Brooklyn

Transit advocacy groups and politicians who have been promoting the idea of ridding Manhattan’s 14th Street of private car traffic during planned L subway tunnel repairs, and only allowing bus, bike and pedestrian traffic, have also suggested that the no-auto plan would be good for Grand Street in Williamsburg, the New York Post reports. Grand Street is a major neighborhood thoroughfare similar to 14th Street, and advocates say giving the streets to bikes, pedestrians and shuttle buses would be one way to lessen the impact of the shutdown.
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Transit

October 31, 2016

Tensions over gentrification escalate over Crow Bar controversy in Crown Heights

By Metro New York

Even before it opened its doors, the new tavern on Franklin Avenue in Crown Heights was under attack. The name of the place, Crow Bar, was racist, complained many residents of the neighborhood, which was once predominantly black. The residents point out that Crown Heights was known as “Crow Hill” for much of the 19th century, and […]

Uncategorized

October 31, 2016

Interior and amenity renderings revealed for Hub, Brooklyn’s tallest tower

For now, Downtown Brooklyn's Hub holds the title of tallest building in Brooklyn. Topping off at 610 feet, the Dattner Architects-designed, Douglas Steiner-developed slab tower at 333 Schermerhorn Street will offer 740 apartments, 150 of which became available through the city's affordable housing lottery earlier this month. But aside from its height and number of units, the 55-story building has been turning heads for its list of amenities--a landscaped outdoor terrace with sun deck, 75-foot pool, fitness center with yoga studio, dog run, grilling terrace, indoor and outdoor movie screens, children’s playroom, and bike storage for every unit. And Curbed has gotten its hands on the first set of renderings that show these swanky offerings, along with views of the apartments and news that leasing for the market-rate units will begin in January.
More details and renderings

October 30, 2016

$629K apartment in Park Slope packs charm into a cozy space

This one-bedroom apartment, at 132 St. Marks Place in Park Slope, does a lot with just 665 square feet. The unit comes from an eight-unit condo in a four-story walkup building—and from what we can gather it's on the top floor. But once you're there it's charming indeed, with 11-foot ceilings, painted exposed brick, and a skylight that fills the apartment with light. (Hey, it's one perk of being on the top floor.)
Take a tour

Distinctive Homes

October 28, 2016

Domino Sugar Factory reveals renderings of creative office building The Refinery

Commercial landlords looking to compete with cutting-edge co-working spaces like the Navy Yard's New Lab or amenity-filled developments like Industry City have their work cut out for them, and it looks like Two Trees is pulling out all the requisite stops for their new office building The Refinery at Williamsburg's massive, under-construction Domino Sugar Factory complex. Curbed got its hands on the first set of renderings of the 380,000-square-foot office space, which show how tenants can work with architects Beyer Blinder Belle to customize their spaces for "innovation" and "authenticity." The interiors preserve the former industrial details (exposed brick, ceilings beams), while incorporating creative perks such as suspended glass-and-steel office pods, an indoor skate park, and a bevy of common areas.
More details and renderings ahead

October 28, 2016

102 affordable apartments up for grabs in brand-new Greenpoint Landing building, rents from $368

By Diane Pham

This may be your opportunity to live in one of northern Brooklyn's most transformative new developments. Starting today, both low- and middle-income New Yorkers can apply for 102 newly-built affordable units at Five Blue Slip, one of Greenpoint Landing's three affordable buildings slated for completion by the end of next year. Available apartments range from studios to two-bedrooms priced between $368 and $1065, and households of one to four individuals earning between 30 and 60 percent of the area median income are eligible to apply.
find out if you qualify

Affordable Housing

October 25, 2016

‘Talk Stoop’ host Cat Greenleaf selling $3M Boerum Hill townhouse with reclaimed beams from a Catskills barn

If the stoop of this Greek Revival brick rowhouse at 92 Wyckoff Street in Boerum Hill looks familiar, that's because it belongs to Cat Greenleaf, host of NBC's "Talk Stoop" talk show where she interviews celebrities on her front steps (h/t Curbed). She and husband Michael Rey bought the home in 2006 for $850,000, and have now listed it for just a hair under $3 million. This comes after a significant renovation that outfitted the charming house with wide-plank wood floors, barn doors, exposed brick walls, and a mix of the original ceiling beams paired with those reclaimed from a Catskills barn.
Take a look

