Houses on the west side of the proposed East 25th Street Historic District. Image Credit: LPC
Residents on the block worked with Landmarks leading up to the calendaring. On August 11, 2020, the Landmarks Preservation Commission voted to calendar the East 25th Street Historic District for designation. The East 25th Street Historic District consists of 56 row houses on both sides of East 25th Street between Clarendon Road and Avenue D in Flatbush, Brooklyn. The historic district consists of the houses between 314 – 378 East 25th Street.
The houses were all built by the Henry Meyer Building Company from 1909 to 1912 in the Renaissance Revival style. The houses feature limestone or brownstone fronts with full-height rounded or angled projecting bays, foliated keystones, and ornamented entrance surrounds. The houses are all single-family homes, which reflected the affluence of Flatbush at the time. When the houses were completed, they featured many “modern” features for an early 20th Century home, including parquet floors, up to date plumbing, gas and electric fixtures, and laundry facilities.
The block was selected for its consistency in architectural features and lack of major alterations. The block has been previously recognized as the “Greenest Block in Brooklyn” by the Brooklyn Botanical Garden multiple times for the lush front yards in front of the houses.
Commission Chair Sarah Carroll stated, “I have been out to this site and this block really does stand out in this neighborhood for its consistency but also for its integrity and the level of care and stewardship that has happened on this street has really been just remarkable.”
Commissioner John Gustafsson stated that he had driven down the block to view it and that it is “amazingly consistent” and wondered how it took so long for Landmarks to recognize the block. According to Landmarks research staff, the block was noted as part of an overall examination of Flatbush and highlighted by residents of the block. Residents had a petition in support of a historic district and have met with Landmarks virtually to discuss the creation of a historic district.
Commissioner Frederick Bland asked why an adjacent block had not been considered given its apparent consistency, but the block is not as cohesive and has many more alterations than the East 25th Street block.
Landmarks will hold a public hearing on the application on a later date.
By: Veronica Rose (Veronica is the CityLaw fellow and a New York Law School graduate, Class of 2018.)