Building of the Day: 251 Sterling Place
The BOTD is a no-frills look at interesting structures of all types and from all neighborhoods. There will be old, new, important, forgotten, public, private, good and bad. Whatever strikes our fancy. We hope you enjoy. Address: 251 Sterling Place, corner of Vanderbilt Avenue Name: Public School 9 Annex Neighborhood: Prospect Heights Year Built: 1895…
The BOTD is a no-frills look at interesting structures of all types and from all neighborhoods. There will be old, new, important, forgotten, public, private, good and bad. Whatever strikes our fancy. We hope you enjoy.
Address: 251 Sterling Place, corner of Vanderbilt Avenue
Name: Public School 9 Annex
Neighborhood: Prospect Heights
Year Built: 1895
Architectural Style: Romanesque Revival with classical accents
Architect: James Naughton
Landmarked: Yes, individual landmark (1978), also National Register of Historic Places
Why chosen: James Naughton was the Superintendent of Buildings of the Brooklyn School System between 1879 and his death in 1898. During that time, he was the sole architect of over 100 Brooklyn school buildings, many of which still stand.
In my opinion, his masterpiece is Boys High School in Bed Stuy, followed by Girls High, also in Bed Stuy, and this building, the P.S. 9 Annex. It was built to house the overflow from P.S. 9, a much smaller building built in 1868, which is across the street.
The population of Prospect Heights had greatly expanded in the years between 1868 and 1895, as the entire area was developed into fine rowhouse blocks in the late ’80s-’90s, all anchored to the success of Prospect Park and the Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Science, now the Brooklyn Museum.
The classical detail in the columns, capitals and ornament of this building are a nod to the museum’s Beaux-Arts classical design, while staying anchored to a very attractive Romanesque Revival core.
The building is sandstone and brick, an H shaped structure, with all of the protruding dormers, towers, chimneys, colonnets and terra-cotta ornament that Naughton loved, and used so well, especially in his Boys High School.
This building is much more restrained, but escapes the gloomy fate of many large Victorian institutions by the use of a light pinkish sandstone, terra-cotta, and brick, with exuberant ornamentation and lots and lots of windows.
Those, of course, have practical applications, as electric lights were just coming into wide usage, and windows also provided air and ventilation.
The building had been decommissioned as a school by the time it was landmarked in 1978, and was being used by various community organizations. It became residential co-ops in the late 1980s/early 1990s and now has 21 units.
It remains one of Prospect Heights’ most beautiful buildings.
All photographs by Suzanne Spellen
Early-20th-century photo via Brooklyn Public Library
1920s photograph via Brooklyn Public Library
My mistake Montrose. I must have skipped over it when I was skimming through past BOTD posts. Thanks!
I’m no fan of Ratner’s but this building was falling apart when it was a community center. It’s better as housing and the folks displaced by Metrotech got a nice deal. I’m happy for them.
Thanks, Snark. I’ll check it out. I appreciate the tip.
Blayze, I’ve featured that building several times. I have to check to see if I did a BOTD on it. I’ll post some links. It’s one of my favorites, as well.
Nice building, not big on the fact that Ratner ousted local groups to use it as housing for displaced Metrotech housing but nonetheless, lovely building. I fear the interior is probably a gutted mess of sorts but at least the facade retains the charm.
Anyway, as a future building of the day suggestion, would you consider profiling the Hebron Seventh Day Adventist Church and School? It’s on 920 Park Place in Crown Heights. It’s really an amazing piece of Victorian architecture.
Hi Montrose…
I just heard about the “soft launch” of a photo archive by the The Museum of the City of New York:
– http://collections.mcny.org/
You can browse by borough, era or photographer. Based on the Rights & Reproductions page, it looks like there would be a fee to use images on Brownstoner, but I think you’ll enjoy the archive as a personal resource at the very least.
I believe Aaron Copland attended elementary school here. His parents owned a general goods store on Washington Ave and the family lived upstairs.
Guess who did this conversion? Forest City Ratner, displacing various community organizations that had used the building as meeting space and offices. And guess wo some of the initial buyers were? Residents who were diaplaced by the Rat to build Metrotech – he bought them out by covering all or part of their downpayment (or sometimes more) on the apartments. Too bad the rent stabilized tenants forced out by AY only got three years’ rent payments and a promised first crack at those “affordable” apartments that will most likely never be built.
Of course, Norm Oder pointed this out long ago, quoting from the NY Times:
“‘One of the most controversial buildings is the old Public School 9, known locally as ”old nine.” The 1895 structure was renovated last year by the Forest City-Ratner Companies, who turned it into 22 apartments, selling for $92,000 for a small one-bedroom to $504,000 for a 2,300-square-foot, three-bedroom. Although the building needed repairs when the developers took it over, it had been a city-owned community center controlled by the Prospect Heights Neighborhood Corporation.
Ms. Bowers sees the sale as a betrayal. ”We have no place to have those programs we were providing for our children and senior citizens,” she says.
Borough President Howard Golden acknowledges that some displacement has taken place but maintains that his administration has kept this to a minimum. He said redevelopment was inevitable because the building of several large office complexes nearby is creating new jobs.’
Note: it’s hardly clear that the development of MetroTech, which mainly served to accommodate government agencies and New York employers that might have moved to New Jersey, created jobs that led to displacement. Rather, displacement was more likely the result of general gentrification. Among those housed at P.S. 9 were those Forest City Ratner bought out to create MetroTech.”
http://atlanticyardsreport.blogspot.com/2006/10/21-years-of-prospect-heights-blight.html
Still in all, the preservation of this gorgeous building is a godsend – if Ward’s Bakery had been so protected, perhaps he could have done the same thing there. That wouldn’t have been bad.
Very close friends of mine live in this building. The apartments are amazing. I’m always looking for something to come up for sale, but very little turnover.
Love love love that building!