Open Thread

Feel free to Discuss anything you'd like in this section. Ask Questions about Belltel, Downtown Brooklyn or what ever you'd like. Maybe your thinking about buying and would like to hear from the people who are buying in the neighboorhood. Maybe you already live in DoBro and have some things to add to the blog. Where's the best pizza in walking distance? Best all night Diner? 24hr store? Thanks for your input in advance.

The beautification has begun on Brooklyn Bridge Blvd

Construction in full swing at the Sheraton Aloft Hotel Construction

I shot this one today

182-188 Duffield Street

This excerpt from The NY times

Relocated History

Q. While walking around Downtown Brooklyn I came across four houses on Duffield Street that looked as if they might have historical significance. Do they?

A. You must be talking about 182-188 Duffield Street, city landmarks between Myrtle Avenue and Willoughby Street. They do have historical value, as remnants of a neighborhood that no longer exists.

In 19th-century Brooklyn, you could witness the range of wealth in the city by walking from the brick houses of tony Brooklyn Heights to the working-class neighborhoods around the Navy Yard. You might have passed through what was then Brooklyn's leading middle-class neighborhood.

The area was farmed by the Duffield and Johnson families until the 1830's, when it was divided into lots for residential development. Not long after, the area was lined with modest two-story Greek Revival houses, four of which survive.

The houses were originally located around the corner on Johnson Street (now Tech Place) between Bridge and Lawrence Streets. Three were built in 1838 and 1839 by the Rev. Samuel Roosevelt Johnson, who inherited part of his grandfather's farm. No. 184 was built in 1847 by a merchant, Francis Chichester. During the 19th and early 20th centuries these houses were inhabited by the likes of merchants, engineers and shipmasters.

In 1990 developers agreed to move the houses so that they would not be destroyed during construction of the MetroTech center. Steel beams were placed under each house and they were hoisted onto a flatbed truck that delivered them to their new location on Duffield Street.

3 House deal on Duffield. Asking price $33 million

The claims that the homes were part of the underground railroad have not been substantiated. Recent investigations show these claims to be false.

Looks like we'll have a "Grand Plaza" nearby

It's going to be a park bounded by Ashland Place, Lafayette and Flatbush Avenue. That's certainly a short walk. Estimated completion in 2009.

Downtown Brooklyn office vacancy rises. Landlords seek to fill empty spaces with smaller, hipper companies

"Some argue that despite low rents and newly available Class A inventory, the wave of new office tenants in the area is more like a trickle. Jim Clark, division manager at Fillmore Real Estate, said the residential market has boomed since the 2004 rezoning, while office growth has been somewhat stagnant.

"A lot of things that were done Downtown went residential. The condo market is more profitable -- the big rush was residential," he said. During the Downtown Brooklyn rezoning, the commercial real estate market was somewhat cool in contrast to the hot residential market at the time. Stuckey said that the commercial real estate market is "now heating up," and that Brooklyn office space will soon follow."

therealdeal.com

Random global news

Eminent domain obviously doesn't exist in China. Apparently, this person refused to sell their house to developers, so they effectively turned the house into an island. Imagine Ratner leaving a house in the middle of the Nets arena.

Hampton Jitney is coming to Downtown Brooklyn

Mayor To Name Development Tsar To Oversee Downtown Brooklyn

I couldn't resist

Are there that many people out there having their parents buy them apartments? Not that I'm jealous but I'm jealous.
image from curbed.com

Map of area surrounding Belltel Lofts

StreetFilms- Atlantic Avenue's Unsafe Conditions

Hopefully their efforts make a difference

Interesting story of a Manhattanite moving to Downtown Brooklyn.

Found this one this morning.
Jay says:

"After 12 years of living in the East Village, I'm Brooklyn-bound. On Thursday, my wife and I signed a contract and put down a deposit on a 1,250-square foot apartment in downtown Brooklyn, one that will allow me to have a dedicated home office AND keep a room in reserve for a Jaffe To Be Named Later, not that we're "expecting" yet. The unit is still under construction and we won't close for at least a couple of months, but it's a very exciting development even if it does take us out of Manhattan. Most of our friends have long since moved to Brooklyn, and we desperately need the space, as we're coming up on four years in a 450-square foot apartment that requires us to go outside to change our minds. The downtown Brooklyn area is a bit raw at the moment (which is what made our space so affordable), but with a ton of civic planning in the pipeline, it's set to undergo a major facelift over the next few years.

In other words, we're now carpet-bagging, gentrification-chasing scum. Ask me how I feel about that when I won't have to double-stack books on my bookshelves or schlep a good quarter of my stuff into storage. Ask my wife how she'll feel when she's able to shut the door to my office and avoid the ever-growing pile of books, magazines, mail, computer cables and assorted whatever that's practically reached sculpture status during this past offseason. Ask me about the dining room table that will finally enable us to eat like adults on a daily basis, not that we'll actually do so because when else would we watch the previous night's Daily Show?"

Original link:
http://www.futilityinfielder.com/blog/2007/03/three-bs.shtml

Awesome panoramic of downtown Brooklyn

I couldn't resist posting this picture. Make sure to scroll to the right.

AvalonBay Communities to build 42 story residential on Flatbush an Gold

I found this on Wired New York.

"In January, AvalonBay Communities purchased a parcel of land on the southern portion of the block bounded by Gold Street, Flatbush Avenue, Myrtle Avenue, and Prince Street. The company paid about $70 million to an assemblage of sellers. The company expects to begin construction in the second half of 2007 of a 42-story residential rental tower.

This is a new one. I shudder to think what atrocity Avalon will bring to downtown Brooklyn."

Link to original thread

Google Group

The easiest way for me to set up a forum was to create a Google group. Now in order for you to post on the forum, you will have to have a google gmail account. I will provide you with a free gmail account invite if you don't already have one. All you have to do is email me at streetshooter1@gmail.com For all of you whom want to remain anonymous, have no fear. You need not provide any personal info on your gmail account. Just pick a name and start posting. It's all set up already. The link to the Belltellofts Forum is in the upper right corner of this page.

General Q & A

Working on creating a Forum of sorts after reading some of your suggestions. In the meanwhile, feel free to post here.

Here are some other examples of Ralph Walker's Architecture

OLD BOROUGH OF BROOKLYN IS THE NEW BOULEVARD OF BROKERS' DREAMS

Sculpture to be set on Flatbush Avenue

The gateway to Brooklyn sculpture is part of the city’s plan in conjunction with the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership’s (DBP) to form a grand entrance into Brooklyn along the Flatbush corridor from Tillary Street going south to Hanson Place.

Brooklyn Still A Manhattan Alternative (The New York Observer)

Great pictures of Downtown Brooklyn

Brought to you by Krulltime of WiredNewYork.com Really nice pictures. I wish I shot them.

Downtown Brooklyn Is Booming

Walking the Plan: Development in Downtown Brooklyn