« Seth Foster at Bushbaby This Saturday | Home | I didn’t get a slice but I got some crumbs »
Brooklyn House of Detention Relocates to Saratoga Park
By The Changeling | March 26, 2008
I was walking by Saratoga Park this past weekend and I saw this monstrosity. It’s located on Halsey along the north side of the park. Why didn’t those of you living near Saratoga warn me about this? Why is this building being built? Who would want to live here? Can those windows be any smaller?
Saratoga Park is arguably the nicest park in Bed-Stuy. To have this building placed on its border is a shame. I wish that there were some sort of process (easier to complete than that ridiculous landmarking process) that would prevent the construction of such eyesores in the neighborhood. Bed-Stuy deserves better than this.
March 26th, 2008 at 9:48 am
This piece of crap was built several years ago and the developers were trying to sell for some insane price (something well into the 8 figure range!). I don’t know what was there before or why they couldn’t rent it out. God only knows if it even has a C of O. If you know the address, you can look up some info on propshark.com
March 26th, 2008 at 2:42 pm
yeah i hate the thing. but in the summer when the park is in full leaf even this stone slab looks okay. that park is nice, right? it’s a block form my house but because it’s not my neighborhood, i’m forced to keep our affair on the DL. i’m hoping the multi-million dollar rehab of Irving Sq park will make it at least as nice as saratoga.
March 26th, 2008 at 5:51 pm
Whoa, you scared me with that title! We moved to the neighborhood a year ago, and this building looks the same as it did then. It looks as though the developer ran out of money, the interior is not finished and ground floor is a partial shell!
March 26th, 2008 at 6:39 pm
I’m sorry PamG, but I couldn’t think of any other way to describe it. It looks like a prison!
Jimmy Legs, I had no idea that you were so close to this park. Lucky you, this park is the best of Bed-Stuy.
March 26th, 2008 at 9:54 pm
Wish the house of detention on atlantic were really going somewhere else…but wouldnt wish it on any neighborhood. The building itself would make a great schrager hotel project for likely detainees or at least some sort of multifloor S&M Nightclub - given the name - think theyd have no shortage of customers in Boerum Hill!!.
Seriously anyone know the latest on the future of the original House of Detention?
March 27th, 2008 at 9:19 am
Is there any way that the neighborhood set a committee that reviews what is being built. Many areas in cities a have them like Georgetown in DC, and Olde Town Alexandria VA… There are enough architects and historians in the area that can make this happen. Seems like the city dose not care about what is being built in the neighborhood. This building should have got rejected. BS has too rich of architecture for stuff like this to be built
March 27th, 2008 at 12:32 pm
This is a thoughtless, inconsiderate piece of trash anywhere, not just in Bed-Stuy.
March 27th, 2008 at 7:31 pm
Jimmy, do you notice any crime in your area because of the projects all around saratoga park?
So what exactly is this just a small prison? what kind of criminals will be here, and will that mean more police on the block.
Is that corner of Halsey and Broadway safe?
March 28th, 2008 at 8:32 am
@Sally: I think these will end up being rentals. They will be priced cheaply and riff-raff will rent them and the building will fall into disrepair. This Bed-Stuy plot is so played out…
@Nick: I’m keeping my eye on that Brooklyn House of Detention story. I’m very interested to see whether they integrate it into a neighborhood that is fully gentrified.
@Morgan: I agree with you. I thought that the community board would have a committee that reviews what is being built, just to make sure it’s not completely out of context. I’ve seen areas in other cities take control over what is being built in their neighborhoods. I wish that we had that sort of proactive leadership in Bed-Stuy.
March 28th, 2008 at 11:01 am
nobody is much worried about crime around the park … that project right at the foot of the park? it’s ’senior-only’ which means it’s full of old folks, whose greatest crime is moving too slowly in the aisles of Rite Aid.
oh sally, halsey & broadway, that’s the nexus of the universe!
March 29th, 2008 at 2:05 pm
I live on this block and have to walk past its vacancy every day. One of my greatest joys is the park view from my apt and it’s painful to know that so little thought went into the architecture.
March 30th, 2008 at 4:05 pm
Can someone tell me more about teh Saratoga Park area? My fiance and I are looking at an apt on Macon between Ralph and Howard.
She grew up in Bed Stuy but at Clifton and Nostrand so she doesnt know as much about the eastern part of bed stuy.
Im looking at google maps are those buildings on bainbridge between Ralph and Patchen projects?
How is Saratoga Park at night? Is it a Park id be able to go walk my dog at?
Any good laundromats or other services around?
March 30th, 2008 at 9:21 pm
We are on Macon between Patchen and Ralph - - this side of Stuy is actually pretty quiet. The block has an active block association (and annual block party!). We see many people walking their dogs in the morning in Saratoga park. Can’t comment on night time, though. Yes, there are NYCHA buildings on Bainbridge. There is a big laundromat on Ralph near Putnam.
May 6th, 2008 at 12:46 pm
1.9 million and the house of D is all yours!
http://propertyshark.com/mason/Reports2/showsection.html?propkey=x73-19-94-15-125-13&ref=4sale