19th-century concrete building designated

New York and Long Island Coignet Stone Company building in Gowanus, Brooklyn. Photo: LPC.

1872 Brooklyn building designated unanimously. Landmarks designated the New York and Long Island Coignet Stone Company Building at 360 Third Avenue in Brooklyn, the city’s earliest known concrete structure. Designed by William Field and Son, the 1872 building was meant to showcase the possibilities of concrete. Francois Coignet, the company’s founder, was an early proponent of concrete as an alternative to … <Read More>


Former court building to be converted to school

Downtown Brooklyn Family Court building to become 1,000-seat high school. The City Council approved the New York School Construction Authority’s proposal to renovate the former Brooklyn Family Court building, located at 283 Adams Street at Johnson Street in downtown Brooklyn, to accommodate two high schools.

Currently vacant, the five-story structure will undergo complete renovation to convert the space into a 1,000-seat high school facility serving Community School District No. 13. An existing penthouse will be … <Read More>


Crown Heights historic district to be considered

Landmarks takes first step towards designation of new, 470-building historic district. On June 20, 2006, Landmarks voted to hold a public hearing on the proposed Crown Heights North Historic District, which will encompass 470 buildings, primarily along Dean and Pacific Streets; St. Mark’s, New York, Nostrand and Bedford Avenues; and Grand Square in Brooklyn.

At the June 20th vote, Landmarks staff provided a synopsis on the area’s transformation from farmland to the rapid row house … <Read More>


New homeless housing approved for E. Houston site

Former Boys’ Club, Milliken Clubhouse, will be demolished to make room for the Common Ground homeless housing facility. Photo: Shane Tattan.

Twelve-story facility will house 263 former homeless and provide on-site supportive services. On June 29, 2006, HPD and Common Ground, a not-for-profit that provides housing services for the homeless, obtained City Council approval for a 12-story housing facility to be located on East Houston at Pitt Street in Manhattan’s Lower East Side. The site … <Read More>


Legalization of single-family oversized home denied

Owner claimed that structure was enlargement and not new construction. Michael Reznikov received permits from Buildings in 2002 to make interior improvements and apply a masonry veneer to the exterior of his two-story home at 229 Coleridge Street in Manhattan Beach, Brooklyn. A 2004 Buildings’ inspection revealed that Reznikov had instead increased the height of his home and significantly extended it into the rear yard thereby violating limits on bulk. Buildings issued a stop-work order.… <Read More>


Synagogue eliminated residences to obtain variance

Synagogue had sought approval of eight market-rate residential units as part of new synagogue and yeshiva. BSA granted a variance to Congregation Somlou, permitting a four-story synagogue with a yeshiva and a single accessory apartment for use by a rabbi at 245 Hooper Street, in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

Somlou initially proposed to construct a five-story building with eight market-rate residential units, requiring variances for floor area, height, setback, lot coverage, and rear yard size. Community Board … <Read More>