4th Avenue demolitionActually, "other people" have been living in 4th Avenue all along.
They were there before the new towers went up. They were there until their homes were demolished to make way for the new residents.
Showing posts with label 4th Avenue. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 4th Avenue. Show all posts
Monday, January 24, 2011
No Comment Department
...a broker with Awaye Realty in Carroll Gardens, said that with each new building the avenue’s popularity had grown. “They’re hard to get started, it’s hard to sell to the first people,” he said. “But all of a sudden, once people see other people living there, it’s pop-pop-pop, like popcorn.” -NY Times profile of the "new 4th Avenue"
4th Avenue demolition
Actually, "other people" have been living in 4th Avenue all along.
They were there before the new towers went up. They were there until their homes were demolished to make way for the new residents.
4th Avenue demolitionActually, "other people" have been living in 4th Avenue all along.
They were there before the new towers went up. They were there until their homes were demolished to make way for the new residents.
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Water is the Life of NYC
Water is the Life of NYC is Park Slope's most recent community mural. Another project of the Groundswell mural group, it was completed in 2008 and depicts New York City's water cycle. The mural overlooks the corner of 4th Avenue and Sackett Street, where there is an entrance to the city's water tunnel no. 3. The course of water from the Catskills reserviors, over the Croton Dam, and through the tunnel system to city residents' taps serves as the mural's "connecting device".
Water is the Life of NYC, 4th Avenue and Sackett Street
From the Groundswell website:
The system of delivery of water from the rural New York to NYC is depicted in an effort to make New Yorkers more aware of how precious their water is. The allegorical figure of Mother Nature hovers over the two main reservoirs that feed water to the city. The Sandhogs, the urban miners who dig the tunnels to bring the water to the city, are depicted digging a third water tunnel. Elements of the urban and rural environments are shown together in harmony while in the central image and focal point of the mural, people are encouraged to drink tap water in reusable bottles.
The mural is aimed at “raising consciousness of how precious water is as a resource to us”, says team participant Christina Cacioppo. Alongside the mural the team also developed a pledge urging people to follow guidelines for water conservation. Anyone signing the pledge received a sticker also designed by the team. Fellow team member Zane Smith added, “This mural reflects the global issue of water as a precious resource, and as only seven percent of the world’s water is drinkable we shouldn’t take our water for granted”. Team member Federico Tenorio stated “the purpose of the mural is to also show where the water comes from and how it gets to us”.
If "murals are the people's blackboard", as Pablo Neruda has said, then it is interesting to compare the iconography of Water is the Life of NYC with earlier murals in Park Slope. Gone are the raised fists of resistance, imperialist eagles, flames and other violent imagery, replaced by depictions of harmony with nature, in keeping with the resurgence of ecological thinking in society today. Even the Park Slope Civic Council, through its local community grants program, contributed funds to help create this mural!
The mural certainly enlivens what was previously a rather dreary corner; the photo below is from our comprehensive Park Slope photographic survey and shows the site before the mural was installed:
4th Avenue and Sackett Street, before mural
Water is the Life of NYC, 4th Avenue and Sackett StreetFrom the Groundswell website:
The system of delivery of water from the rural New York to NYC is depicted in an effort to make New Yorkers more aware of how precious their water is. The allegorical figure of Mother Nature hovers over the two main reservoirs that feed water to the city. The Sandhogs, the urban miners who dig the tunnels to bring the water to the city, are depicted digging a third water tunnel. Elements of the urban and rural environments are shown together in harmony while in the central image and focal point of the mural, people are encouraged to drink tap water in reusable bottles.
The mural is aimed at “raising consciousness of how precious water is as a resource to us”, says team participant Christina Cacioppo. Alongside the mural the team also developed a pledge urging people to follow guidelines for water conservation. Anyone signing the pledge received a sticker also designed by the team. Fellow team member Zane Smith added, “This mural reflects the global issue of water as a precious resource, and as only seven percent of the world’s water is drinkable we shouldn’t take our water for granted”. Team member Federico Tenorio stated “the purpose of the mural is to also show where the water comes from and how it gets to us”.
If "murals are the people's blackboard", as Pablo Neruda has said, then it is interesting to compare the iconography of Water is the Life of NYC with earlier murals in Park Slope. Gone are the raised fists of resistance, imperialist eagles, flames and other violent imagery, replaced by depictions of harmony with nature, in keeping with the resurgence of ecological thinking in society today. Even the Park Slope Civic Council, through its local community grants program, contributed funds to help create this mural!
The mural certainly enlivens what was previously a rather dreary corner; the photo below is from our comprehensive Park Slope photographic survey and shows the site before the mural was installed:
4th Avenue and Sackett Street, before muralSaturday, June 27, 2009
Early Louis Bonert: 4th Avenue, 1884
A reader who is helping conduct research for a possible expansion of the Park Slope Historic District sends along a tip about some buildings by Louis Bonert on the west side of 4th Avenue, at the northwest corner of Bergen Street. They are outside our Study Area, and technically not even in Park Slope, but we thought we'd include them here anyway, along with all the other Bonerts, since we are "completists" to a degree.
They are a group of five three-story, mixed-use buildings (flats over stores). Our correspondent found the following listing in the American Architect & Building News from 1884:
They are a group of five three-story, mixed-use buildings (flats over stores). Our correspondent found the following listing in the American Architect & Building News from 1884:
"Building Intelligence; Brooklyn," AABN vol. 15, no. 437 (May 10, 1884): p. 227.
-- "Fourth Ave., n w cor. Bergen St., 5 three-st'y brick stores and tenements, tn roofs; cost for all, $25,750; owner, Albert Scales, 378 Van Brunt St.; architect and carpenter, Louis Bonert."
We didn't include the west side of Fourth Avenue in our comprehensive Park Slope photo archive, but it is possible to use Google's "street view" to examine the corner. And, apparently, all five buildings are still there today, in nearly original condition. We particularly like the quoins on the corner building:
70-62 Fourth Avenue
The upzoning of Fourth Avenue a few years ago unleashed a building frenzy that has seen many of the original, "first growth" buildings replaced by new, mid-rise apartment houses. The Great Recession has lessened development pressures somewhat. Even so, we suspect these 1884 buildings by Louis Bonert won't be around much longer.
We didn't include the west side of Fourth Avenue in our comprehensive Park Slope photo archive, but it is possible to use Google's "street view" to examine the corner. And, apparently, all five buildings are still there today, in nearly original condition. We particularly like the quoins on the corner building:
70-62 Fourth AvenueThe upzoning of Fourth Avenue a few years ago unleashed a building frenzy that has seen many of the original, "first growth" buildings replaced by new, mid-rise apartment houses. The Great Recession has lessened development pressures somewhat. Even so, we suspect these 1884 buildings by Louis Bonert won't be around much longer.
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