Brooklyn

After thousands of New Yorkers lost power this weekend as temperatures soared through the 90s, the city looked to Con Ed for answers, including Mayor Bill De Blasio, who said in a Monday briefing that he was "extremely disappointed" in the utility provider, Gothamist reports. The latest shortfall, which saw over 50,000 customers in a swath of southeast Brooklyn without power this weekend, was apparently no accident; Con Ed throttled power to its customers in a "preemptive move to take those customers in southeast Brooklyn out of service in order to protect vital equipment and to help restore power as soon as possible."
What's the story, Con Ed?

City Living

July 19, 2019

Where I Work: Inside Monarch Theater, Williamsburg’s new modern Asian restaurant

By 6sqft

"Asian fusion" is undoubtedly one of the most popular categories on Seamless, but for restauranteurs Lawrence and Ayako Elliott, it wasn't about following the trends. "When we went out to dinner, we ate mostly [East] Asian food... so we wanted to create a menu that we would find interesting," Lawrence told 6sqft. And this is exactly what they did at their Metropolitan Avenue restaurant Monarch Theater, which opened in February. Not only is the food influenced by traditional East Asian cuisine, but the design of the two-story restaurant--which the Elliots worked on themselves--was inspired by the former theater that occupied the site. Ahead, take a look around and learn more about this new Williamsburg gem.
Look around!

Rent a polished Fort Greene one bedroom with a wood-burning fireplace for $3K/month

Listing images by Russ Ross; courtesy of The Corcoran Group

July 18, 2019

Rent a polished Fort Greene one bedroom with a wood-burning fireplace for $3K/month

This one bedroom on the third floor of a four-story co-op at 416 Clermont Avenue is "nestled in the treetops in prime Fort Greene," per the listing. Judging from the green views out the windows, that description isn't far off. The charming apartment was recently renovated to reflect more modern tastes but it held on to some of it's best prewar details, like the wood-burning fireplace with a carved marble mantle in the living room. The unit is now available to rent for $3,000 a month.
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Distinctive Homes

Nostalgia trains to roll into Coney Island this weekend

Photos via the New York Transit Museum

July 18, 2019

Nostalgia trains to roll into Coney Island this weekend

By Nicole Mondrus

This weekend, both history buffs and New Yorkers looking to hit the beach can ride on one of the NY Transit Museum’s vintage subway cars. Part of the museum’s “Nostalgia Rides,” on Saturday, passengers can board 1910s BMT B-Type Standards and 1930s IND R1-9 cars and ride them from the 96th Street/2nd Avenue station in Manhattan all the way to Coney Island.
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LPC approves Bjarke Ingels’ plan for a rooftop addition at a Brooklyn Heights landmark

Rendering via LPC

July 18, 2019

LPC approves Bjarke Ingels’ plan for a rooftop addition at a Brooklyn Heights landmark

The Landmarks Preservation Commission on Tuesday approved plans from starchitect Bjarke Ingels to build a rooftop addition at a landmarked building in Brooklyn Heights. As part of a penthouse renovation of the 29th and 30th floors of the St. George Tower at 111 Hicks Street, Ingels would construct a fake water tower to hold a new elevator shaft, raise the roof deck, and add a pool. As first reported by Brownstoner, the Danish architect, whose firm is known for New York City projects like The Eleventh and the Spiral, presented his plan to the commission as a personal project. "I have a massive self-interest because I hope to make it my home," he said.
See the plans

July 17, 2019

$3.65M Williamsburg townhouse with an in-ground pool is a summer retreat in the city

Having a private, in-ground pool is a luxury of which most New Yorkers can only dream. If you have the budget to scoop up this $3.65 million townhouse at 35 Devoe Street, your summer days would receive a major upgrade. In addition to the large pool and backyard oasis, the Williamsburg pad is pretty impressive on the inside too. A recent renovation transformed the 3,822-square-foot home with a crisp, minimal aesthetic that’ll be easy to transition into, regardless of your style.
More details

Distinctive Homes

Tribeca stays on top and Hudson Yards emerges as #2 on the city’s priciest neighborhood list

Photo: Ajay Suresh via Flickr.

