Dumbo NYC

I posted the Vinegar Hill townhouse item yesterday, and since I was there, I also stopped by The Vista. It’s been over two months since we checked in on The Vista at 206 Front Street in Vinegar Hill. According to Streeteasy, 21 of 31 units (67%) have been sold. Corcoran has the remaining 10 units on the market. The townhomes across from the Vista are nice, and although on Front Street, the Vista condos are in a quiet neighborhood.

  Across the street from The Vista
{The Vista on Vinegar Hill, Corcoran website}
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Five Four events are scheduled for today in Dumbo Brooklyn. Hope you can make at least one of them!

1) Seed Post Thanksgiving Sample Sale, 4-9pm, @ 68 Jay Street Suite 706

2) Seminar: Legal Basics for Small Businesses, 6-8pm, @ Jan Larsen Art, 63 Pearl Street
For details, go to this previous post.

3) Apartment Therapy is having a group art show at Prague Kolectiv from 6-8pm @ 143-b Front Street.
For slideshow, see Apartmenttherapy.com

4) Dumbo Parents Organization Meeting
Wednesday, November 29, 2006, at 7:30 pm. @ Low Bar (below Rice) 81 Washington St. learn more about DPO’s steering committee that will collectively launch a series of social, charitable and community-building events for Dumbo children and parents. Click here for further details.

5) powerHouse Event: Disco Years 11/29 – 1/7
Wednesday, November 29, 2006 – Opening Night – Ron Galella’s Disco Years Exhibit & Book Party
Press Preview: 6:00-7:00pm
Opening Reception: 7:00–10:00 pm

Location: The powerHouse Arena, 37 Main Street Brooklyn, New York 11201

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  * My photo stitching abilities are subpar, so you can look at the properties separately below.

These two adjacent properties in Vinegar Hill are being sold as a package for $2.5million. They are at 100 and 102 Gold Street, right across from 99 Gold Street Condominiums. The listing from Fillmore.com states:

“Houses to be knocked down for development. Sold as package- 100 and 102 Gold Street. (2) 25′x100′ lots. R6A Zoning. Starting price is $3.2 mil. Owner will entertain all reasonable offers.”

The exterior doesn’t seem to be in great shape, and it’s close to the Farragut Housing Complex. It’s zoned for R6A Zoning, which means they typically produce six-story apartment buildings designed to be compatible with existing buildings found in older neighborhoods. Anyone have more info on this listing? Do you think the potential value is worth $2.5million?

  100 Gold Street, Vinegar Hill

  102 Gold Street, Vinegar Hill

{fillmore.com, webID: 606064}

From an email received from the Dumbo Parents Organization:

We are pleased to announce the launch of the Dumbo Parents Organization! We are a newly formed volunteer group dedicated to connecting families living in Dumbo — and being a parent living in Dumbo automatically makes you a member. DPO evolved out of conversations with parents in the neighborhood who are looking to connect with other families. DPO aims to provide that connection through social, charitable and community-building events, as well as by becoming an ongoing information resource.

If you are interested in taking a more active role in DPO, become part of its steering committee. On November 29th, we will be holding an organizational meeting. This will be an opportunity to learn more about DPO, share your thoughts on what such an organization can provide, and how you can be a driving force behind our initiatives.

Who: Dads and moms living in Dumbo
What: Dumbo Parents Organizational Meeting
When: Wednesday, November 29, 2006, at 7:30 pm.
Where: Low Bar (below Rice) 81 Washington St.
Why: To learn more about DPO’s steering committee that will collectively launch a series of social, charitable and community-building events for Dumbo children and parents.

RSVP to dumboparentsorg@yahoo.com If you are unable to attend but are interested in being on DPO’s steering committee, please email your contact information to the above address.

The Yahoo group URL: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/dumboparents/

In the weekend’s Brooklyn Papers article, this question is posed: what do you name a historic district whose name is a modern concoction? “City officials are moving ahead with plans to create a historic district in DUMBO – whose acronymic name was created by developer David Walentas when he started buying up buildings in the 1980s to evoke an earlier uber-hip neighborhood, Soho.” People (or developers?) in NYC have a knack for naming and renaming neighborhoods by acronym or syllabic abbreviations: first SoHo, then Tribeca, NoHo, Nolita, BoCoCa, Dumbo, and even SoBro, SoHell and SoFi.

