55 Poplar Street: Review and Ratings

Review of 55 Poplar Street by Carter Horsley

This handsome, 5-story complex at 55 Poplar Street between Hicks and Henry streets in Brooklyn Heights was erected in 1883 as the Brooklyn Newsboys Lodging House and in 1987 was converted into 113 condominium apartments known as Bridge Harbor Heights. 

The conversion was undertaken by Landmark Restorations of Brooklyn and the Crossland Savings Bank.  Wids De La Cor initially designed the project and later Charles A. Platt Partners of Manhattan, according to a November 2, 1986 article in The New York Times by Lisa Foderaro.  The article quoted Louis V. Greco Jr., a principal of Landmark Restorations as stating that “those vacant buildings bled a desolate feeling into the area” adding that “this will extend the character of the Heights to its natural border.”

The project was the last part of the 8-block Cadman Plaza urban renewal site and consisted of 14 adjoining buildings, just south of the Brooklyn Bridge,” divided  into two  complexes with separate entrances.  “Condo I, at 55 Poplar Street, will have mostly one-bedroom units with a few studios and two-bedrooms. It has 57 apartments.  Condo II, at 75 Poplar Street, will consist mainly of two bedrooms with some studios, one-bedrooms and three bedrooms.”

In 1987, a four-day designers’ showcase was held at 55 Poplar Street to benefit the Junior League of Brooklyn.

Bottom Line

Close to the Brooklyn Bridge, this attractive 19^th-century building has convenient public transportation

Description

The largest building in the complex has a rusticated, one-story beige concrete base beneath its red-brick façade that is distinguished by its three bays of four protruding vertical elements.  The building has a cornice and the main entrance is mid-block with a double-height lobby with a large vestibule.

The building, which has Ohio stone trimmings, has sidewalk landscaping.

Amenities

The building has a roof deck, large garden, common storage, a bicycle room, a video intercom and a parking garage.  It is pet friendly.

Apartments

Apartments have washers and dryers and kitchens have cherry cabinetry and stainless steel appliances.

Many of the units have gas fireplaces.

A two-bedroom unit has an entry next to a pass-through kitchen and the 22-foot-long living/dining room with a large terrace.

A one-bedroom unit has a long entry past an enclosed kitchen to a sunken 21-foot-wide living/dining room.

Another one-bedroom unit has an entry next to a 16-foot-wide open, pass-through kitchen and a 16-foot-square living/dining area with a staircase up to 16-foot-wide loft area.  The bedroom also has a staircase up to a 11-foot-wide loft area.

A studio unit has an entry next to an enclosed kitchen and leads to a 10-foot-wide Murphy Bed sleeping area next to a 13-foot-wide dining area and a 14-foot-long living area with an 11-foot-wide office alcove.

History

In 1853, Charles Loring Brace founded the New York Children’s Aid Society which soon established some industrial schools and in 1854 opened its Newsboys’ Lodging House that was the first youth shelter in the country.

The Brooklyn Newsboys’ Lodging House offered bed and meals, wash rooms, a gymnasium, a superintendent and a school.

According to an article at http://nineduane.queenitsy.com/index.htm “by 1911, it had been turned into studio apartments” and “by the 1960s, it was being used as machine shop, and then was apparently abandoned.”

In 1889, hundreds of newsboys and newsgirls who were important in distributing newspapers went on strike in the city and in 2012 a Broadway play, “Newsies,” recalled that time.