October 20, 2016

Jean Nouvel’s MoMA Tower is getting the first of its intricate, diagrid skin

News at starchitect Jean Nouvel's condominium MoMA Tower (officially called 53W53) has been relatively quiet since units hit the market just over a year ago. But CityRealty brings us an update from the Billionaires' Row construction site, where the 1,050-foot-tall, tapered tower is currently getting the first of its intricate, diagrid skin, which the architect once said will resemble blood running the veins with its nighttime lighting.
More details and views this way

October 20, 2016

Two affordable apartments up for grabs in the heart of Greenpoint, from $947

By Diane Pham

Starting today, qualifying applicants can apply for two newly constructed apartments in Greenpoint's Belvedere LXVIII. Located at 210 Java Street, the low-rise building sits in the heart of the neighborhood, minutes away from the water taxi, G train, plenty of old school mom and pop shops, and the increasingly hip retail and restaurant offer of the area. Inside the six-story structure are a total of 10 units, two of which have been set aside as affordable rentals; the one-bedroom is going for $947/month, while the two-bedroom is priced at $1,072/month.
full details here

Affordable Housing

October 19, 2016

Work begins on Norman Foster’s Red Hook office project, will be the continent’s largest timber structure

After revealing plans in June for Norman Foster's first commission in Brooklyn, Thor Equities now announces that work has commenced on Red Hoek Point, the 7.7-acre waterfront office campus. The press release also brings news that the project's two buildings, totaling 818,000 square feet, will become "the largest new heavy timber structure in North America."
More details ahead

October 18, 2016

Modern $4.5M townhouse by the Williamsburg waterfront has an art studio, parking and four terraces

6sqft previously featured this unusual property at 257 Berry Street, in the heart of trendy Williamsburg two blocks from the waterfront, when it was being offered as a $12,000/month rental. Now, just 14 months later, the glassy townhouse—whose exterior more resembles the neighborhood's ubiquitous new construction apartments—is on the market for $4.5 million. Though it may look nondescript-contemporary, the five-story single-family home packs a few impressive surprises, including an adjacent two-story art studio with direct street access and a loading dock.
Investigate the many interesting details in this modern townhouse

Distinctive Homes

October 17, 2016

Plan to turn Sunset Park library into 49 low-income apartments moves forward

In 2014 the news surfaced that Brooklyn Public Library (BPL) was planning to sell its Sunset Park branch at 5108 4th Avenue to a non-profit community development organization, Fifth Avenue Committee (FAC). The developer would demolish the 43-year-old building and build in its place a larger library with eight stories above that would contain 49 below-market-rate apartments, in part with public money allocated by Borough President Eric L. Adams. The developers say the plan will create housing for Brooklyn's neediest residents. Brooklyn Paper now reports that developers are preparing to pitch the project to Community Board 7’s land-use committee on November 3 as part of a public review process. The city council has the final say whether it goes through.
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October 16, 2016

A 14-foot, floor-to-ceiling library decorates this $1.7M Boerum Hill apartment

If you've got 14-foot-tall ceilings in your apartment, you may as well take advantage of them. This architect-designed co-op at 423 Atlantic Avenue, in Boerum Hill, utilized its soaring ceilings in unique ways. The apartment boasts a floor-to-ceiling library with custom shelves that span nearly 30 feet. It's accessed by a steel-construction mezzanine built into the space. If you're a fan of such quirky details (or at least own a lot of books), you'll be happy to know the one-of-a-kind pad has just hit the market for $1.695 million.
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Distinctive Homes

October 14, 2016

The Urban Lens: Meryl Meisler chronicles today’s artists and creatives of Bushwick

6sqft’s ongoing series The Urban Lens invites photographers to share work exploring a theme or a place within New York City. In this installment photographer Meryl Meisler documents the current artists and creatives of Bushwick. Are you a photographer who’d like to see your work featured on The Urban Lens? Get in touch with us at [email protected]. Earlier this year, TIME included Meryl Meisler on their list of "the greatest unsung female photographers of the past century," not surprising considering the great success she's had with her first monograph, "Disco Era Bushwick: A Tale of Two Cities," which documents the glam/gritty 1970s and ‘80s (more on that here). Now, after more than 40 years, she realized that Bushwick won't always be the artistic hub she's come to know and love, and therefore needed documentation. In her new exhibition "Bushwick Chronicle" (on view at Stout Projects until October 30th) she returns to her analog roots of printing in the dark room to display photos of "the artists, gallerists, journalists, and organizers of Bushwick." These images are paired with her illustrative painted photographs of Bushwick from the 1980s, as well as writer and art critic James Panero's musings on the area.
Get an inside look at Bushwick Chronicle

