Admiral's Row
Admiral's Row is a row of Second Empire style homes formerly used by naval officers in the New York City borough of Brooklyn at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, and owned by the National Guard.[1] Some of the homes date back to the Civil War. Although the U.S. Navy closed the original Navy Yard in the mid-1960s, it continued to house some personnel in the officers’ houses until the mid-1970s.
Review
The property is currently undergoing a Section 106 review by the National Guard. In April 2008, they launched a website in order to invite public involvement in the proceedings. An open meeting was held in July 2008, where the public was asked to weigh in on the preservation of the structures. The results of that meeting are published on the National Guard website, as well as considered in the Alternatives Report for the site.
Although Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation president Andrew Kimball has claimed that the residences have been damaged beyond repair by the elements, the report prepared by the United States Army Corps of Engineers refutes this claim, suggesting that the residences are not only excellent candidates for rehabilitation, but meet all eligibility requirements for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places, both individually and as a district.[2]The New York State Department of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation has agreed with this assessment and has suggested that alternatives to demolition, including adaptive reuse, must be considered.[3]
In November 2011, the City Council approved a plan to rehabilitate the more stable buildings for retail space, and demolish the unstable ones.[4] Most of the houses are set to be demolished eventually, leaving "Quarters B" and the "Timber shed".[5]
Designations
The property on which the Row stands encompasses approximately 8 acres (32,000 m2). Some of the residences are divided into two or three units. The designations of the buildings, along Flushing Avenue from West (Navy Street) to East, are:
- A timber shed
- Quarters K, Quarters L
- Quarters H, Quarters C
- Quarters B
- Quarters D
- Quarters E, Quarters F, Quarters G
- Quarters I
Also on the grounds are:
- A tennis court
- A greenhouse
- Garages for each resident
- Quarters J, a mostly collapsed house belonging to the groundskeeper for the Row
Quarters A, the Commandant's residence, was not located on the Row. Of the structures on the Row, Quarters B is the most intricately styled and is currently in the best condition of any of the residences. Quarters B was the home of Admiral Matthew C. Perry while he was the commandant (titled Commodore) of the New York Navy Yard. An evaluation is currently underway to determine whether quarters B & D may be attributed to architect Thomas U. Walter, who designed the Kirkbride structure at St. Elizabeths Hospital, as suggested by the report.
References
- ↑ Admiral's Row, Fort Greene Association.
- ↑ http://www.nan.usace.army.mil/business/buslinks/admiral/pdf/report.pdf
- ↑ http://www.nan.usace.army.mil/business/buslinks/admiral/pdf/letterNRHP.pdf
- ↑ Admiral's Row to get Partial Rebirth AM New York
- ↑ Historic Admiral’s Row at the Brooklyn Navy Yard to be leveled By Erin Durkin NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
External links
- Admiral's Row website dedicated to Admiral's Row
- The Kingston Lounge 2008 photo essay on Admiral's Row
- Brooklyn's Other Museum of Brooklyn page about Admiral's Row History
- Barry Popik aggregated information about Admiral's Row
- US Army Corps of Engineers government information on Admiral's Row