July 16, 2019

Tribeca stays on top and Hudson Yards emerges as #2 on the city’s priciest neighborhood list

According to Property Shark's just-released ranking of New York City's most expensive neighborhoods, Tribeca once again takes the top spot in residential sales with a median price of $4.34 million. The bigger news is Hudson Yards, on the list for the first time as the city's second-costliest neighborhood in Q2 of 2019 at $3.86 million. Also notable was Little Italy, the city's third most expensive neighborhood, which saw median home prices increase by 153 percent over last year's numbers.
More of the list, this way

Real Estate Trends

Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory proposes new stand just steps from old Fulton Ferry spot

Rendering by Edward M. Weinstein Architecture + Planning, courtesy of the LPC

July 16, 2019

Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory proposes new stand just steps from old Fulton Ferry spot

Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory will open a new stand in Dumbo, just steps from its former home at Fulton Ferry Landing. After 17 years of operation in the landmarked Marine Fire Boat Station, the ice cream shop was not chosen by the Brooklyn Bridge Park during last year's request for proposals process. Instead, the organization went with Ample Hills Creamery as the building's new tenant. But according to Brooklyn Eagle, Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory filed plans with the Landmarks Preservation Commission to open a new stand across the street from its old home.
Get the details

Food & Dining

July 16, 2019

Citi Bike reveals new expansion plans that keep Queens, Bronx, Upper Manhattan waiting on wheels

Citi Bike has revealed details for the much-anticipated rollout of the popular bike share program with plans to double its reach with docks in the Bronx and more of Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens. But according to maps and information released in a Tuesday morning meeting obtained by Streetsblog, large swaths of the city won't see the blue bikes for four more years. As the NY Post reported, some see the Citi Bike rollout as heavily weighted toward more affluent NYC districts, which prompted a letter from several New York City Council members to the NYC Department of Transportation asking for assurance that expansion plans include low-income neighborhoods.
Where will the next blue bikes be?

Transit

Try out townhouse living with this $8.5K/month Clinton Hill home, complete with a huge backyard

Listing images by Amanda James, DDReps; courtesy of Compass

July 16, 2019

Try out townhouse living with this $8.5K/month Clinton Hill home, complete with a huge backyard

Since it last sold in 2016 for $2.35 million, the five-bedroom, three-bathroom townhouse at 12a Monroe Street (located right on the Clinton Hill, Bed-Stuy border) has undergone some key layout changes to maximize the home’s narrow 14-foot width and make it feel as spacious as possible. Now on the rental market seeking $8,500 a month, the 2,568 square-foot home boasts eight marble mantels, pocket shutters, wide plank floors, a gorgeous center staircase, and an expansive 52-foot backyard.
Take a look inside

Distinctive Homes

For $6K/month, a trendy loft studio with a piano in Williamsburg’s popular Mill Building

Listing images courtesy of Compass

July 15, 2019

For $6K/month, a trendy loft studio with a piano in Williamsburg’s popular Mill Building

A loft in Williamsburg’s popular Mill Building at 85 North 3rd Street—just a few blocks from the waterfront—is now available to rent for $6,000 a month. The trendy abode has all the details loft lovers look for: soaring 15-foot ceilings, exposed brick, wood columns and beams, and large windows. The open layout is currently set up as a studio, but with over 1,000 square feet there's plenty of space to play around with. The apartment can come fully furnished or vacant—the only permanent fixture is the Yamaha upright piano next to the kitchen, making this pad extra sweet for musicians.
Look inside

Distinctive Homes

Lottery opens for a handful of middle-income units in East Williamsburg, from $1,689/month

Rendering courtesy of Reside New York

July 12, 2019

Lottery opens for a handful of middle-income units in East Williamsburg, from $1,689/month

If you don't mind waiting out the L train "slowdown," this opportunity might be for you. The lottery is now open for eight newly constructed, middle-income units at 150 Meserole Street in Williamsburg, just two blocks from the Montrose Avenue station. The apartments in the brand-new building are available to households earning 130 percent of the area median income and range from $1,689/month for a studio to $2,189/month for two-bedrooms.
More details

Affordable Housing

Boerum Hill residents sue to undo 80 Flatbush rezoning as tower plans advance

Rendering via Alloy Development and Luxigon.