Places

October 13, 2016

Quirky two-bedroom co-op in Sunset Park is asking $520K

Sunset Park isn't a neighborhood particularly known for its grand co-op buildings, but this two-bedroom apartment comes from 570 44th Street, a 16-unit co-op built in 1914. The listing calls the building "one of the first Finnish co-ops in Sunset Park." In case you didn't know, parts of Sunset Park in the early 20th century were commonly known as "FinnTown," and the Finnish population built around 25 co-ops here. The building comes with original moldings and stained glass windows in the hallway. And this ground-floor apartment, which has just hit the market for $520,000, boasts some lovely details and quirks of its own.
Take a look

Distinctive Homes

Live in Brooklyn’s tallest tower for $833/month, lottery launching for 150 units at 333 Schermerhorn

Rendering of The Hub via Dattner Architects (L); Construction shot as of December 2015 via Tectonic (R)

October 13, 2016

Live in Brooklyn’s tallest tower for $833/month, lottery launching for 150 units at 333 Schermerhorn

At 610 feet, Douglas Steiner's 333 Schermerhorn Street in Downtown Brooklyn currently holds the title of tallest building in Brooklyn. Though it'll be surpassed by forthcoming supertalls like JDS' 9 DeKalb Avenue, the first 1,000+ foot tower in the borough, and the 700-foot 205 Montague Street, the 53-story slab apartment tower known as The Hub will certainly remain a much-sought-after address, especially considering its wealth of amenities and proximity to the BAM Cultural District. Of its 740 apartments, 150 are reserved for New Yorkers earning less than 60 percent of the area media income, and as of tomorrow the lottery is open for these units, which range from $833/month studios to $1,082/month two-bedrooms.
Find out if you qualify

Affordable Housing

October 11, 2016

Emily Blunt and John Krasinski drop $6M on a historic Park Slope townhouse

By Annie Doge

When she started working on "The Girl on the Train" back at the end of 2015, Emily Blunt was rumored to be moving to Brooklyn since the movie was filming here in the city (despite the fact that the book took place near London). Now that the thriller opened at number one in the weekend box office, the sleuths over at LLNYC have uncovered that she and hubby John Krasinski did, in fact, move to the borough in December of last year, dropping $6 million on this landmarked Park Slope townhouse. According to filings with the DOB, they also spent $300,000 renovating the six-bedroom limestone beauty.
Check out the historic home

October 11, 2016

$4.2M Carroll Gardens townhouse is pretty as can be

This four-story Carroll Gardens townhouse is impressive from the get-go. Located at 356 President Street, in a historic district, the 1869 home boasts a facade with an arched doorway, the original paneled doors and Italianate cast iron hand railings, and an impressive cornice. Inside, the historic details were recently restored, like eight fireplaces—five with ornate marble mantels—plaster moldings and ceiling medallions, decorative trim, and the original wood floors. On top of that, the backyard was redone by a landscape architect to include built-in seating and a bluestone patio. After all those upgrades, the impressive property just hit the market for a little over $4 million.
Take a look around

Distinctive Homes

October 10, 2016

New $3.3M Park Slope townhouse is a modern take on timeless design

It’s hardly breaking news that new construction townhouses are among the most popular architecturally significant ideas that developers are offering luxury buyers; a few are probably headed for a construction site near you. With all the enchantments of a modern house in the desert, woods or suburbs–and all the conveniences and innovations of Brooklyn’s Park Slope, this 2,256-square-foot home at 253 8th Street is the latest of such offerings in a section of the Slope generally better known for innovation than preservation.
Take a contemporary townhouse tour

Distinctive Homes

October 7, 2016

41 affordable units up for grabs in Williamsburg, starting at $788/month

The city's latest affordable housing lottery is for 41 apartments in a newly constructed Williamsburg building just two blocks east of McCarren Park. A project of Dunn Development, the Meekerman is the second development in the state completed under the LIHC Mixed-Income Pilot Program, and it provides housing for those earning less than 40, 50, 60, and 80 percent of the area median income. Rents in the energy efficient building--it employs high-performance systems and appliances, as well as solar panels--range from $788/month for studios to $1,403/month for two-bedrooms.
Find out if you qualify

