The City Council has finally approved portions of Bay Ridge known as ‘Doctors’ Row’ and four sections of Sunset Park as historic districts. This comes as the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) voted to designation the areas as historic districts in June. Historic district designation makes it much harder for developers to demolish the houses and replace them with taller multifamily properties.
Doctors’ Row is located in the Bay Ridge section of Brooklyn located on the Bay Ridge Parkway between Fourth and Fifth Avenues. It consists of 54 row houses that were constructed between 1906 and 1913. It’s nickname was derived as a result of physicians having their offices there. It will be designated as Bay Ridge Parkway-Doctors’ Row Historic District. The buildings are all limestone row houses that are two stories tall with a basement and lined with trees. The block has not changed much since constructed in the early part of the 20th Century. Council Justin Brannan was an advocate on the getting the designation pushed through and praised the work of the block’s residents that formed a block association called the Bay Ridge Parkway 400 Block Association that assisted in persuading the city to turn the street into a historic district.
Four portions of Sunset Park will also be designated as historic districts. The sections that the Landmarks Preservation Commission voted unanimously to designate are Sunset Park North, Central Sunset Park, Sunset Park 50th Street, and Sunset Park South. The portions comprise of the following:
Sunset Park South: is made up of some 285 buildings and is located between 54th to 59th streets between Fourth and Fifth avenues.
Sunset Park 50th Street: comprised of 25 houses located between Fourth and Fifth avenues
The Central Sunset Park: comprised of 148 buildings located between 47th and 48th streets between Fifth and Sixth avenues, and Sixth Avenue between 47h and 49th streets.
Sunset Park North: has 56 buildings on 44th Street between Fifth and Seventh avenues.
The Brooklyn Eagle interviewed activist Joseph Svehlak during the unanimous vote for the designation. He shouted “After 30 years of advocacy, finally!” Mr. Svehlak also hopes that the Landmarks Preservation Commission consider creating a fifth Sunset Park historic district for blocks from 40th to 43rd streets between Fourth and Fifth avenues. More than 3,000 Sunset Park residents signed a petition calling for historic district designation and an estimated 400 property owners sent the commission’s letters of support for the measure.
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