According to the NYC Dept of City Planning, only SoHo, NoHo, and Tribeca are recognized. However, the Official NYC website has a website dedicated to Dumbo. The MTA maps in the subway stations recognize SoHo, Tribeca, NoHo, and Dumbo. The article provides some past Dumbo area names:

The first name was Rapailie, after the family who owned most of the land. But in the centuries to follow, the area would be called “Olympia,” “Fulton Landing” and finally “Gairville,” after the early-20th century industrialist Robert Gair, who manufactured paper bags and corrugated cardboard boxes at 45 Washington St.

Until the 1980s and early 1990s, the western portion of neighborhood was known as Fulton Landing, became known as DUMBO. Despite the quirky name, it would cause more confusion to call the area Rapailie, Olympia, Gairville, or Walentasville, as some have suggested. Should the Historic Districts Council continue to use the name Dumbo as a historic district?

{Finding history in DUMBO – Landmark district in ‘new’ nabe still nameless, Brookly Papers, 11/25/06}
{Curbed.com neighborhood names}
{NextStop NYC, NYC.gov}
{Historic Districts Council, Dumbo neighborhood}

Wednesday, November 29 :: 6-8pm :: Legal Basics For Small Business

JLA and the DUMBO Improvement Distrct are pleased to present this seminar for small businesses from Brooklyn law firm Cullen and Dykman.

Attorneys from the firm will make presentations on how to structure successful business partnerships, agreements between business owners governing the operation of the business, succession issues and right to sell interest in a business, leasing space effectively, documenting one’s workforce, and types of insurance that small businesses should have.

What: “Legal Basics for the Small Business Owner” – presented by attorneys from the Brooklyn law firm of Cullen and Dykman
When: Wednesday, November 29, from 6:00pm – 8:00pm
Where: Jan Larsen Art, 63 Pearl Street , DUMBO

Seminar will cover:
-How to structure a successful business partnership
-Leasing space effectively
-Documenting your workforce
-Insurance protection

A reception will be held after the seminar to offer an opportunity to mingle, speak with panelists and get to know your fellow business owners.

  Photo courtesy of plemeljr

From the Dumbo Improvement District:

Repairing DUMBO’s Subway Stations: We Need Your Help!
The York and High Street subway stations that serve DUMBO and our surrounding communities are in very bad shape. Over the coming years ridership at these stations is going to greatly increase as more residents and businesses move into the neighborhood, and more visitors come down to DUMBO to enjoy our growing community and expanding Brooklyn Bridge Park. We need to make sure that our transportation infrastructure is prepared for these changes.

This past spring I asked the MTA to include overhauls for the York and High Street subway stations that serve DUMBO in their capital improvement plan for 2010-2014. A community letter to MTA President Lawrence Reuter has been drafted by the Dumbo Parents’ Organization supporting our request for complete overhauls of these stations. If you would like to sign the letter and support this request please stop by Half Pint (the children’s store on the corner of Washington and Water Sts.) or the DUMBO General Store (the coffee shop on Front St . between Washington and Adams Sts. ) to add your name and signature.

Previously reported on DumboNYC.com, the Zoe store at 70 Washington Street opened this past week, (a few weeks later than the Nov 1 opening date, but in time for the holiday shopping). Previous commenters weren’t sure if Dumbo residents are able to afford things at Zoe, but time will tell.

Aside from designers listed on Zoe’s website, there are other additional designers such as Diane von Furstenberg, Ella Moss, C&C, Miu Miu, J Brand Denim, Jimmy Choo shoes, Burberry shoes, Nice Collective (men), and many others. Has anyone else had a chance to visit Zoe?

{Stores: Zoe to Open on November 1st, DumboNYC.com}
{www.shopzoeonline.com}

  dispersions of light, Photo courtesy of nj dodge
  (Click for larger version)

[DumboNYC.com is on vacation for Thanksgiving. In the meantime, take a look at some of the best photos of Dumbo. Have a great weekend!]

Tour Overview:

“Fade in. Glistening cobblestone streets flow between factory warehouses and huge artists lofts. Our protagonist walks through this discreet and empty neighborhood, observing Manhattan’s skyline, the silence deafened by a train on the Manhattan Bridge. The sun is trying to hide behind Manhattan causing long, oblique shadows. Through a crack in a boarded window is a sculptor, passionate about his work. Thirsty, our protagonist tastes a creamy hot chocolate nearby, and then strolls through an innovative art gallery. People watch him, observe and smile at this man with headphones who seems so comfortable in his grace. He is…the Soundwalker. Fade out.”

{Soundwalk.com, Dumbo Brooklyn}