Affordable Housing

Developer of the world’s tallest prefab tower in Brooklyn is exiting the modular business

Image via Field Condition

October 6, 2016

Developer of the world’s tallest prefab tower in Brooklyn is exiting the modular business

After boasting that it had “cracked the code” on modular construction, with plans for a Brooklyn factory, developer Forest City Ratner is exiting the prefab building business, reports the New York Times. The factory at the Brooklyn Navy Yard will be sold to Roger Krulak, a former Forest City executive, along with the technology used to construct the world's tallest prefabricated steel structure, the 32-story 461 Dean Street in the Pacific Park complex in Brooklyn. Construction on the building has just been completed and 461 Dean is weeks from getting its first residents.
Find out more

Architecture And Design

October 5, 2016

Macro Sea’s David Belt takes us inside New Lab, an 84,000-square-foot thinkspace in the Navy Yard

By Diane Pham

The Brooklyn Navy Yard has since its inception acted as a pole for the cutting edge and creative, from its time as the "The Can-Do Shipyard" where U.S. warships assembled, to present day as urban farmers, photographers and filmmakers carve out spaces for themselves on the campus' more than 300 acres. But the latest most notable addition to the Navy Yard is most certainly New Lab. New Lab is the creation of Macro Sea (who many will remember brought dumpster pools to NYC a few years ago) and is a revolutionary hub that turns an 84,000-square-foot former shipping building into a thinkspace for nearly 300 engineers and entrepreneurs working in advanced hardware and robotics. Here, members whose work include everything from designing nano microscopes to using synthetic biology to engineer cities can take their ideas from concept to prototype to production under one roof. It's what the founders are calling "a breakthrough ecosystem of shared resources." In this 6sqft feature, we speak to New Lab's co-founder and Macro Sea Executive Director and founder David Belt. David is also the founder and Managing Partner of DBI, which is currently managing the realization of the Performing Arts Center at the World Trade Center, amongst other high-profile projects around the city. Ahead, he takes us through the new facility and gives us some intel on what inspired the design, the cutting edge companies that have taken up space, and what he ultimately hopes to achieve with New Lab.
Learn more about New Lab with David here

October 5, 2016

$2.65M laid-back Carroll Gardens townhouse has historic charm and crayon-box cool

This unassuming townhouse at 189 Luquer Street starts out with the advantage of being in a particularly cool little section of otherwise postcard-perfect Carroll Gardens, near Gowanus and the Columbia Street Waterfront without being a hike to the subway and steps from some of the best restaurants in the borough (Buttermilk Channel, Frankie's). While the home may not be palatial at 1,848 square feet, there are four bedrooms and a lovely outdoor space. It's move-in-ready if not decked out in marble and European kitchen gear, and the current owners clearly know the value of colorful surroundings. Rather than the usual shades of pale, crayola colors wake the bedrooms from boredom, and bright pops of red and riots of pattern appear in unexpected places
Tour the rainbow

Distinctive Homes

October 4, 2016

New York Wheel’s four 500-ton legs arrive in New York harbor

Despite its opening being pushed to April 2018, the New York Wheel is marking a major milestone--the arrival of its first physical components. According to a press release, the Staten Island Ferris wheel's four legs arrive today to the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal (SBMT). When complete, the 60-story, 630-foot wheel will be the world’s tallest, so it makes sense that each leg weighs in at a whopping 500 tons and measures 18 feet wide and 275 feet tall.
See more photos this way

Uncategorized

October 3, 2016

Artist brings 4,000 redwood trees to Downtown Brooklyn

A big green sign that greets drivers from Manhattan coming over the Williamsburg Bridge reads, "Name It...We Got It!" Among the many things to which the borough can now lay claim: A dense grove of 4,000 redwood trees in the middle of Downtown Brooklyn's Metrotech Commons. It's this unlikely juxtaposition that has brought the trees, with roots in prehistoric times and known to grow bigger than the Flatiron Building and longer than the Brooklyn Bridge, to this spot steps from Shake Shack. The mini-redwood forest is called "Lost Man Creek," an art installation by Brooklyn-based artist Spencer Finch that opened on October 1. It's a scaled-down (to one hundredth the size) replica of a 790-acre section of California's Redwood National Park, planted in partnership with the Save the Redwoods League.
See more of this magical mini-forest

Events & Things To Do

September 30, 2016

Darling one-bedroom townhouse flat in Greenpoint asks just $660K