House of the Day: 145 Van Dyke Street
Houses in Red Hook don’t come on the market that often because, well, there just aren’t that many of them. They tend to be a little quirky, often in a good way. Take today’s HOTD at 145 Van Dyke Street. To start with, the house is set back 40 feet or so from the street,…
Houses in Red Hook don’t come on the market that often because, well, there just aren’t that many of them. They tend to be a little quirky, often in a good way. Take today’s HOTD at 145 Van Dyke Street. To start with, the house is set back 40 feet or so from the street, with a sizeable garage in front of it. The interiors have a certain charm to them as well — pulling off the modern/traditional straddle. The dark beams set against the crisp white ceilings and walls feel out of the pages of a magazine shoot. The whole house isn’t quite as stylized, though: the bathroom looks perfectly ordinary. Another bonus: The owners of this house are among the few people who could walk to Fairway. As for the $1,195,000 asking price, we have to admit to not having strong feelings about. What do you think?
145 Van Dyke Street [Corcoran] GMAP P*Shark
AQ – get the hell out of here with that shit….I cant believe you sent us an essay and you’re really trying to sell us Baltimore realestate.
How lame!
http://www.conklinmerbler.com/732ann.htm
Same house as listing in my post above, but a better description with more pictures.
For people who are interested in living in Red Hook, I have to ask you: have you ever considered living in another city, with a small town feel, with a harbor, or some kind of water access, cobblestone streets, a great grocery store, without projects next door, with actual mass transportation?
Baltimore, Philadelphia, Washington D.C.; sure, none of these cities are as vibrant as New York, but then, Red Hook itself is not really all that vibrant to begin with. Besides day trippers, the occasional artist, Fairway shoppers, and the project residents, every time I have walked around there, I’ve been amazed at how few people are on the street and how desolate in general it is.
When you pay a million or more to live somewhere, I would expect, not only basic amenities, but an interesting neighborhood, filled with unique, or identifiable architecture, lively streets, a decent set of bars and restaurants, etc. Red Hook’s architecture is not terribly unique for New York City, let alone much of the east coast, its streets are quiet, to the point of being moribund, and there are 5, maybe 7 (?) bars and restaurants there.
Each of the above cities has at least one great art museum, one great symphony, and an abundance of indepedent concert halls and galleries.
Look what you can find in Baltimore for less: http://www.coldwellbanker.com/servlet/PropertyListing?action=detail&ComColdwellbankerDataProperty_id=10673309&page=property
What really perplexes me is how many of the people I’ve met or know who live in RH, talk about how they’re artists, and don’t need to commute or leave the neighborhood much. If you don’t leave your neighborhood much, which is fine by all means, why Red Hook in New York City, and not Fells Point in Baltimore, Northern Liberties in Philly, or Dupont Circle or Georgetown in D.C.? (I’m simply picking those from personal experience; I’m sure people from other parts of the country could name several as well). You could buy a house (or sometimes two) for the above price in all those neighborhoods, and you’d save plenty on living expenses. And Baltimore actually has a WORKING waterfront and a harbor where people actually sail and boat.
that should read “note the etc.”
Linus, I was talking generally about RH at that point. I go on to talk specifically about the house. I looked extensively in Clinton Hill, Park Slope (where I lived and owned for well over a decade), Fort Greene, Boreum Hill and Carroll Gardens (where I also lived previously), in addition to Red Hook. And the opportunities in Red Hook were much greater in terms of how far my money could go and what I would get for it. A lot of people are buying and fixing up houses in RH. But they’re not the kind of slick renos that are often featured here. But they are interesting and creative.
And I hate to disapoint you 3:01 but I really do like living in RH. I moved here knowing exactly what I was getting in to, and more importantly exactly what I wanted to get out of. I owned in Park Slope (and a spacious apartment in a good building in the center slope right near the park) and had no reason to move here other than I wanted to. It’s like what one of the posters said earlier this week about PLG: move there because you like what it has to offer now, not because of what you think it might be some day. If it’s not right for you that’s fine, if you don’t cotton to its charms, so be it; but don’t try to rewrite what I’m saying just because you’re incredulous.
I know LoveTheHook, I broke the first rule about Red Hook . . .
kitten and lovethehook:
i guessed you just didn’t read where i wrote “car repair shops, ETC.”, not the etc. So I shouldn’t have pluralized the words “shops” but there are other car-related businesses there, mostly dealing with parts and supplies…there is no such thing as prime red hook, and if there was, this ain’t it. this block has maybe four or five residential homes…that’s prime? gimme a break.
Uhh Eryxfjsjfej,
Chill out my man, its not that serious.
what’s more ridiculous 3:07 is this person’s attitude is typical of the Nueva Rico of New York City. “low-density lifestyle”? You can see the same mentality in the rest of the rich who buy these knock-downs – they really want a piece of the LAND of this city and it doesn’t matter what they live in, as long as no one else can live there.
We can see that in the in this wreck of a city, people living in the shadow of the great dynamic city that once was, they lack the means, the ability, and the vision to actual create anything of value. What they know is everyone wants to live here and simply being in a neighborhood no one else can afford is all that really matters.
It’s sick.
It’s fitting most of these people make their money through usury. They aren’t really rich. Their financial games and debt instruments rob everyone of truth wealth, including them. We’ll never see functional, beautiful pieces of architecture until the entire sick system of usury is eliminated from our society.
Then, and only then, can we beging to build a future and not merely parasitize the past.
ooops
i meant between Van Brunt + Conover not Coffey.