July 12, 2019

Boerum Hill residents sue to undo 80 Flatbush rezoning as tower plans advance

Nearly a year after the New York City Council voted to approve 80 Flatbush, a five-building mixed-use development in Downtown Brooklyn, a group of Boerum Hill residents has mounted a court battle to halt the rise of tall buildings on the site and roll back the rezoning that allows them. As the Brooklyn Eagle reports, the 400 & 500 State Street Block Association, comprised mainly of residents who live in the neighborhood's sprinkling of low-rise brownstones, have filed a lawsuit seeking the annulment of the 2018 zoning changes that gave the green light to an 840-foot skyscraper, a 510-foot tower, 670 market-rate apartments and 200 affordable units, two public schools and office and retail space on the property, which is bounded by State Street, Third Avenue, Schermerhorn Street and Flatbush Avenue.
More details, this way

Real Estate Trends

Lottery opens for 93 affordable units at Bedford Arms complex in Crown Heights, from $590/month

image via Google Earth

July 11, 2019

Lottery opens for 93 affordable units at Bedford Arms complex in Crown Heights, from $590/month

Applications are now being accepted in the lottery for 93 newly-constructed rental apartments at Bedford Arms at 1336 Bedford Avenue, Crown Heights, Brooklyn. The new building's 93 units are available to households earning between 40 percent and 165 percent of the area median income, ranging from $590/month one-bedrooms to $3,060/month three-bedrooms.
All the details, this way

Affordable Housing

Image via Google Maps

July 11, 2019

Historic Downtown Brooklyn townhouse with strong abolitionist ties in danger of demolition

Just across the street from Willoughby Park, where the city is planning a memorial to commemorate the abolitionist history of Downtown Brooklyn, the townhouse at 227 Duffield Place—once the home of prominent abolitionists Thomas and Harriet Truesdell and believed to be a stop on the Underground Railroad—is facing an uncertain future. As Brownstoner reported, demolition plans were filed with the city’s Department of Buildings on June 5 and an eviction notice has been posted at the site.
More details

History

Temporary “pop-up park” opens at future site of Willoughby Square Park

Images courtesy of EDC

July 10, 2019

Temporary “pop-up park” opens at future site of Willoughby Square Park

As plans for a permanent park at Willoughby Square go forward, a temporary green space at the same site has opened to the public. The 15,000-square-foot "pop-up park" will provide a green escape for the local community until the end of the summer in 2020, at which point construction will commence on the permanent, 1.15-acre park scheduled for completion by 2022.
More views and details

Architecture And Design

Operators of Coney Island’s Luna Park will lead retail transformation of the Stillwell Avenue Terminal Complex

Image via Wiki Commons

July 10, 2019

Operators of Coney Island’s Luna Park will lead retail transformation of the Stillwell Avenue Terminal Complex

Since taking over operations of Luna Park in 2010, Central Amuseument International (CAI) has had a big hand in the transformation of the neighborhood, and that will continue to increase. Following a Request for Proposals (RFP) last June, the MTA has just announced that CAI Foods—a subsidiary of CAI—will lead a retail conversion of Coney Island’s iconic Stillwell Avenue Terminal Complex. CAI will take over nine of the 11 retail units in the Complex, turning the largest into “Rcade,” an arcade with a restaurant, bar, and coffee shop that will be open year-round. The remaining units will be subleased on a seasonal basis.
More details

Transit

10 Brooklyn stations won’t have overnight L train service for nine weekends

Via Flickr

July 8, 2019

10 Brooklyn stations won’t have overnight L train service for nine weekends

A large part of the L line in Brooklyn will not be available during overnight hours for nine weekends, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority announced Saturday. Starting on July 16, there will be no L service from midnight to 5 a.m. between Broadway Junction and Lorimer Street spread out across nine different weekends until January. L train service has been reduced since April when the 15-month reconstruction and partial shutdown of the Canarsie Tunnel began.
Get the L train low-down

Transit

Two Trees exploring a new Williamsburg waterfront park and development next to Domino Park

Image via Google Street View

July 8, 2019

Two Trees exploring a new Williamsburg waterfront park and development next to Domino Park

Developer Two Trees has begun convening meetings with Williamsburg residents in the early stages of planning a future waterfront park and development in the neighborhood. As Brownstoner reported, the site under consideration is comprised of three lots owned by Con Edison on River Street between Grand Street and North 3rd Street, right between Grand Ferry Park and Two Trees’ popular Domino Park. The new park would thus connect the existing parks “and take a giant step towards creating a contiguous waterfront park that extends from the Navy Yard to Newtown Creek,” Two Trees notes.
More details

Architecture And Design

$20M first phase of Brooklyn’s new 407-acre Shirley Chisholm State Park opens

Photo by Mike Groll/Office of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo via Flickr.

