Is the South Slope on the way to becoming the next "Hot" Brooklyn Nabe?

Patrons were crestfallen last year when Freddy's, in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, poured its final shots. While the boisterous tavern—a hangout for artists, cops and others since Prohibition—was razed to make way for Atlantic Yards, one of its owners had an epiphany. “We could reinvent ourselves,” said Donald O'Finn. “We could start again.”
In February, Freddy's was reincarnated near the corner of 17th Street and Fifth Avenue. The area, south of the Prospect Expressway and between Fourth Avenue and Green-Wood Cemetery, has had a surge in bars and restaurants in recent months.
Though its name is disputed—old-timers consider it part of Sunset Park, while newcomers prefer South Slope or Greenwood Heights—the area's sudden popularity is not. A spinoff of Carroll Gardens' famous Lucali pizzeria began serving wood-fired pies and calzones in a candlelit shopfront on 20th Street and Sixth Avenue in March. That's just a block from Lot 2, a locavore establishment and the first East Coast outpost of Katherine Dyer, a former San Francisco restaurateur.


Read more: http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20111009/REAL_ESTATE/310099993#ixzz1aWWFbIuk

Boerum Hill's historic character to be preserved in perpetuity after new zoning laws

City Council approves zoning change for Boerum Hill

September 21, 2011 06:00PM

The City Council today approved a new zoning plan in Brooklyn's Boerum Hill that will cap new development at 50 feet, the New York Post reported. Boerum Hill residents had pushed hard for the new zoning regulations to prevent large towers from rising in their neighborhood as are already planned in nearby Prospect Heights for the controversial Atlantic Yards project.

City Council member Steve Levin represents the historic, landmarked neighborhood, and said many of the homes were built more than 150 years ago and the rezoning "is going to make sure that… historic character is preserved in perpetuity."

The rezoning area is flanked by Atlantic Avenue to the north, Court Street to the west, Fourth Avenue to the east and parts of Warren and Wyckoff streets to the south. The new rules are similar to zoning changes put in place in Brooklyn Heights, Cobble Hill, Fort Greene, Clinton Hill, Park Slope, and Carroll Gardens. [Post]

Atlantic Yards Concerns Block the Approval of Arts Space Liquor License

• credit Gwen Ruelle

Roulette, a new experimental arts and avant-garde music space located in the ground floor of the YWCA on Atlantic and Third avenues, is dealing with community concerns before its doors have even officially opened.
The Barclays Center, opening soon just a few short blocks away at Atlantic Yards, has made residents extremely cautious about what new businesses and establishments open nearby.
READ FULL STORY HERE:  http://carrollgardens.patch.com/articles/atlantic-yards-concerns-block-the-approval-of-arts-space-liquor-license

Atlantic Yard's Saga continues...

After all of that fighting, the never ending Atlantic Yards project could now end up just being a nondescript stadium and acres of parking. The project's developer, Forest City Ratner, filed documents with the SEC last week that warn of "further delays" to the non-stadium portions of the project that could lead to the scrapping of most or all of the rest of the 22-acre, $4.9 billion project. But hey, at least the city got rid of all that urban blight!




Basically the same cash flow issues (rising construction costs, rising financing rates, inability to meet government deadlines, trouble with sponsorships) that have caused Ratner to start looking into prefab construction may in the end entirely kill the project. Here is how the company's filing describes the situation if any any of those problems get worse:

Read Full Story Here:  http://gothamist.com/2011/04/04/worst_case_atlantic_yards_could_jus.php

Brownstoner: Stunner: Goldstein Takes $3 Million Buyout

After rejecting the iniatial deal offered several years ago, 500K for an apartment in which he paid 590K. The last Brooklyn resident standing in the way of Atlantic Yards developer Bruce Ratner has been bought out. Dan Goldstein, organizer of Develop Don't Destroy settled for 3M...

Brownstoner: Stunner: Goldstein Takes $3 Million Buyout

Federal Court Rejects Atlantic Yards Appeal:

Federal Court Rejects Atlantic Yards Appeal: Full Coverage
A federal appeals court rejected an appeal by critics of the use of eminent domain in the $4 billion Atlantic Yards mega-project in Brooklyn, a big, if expected, victory for developer Forest City Ratner, and surely a demoralizing blow to project opponents.

The decision nearly puts to rest the legal chapter of this years-long, high-profile development battle. Since the plan was approved more than a year ago, the courts have been the focus of any attention, as Forest City chairman Bruce Ratner has done little work on the Prospect Heights site other than demolitions and some other preparation.

The rejection leaves opponents with few legal avenues left, as the appellants on the lawsuit would need a decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to merely be granted a trial in the case, let alone to come out victorious. Critics had said they put their highest hopes at the federal appellate level, and have previously conceded that it was unlikely the Supreme Court would take the case (the court only hears a few dozen cases a year).




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