Mergenthaler made those machines. (more…)
08/01/2011 3:30 PM
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Rental of the Day: 71 Washington Avenue
This first-floor unit at 71 Washington Avenue in Wallabout is a commercial rental, but it’s a cool space in a good location. You could do plenty with the 2,800 square feet on offer, and we could see the interior simply being left as it is for something like a gallery space. The location, between Park and Flushing avenues, is gritty, but the enormous Navy Green development nearby is sure to bring more foot traffic to the area. The asking rent is $4,250/month. Any commercial real estate pros care to weigh in on that number?
71 Washington Avenue [Stribling] GMAP P*Shark
08/01/2011 12:30 PM
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Steiner Head Talks About Studio’s Big Picture
The Local ran an interview with Steiner Studios honcho Douglas Steiner about the Navy Yard facility’s plans for the future, particularly its big expansion that includes the creation of several new sound stages and its partnership with Brooklyn College that will result in a graduate film school. Steiner says five new production stages should be completed by next May, allowing the studio to draw bigger feature films and that they’ll “be able to do more outdoor sets that mirror key New York neighborhoods – Chinatown, Wall Street, Midtown, Brownstone Brooklyn.” Steiner also says that aside from the partnership with Brooklyn College, he’s also in talks with Carnegie Mellon for the university to bring “their entertainment technology programs here.” And, finally, this impressive stat is trotted out: The studio expects to have around 6,000 people working there within the next 10-12 years.
Beyond the Fence: Q&A with Doug Steiner [The Local]
07/28/2011 9:30 AM
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Feb 06, 2012 | 12:32 PM