July 3, 2019

$20M first phase of Brooklyn’s new 407-acre Shirley Chisholm State Park opens

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced on Tuesday the opening of the first phase of New York's newest park–and the largest state park in New York City. Brooklyn's 407-acre Shirley Chisholm State Park on Jamaica Bay offers hiking, biking, fishing and picnicking under the watch of a colorful mural honoring Chisholm by Brooklyn muralist Danielle Mastrion. Under a second $20 million phase currently being designed and expected to be completed in 2021, the park will include a grand entrance on Fountain Avenue, lawn patios, a patio overlooking Hendrix Creek and pop-up environmental education facilities. A native of the borough, Chisholm, a former representative of the 12th Congressional district in New York for seven terms, was the first African American woman elected to Congress in 1968; she ran for President in 1972 as the first African American woman to do so.
Find out more

After a four-year renovation project, N train service in Brooklyn is fully restored

Photo via Wiki Commons

July 2, 2019

After a four-year renovation project, N train service in Brooklyn is fully restored

By Dana Schulz

The average New Yorker's biggest MTA gripe is delays at their station, but imagine having no station at all for two years? That's what residents in the Bensonhurst area of Brooklyn have endured. Beginning in July 2017, seven Coney Island-bound N train stations, starting at Fort Hamilton Parkway in Borough Park and stretching to 86th Street in Gravesend, were closed as part of the Sea Beach Line restoration project. After a sixth-month delay, the final phase is now complete, with four stations in Bensonhurst finally reopening, reports The City.
Get the details

Transit

440-square-foot Bushwick studio is sleek and sunny for $345K

Listing images by Travis Mark, courtesy of the Corcoran Group

July 1, 2019

440-square-foot Bushwick studio is sleek and sunny for $345K

Condo interiors are often less than inspiring—but a modern canvas that you can easily customize for your lifestyle is nothing to scoff at. This 441-square-foot studio in north Bushwick has all the bones you would look for: sunny southeastern exposures and hardwood floors, alongside efficient upgrades like central heating/cooling, your very own washer and dryer, and a topnotch security system. Located at 307 Cooper Street in a 2016 development nicknamed 18th Ward, the apartment is seeking a cool $345,000.
Take a peek inside

Distinctive Homes

Listing photos courtesy of Douglas Elliman

July 1, 2019

Brooklyn Heights’ third-oldest house, with a gut renovation, is asking $10M

This wood frame house at 59 Middagh Street, which, according to the current listing, is considered third oldest home in Brooklyn Heights, was built in 1832 for a New York University professor. The 6,300-square-foot home certainly appears quaint–if unremarkable–on the outside. And while it's a spacious 28 feet wide, the home's interiors have been completely reconstructed with a high-end builder-grade renovation, giving it every contemporary luxury–including an elevator, a wet bar, a sauna and a gym–and all of the historic charm of a suburban McMansion. The six-bedroom, single-family home's last recorded sale was for $3 million in 2014. It's been on the market for nearly a year, first asking $11.5 million. After a broker switch and a price chop, the house is asking a still-ambitious $10 million.
Have a look inside

Distinctive Homes

$1.3M Cobble Hill condo adds contemporary details to traditional loft bones

Listing images by Matt Vacca, courtesy of Compass

June 27, 2019

$1.3M Cobble Hill condo adds contemporary details to traditional loft bones

Located in a former warehouse at 29 Tiffany Place that was converted to condos in 1999, this loft-like Cobble Hill pad underwent a recent renovation which, among other upgrades, transformed it from a three bedroom to a two bedroom with a bigger living room. The unit last sold in 2015 for $1.155 million, and has just hit the market asking $1.295 million.
Take a look inside

Five properties in Gowanus may be landmarked ahead of proposed rezoning

Via LPC

June 25, 2019

Five properties in Gowanus may be landmarked ahead of proposed rezoning

Five properties in Gowanus may be landmarked as the Brooklyn neighborhood prepares to be rezoned. The Landmarks Preservation Commission on Tuesday voted to calendar eight buildings across five properties in the neighborhood, describing them as both architecturally significant, as well as closely associated with the history of the Gowanus Canal. The decision to calendar the sites comes after the city released in January its rezoning draft for Gowanus, which includes enabling more residential buildings and access to the waterfront.
More info here

Policy

LPC designates Bay Ridge’s first historic district

Courtesy of Landmarks Preservation Commission

June 25, 2019

LPC designates Bay Ridge’s first historic district