There are lots of posts and articles about the gunplay at the Production Lounge last weekend (including video of Tuesday’s precinct meeting from Heather). But Brooklyn Paper wins the Postie award for excellence in headlines.
Greenpoint Becomes Gunpoint
Northside Piers Tops Off
I noticed this morning that there was an American flag flying atop tower two of Northside Piers – now I have a press release to prove it.
Embattled Architect Fined for Failing to Inspect SItes
Yes, that embattled architect.
The case deals with a partial wall collapse at 602 Driggs and the adjacent construction site at 170 North 5th. The west side wall of 602 has been braced for some time now, and the owner of the property says that it will cost $800,000 to fix it. Someone’s insurance will cover that, but it will take a long to straighten that out.
The contractor who undermined the wall (and presumably wasn’t following plans) probably bears the most responsibility, but still this little tidbit is pretty disturbing:
[The case is] part of a year-long crackdown by Buildings Commissioner Robert LiMandri on architects and engineers who flout city regulations. Previously, architects and engineers were not issued violations, officials said.
Jean Georges Alum Will Bring Tapas Lounge to Williamsburg
It looks like BBQ isn’t going to be the only restaurant trinity on the Southside. Last week I noted that Zipe Zape had morphed into Barberry, which like its predecessor, will continue to serve Spanish fare. That follows news of the Catalan-inspired Cap I Pota, which is slated to open on Grand between Kent and Wythe. And today, the triad is complete with the announcement of Bar Celona, which is to open on South 4th between Bedford and Berry.
This latest trinity also confirms my long-held contention that the best food and dining is found on the Southside (and yes, I’m claiming Metropolitan for the Southside).
Looking Ahead to the Williamsburg BBQ Wars
I’ve been looking forward to Pies-n-Thighs reincarnation for ages now, but I had no idea there was a second Southside BBQ on the horizon. Hopefully Fatty ‘Cue is good enough to compete with Pies (and Fette Sau). It will make for a very entertaining war, indeed.
Viridian Going Under?
On the way to the L train this morning, I noticed that just about every construction site (along Metropolitan and Wythe/Kent) was busy. Perhaps its a case of in for a dime, in for a dollar, which is where Viridian seems to be. The project is nearly finished, no one is buying, so the developer is declaring bankruptcy and hoping that rentals carry it through to some profit (or that someone ponies up $65 million to buy the whole thing – right).
As in any down (or collapsing) market, there will be a flight to quality. Usually that means established neighborhoods, with strong services, good transportation, good schools, etc. North Brooklyn doesn’t have much of that (yet), but it does have areas of relative quality and buildings of relative quality (architectural, financial and built quality). In the former, I would put the northside generally and in the latter I would put buildings like Northside Piers (on the other hand, there are always exceptions). In a market that stresses fundamentals (location, location, location), Greenpoint is just not the place for half-million-dollar apartments*.
Two big questions – how much will the huge glut of product coming to market at exactly the wrong time affect the market, and what is the financial condition of buildings that do come on line? Anecdotally, the quality of construction on most new condos leaves something to be desired.
* Its times like these that I fondly recall a conversation with a Greenpoint realtor back in 2000 or 2001. She was offering an apartment in the Garden Spot, and I was curious as to exactly where it was. Her response (in lightly accented Polish): “Everywhere in Greenpoint is desirable”.
North Brooklyn to be Publicly Artistic
New York Press blogs the North Brooklyn Public Art Coalition meeting coming up next week.
Greetings from Espoland
Espo/Steven J. Powers
via City Room
The Times has a City Room post today titled A Sociologist’s Look at Graffiti, a serious discussion with a Baruch College sociologist who studies graffiti and graffiti artists. The post is illustrated with this Espo mural, which used to face the Williamsburg Bridge from atop the Oliva refrigerator building on Bedford and South 5th. It was always one of favorite works – somewhere I probably have some color postcards showing it.