110 Livingston News & Blog

Downtown Brooklyn is full of interesting historic architecture, but to many the neighborhood is still unknown, relative to say Brooklyn Heights or Fort Greene. The folks over at the Fulton Mall Improvement Association and Metrotech BID have created an easy guide to check out the area’s better known sites in the form of a walking tour and podcast.

The tour covers the sites of the neighborhood, from Gage & Tollner to Junior’s, and passes through Metrotech. One interesting tidbit is that according to the tour, “the urban department store was invented on Fulton St.”–the south side of the street was protected from the afternoon sun and allowed for viewing the goods easily. Albee Square is also named after Edward Albee’s father, huh. The best line though is where the distinguished historian narrator says in a rich baritone, “the Albee Square Mall was a major staple for urban culture in the 1970s and 80s, and is the topic of a song by old-school rapper, Biz Markie.” Overall, the tour’s theme is that “Downtown Brooklyn has a rich past that you can experience, if you know where to look.” It’s narrated by John Manbeck, editor of the book The Neighborhoods of Brooklyn. Check it out at FMIA’s site.

• Fulton Mall Improvement Association
• More on Downtown Brooklyn’s historic architecture

Arts group the ISSUE Project Room announced it has been chosen to occupy the historic theater at 110 Livingston. The group envisions a “year-round program of music, film, video, and literature” for the space. IPR is currently located in Gowanus at 3rd Ave and 3rd St., check out their site for a cool video that gives an atmospheric overview of their work. The group was selected from over 100 applicants for a 20-year lease to the space, with the first 10 years rent free. Using the space for arts was one of the conditions placed by the city when it sold the building to Two Trees Management.

The space first served as the grand meeting hall for the Elks organization when the building was built in 1926–at the time Elks Lodge 22 of Brooklyn was the largest in the country. The organization fell on tough times in the late 20s and early 30s, and when the building was sold to the City for use as the Board of Education headquarters, the theater became the hearing room.

For the theater’s next act, IPR’s mission is to create “a vital meeting place for the most disparate forms of creativity whose sole criteria embodies the integrity and spirit of artistic expression and exploration.” To make this vision a reality IPR needs to raise significant funds to renovate the space. The goal? Nothing less than “building a permanent home for the future of experimental culture.”

• ISSUE Project Room at 110 Livingston
• Theater RFP

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Turns out 110 Livingston isn’t the only Board of Ed building around — 131 Livingston, diagonally across the street from 110, is older and still houses offices for what is now called the Department of Education. The building was designed by C.B.J. Snyder–an architect who designed many of New York City’s schools around the turn of the 20th century, including Stuyvesant High School and Erasmus Hall. 131 Livingston was built in 1900, and according to the Municipal Art Society is both a “fine example of Beaux-Arts style design” and a “rare example of an office building designed by Snyder.”

Strangely, the building is shaped like an “L”, and also has street frontage at 409 Red Hook Lane. You won’t see the facade above for a while though, it is currently undergoing a $2+ million rehab, according to city records.

• More on Downtown Brooklyn’s Architectural Gems

Reliable tipsters have confirmed the rumor that Monty Q’s, the brick oven pizzeria on Montague Street, is opening a new location at 90 Livingston. Monty’s personnel were recently spotted going in and out of the old copy storefront currently under renovation, and a brick oven was seen under construction inside. The slick glass storefront has been installed over recent weeks, and the spot will be a welcome addition to the block.

• New on the block (110 Community Forums)

• City Reconsiders House of D with Retail (Curbed)
• Environmental Justice Photo Exhibit at St. Francis College (Green Bklyn)
• G Train Service Under Examination (Brownstoner)
• Sign of Spring (BK11201)
• Gristedes on Montague has fire (BHB)
• AIG, El Diariro Lease Space at MetroTech (BDE)

Photo from NYC Transit Museum