HOW MANY RESIDENTS AND TALL BUILDINGS ARE APPROPRIATE FOR CATON PLACE?

Community Meeting

on the Development of Caton Place
Tuesday, May 1st, 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Developers have been busily making plans to erect tall buildings on several pieces of property on Caton Place between E. 8th Street and Coney Island Avenue.

In response, neighborhood residents will gather for a small-group workshop and community discussion about the prospective uses of the land and their potential impact on the neighborhood.

The community meeting will take place on Tuesday, May 1st, from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., in the auditorium of the P.S. 130 Upper School at 713 Caton Avenue. 

Co-sponsoring the meeting are Councilmember Brad Lander, Assemblymember Robert Carroll, Community Board 7, and the neighborhood group Stable Brooklyn.
 
These potential uses of the land will be discussed:

• 51 Caton Place: Kensington Stables, at 51 Caton Place, has been sold to John Quadrozzi, who is doing business as Prospect Park Stable LLC. He has agreed to keep the stable open for at least five years and keep Walker Blankinship, son of former owner Edna Blankinship, as manager.

In addition, Quadrozzi "will be seeking a zoning variance to build residential units atop the stable. He expects the addition to top out at around seven or eight floors," according to Crain's New York Business. No statement has been made about how many units would be built.

•  57 Caton Place: The warehouse at 57 Caton Place would be replaced by a nine-story, mixed-use building containing 107 residential units (including 27 permanently affordable units), 10,000 feet of ground-floor commercial space, and enclosed parking for 74 vehicles, according to the rezoning application that has been filed.

Community Board 7 will hold a public land-use hearing on the application on Wednesday, May 9th (details below); neighborhood residents need to decide on May 1st what they do or don't want done with this property and then show up at the hearing on May 9th to tell the board about it.

• Caton Place: A developer has purchased International Baptist Church's parking lot, next to the warehouse at 57 Caton Place. The developer's plans are not yet known.

• 72 Caton Place: In the parking lot of Calvary Cathedral of Praise, a developer plans to erect an eight-story, 109-foot-tall CubeSmart self-storage building. The property is already zoned as a C8-2 district; all commercial uses (except large, open amusements) as well as certain community facilities are permitted in C8 districts. Therefore, no rezoning or special approvals are needed to proceed with the plan for a storage facility.

Public Hearing about 57 Caton Place

On Wednesday, May 9th, at 6:30 p.m., Community Board 7 will hold a public hearing on Application #C170213 ZMK, which seeks a zoning change for 57 Caton Place from C8-2 and C2-4 (commercial) to R7A (residential).

Immediately after the public hearing, the community board's Land Use/Landmarks Committee will meet to discuss the application. Committee meetings are open to the public. 

The public hearing and the committee meeting will take place in the P.S. 130 Upper School auditorium, 713 Caton Avenue, between E. 7th and E. 8th streets, in Windsor Terrace.
 

THE STABLE HAS BEEN SAVED; IT WILL STAY IN BUSINESS

Crain's New York Business reports that Brooklyn industrialist John Quadrozzi Jr. purchased Kensington Stables at an auction in December. He is going to "preserve the stables and keep current management in place for a minimum of five years."

Quadrozzi's plans include "refurbishing the barn, making the stable a more active operation, partnering with community groups and gaining the city’s help in improving the bridle path in the park."

He will also seek a zoning variance to build seven or eight floors of residential units on top of the stable.

Kensington Stables was declared bankrupt in February 2017 after one hundred years of operation. Since 1993, it has been owned and operated by the Blankinship family.

The deed states that Edna Blankinship grants the land and building to Prospect Park Stable, LLC (John Quadrozzi Jr.) for the full sale price of $1,000,000. "Full Sale Price is the total amount paid for the property including personal property. This payment may be in the form of cash, other property or goods, or the assumption of mortgages or other obligations."

Kensington Stables
55 Caton Place, at E. 8th Street
phone: (718) 972-4588
e-mail: info [at] kensingtonstables.com
website http://www.kensingtonstables.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KensingtonStables
Twitter: https://twitter.com/bklynpony?lang=en
 

SOLD STABLES STAY OPEN FOR NOW

For at least the next five years, Kensington Stables will continue to operate. The owner sold the stable at an auction to a buyer who agreed to keep the family business running and possibly expand it into an additional building.

For details, see "Staying in the neigh-borhood" in Brooklyn Paper and "Kensington Stables Sold" in Windsor Terrace Patch.

EAST WINDSOR TERRACE COMMUNITY MEETING: BUILDINGS PLANNED FOR CATON PLACE AND KENSINGTON STABLES UPDATE

East Windsor Terrace/Stable Brooklyn Community Meeting

Wednesday, August 9th, 6:30 p.m.

 
The evolving status of three sites--Kensington Stables, the warehouse at 57 Caton Place, and Calvary Cathedral of Praise parking lot at 72 Caton Place--are the agenda items for a community meeting for East Windsor Terrace/Stable Brooklyn residents.

The boundaries of East Windsor Terrace/Stable Brooklyn are the Ocean Parkway Service Road to Coney Island Avenue and Caton Avenue to Caton Place.

The sponsors of the meeting are City Councilmember Brad Lander, Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams, New York State Assemblymember Bobby Carroll, and Brooklyn Community Board 7.

                                               Agenda

Kensington Stables
The city government has offered to buy the Kensington Stables building from owner Walker Blankinship and his family, with a goal of its long-term preservation as a horse stable.

Having declared bankruptcy earlier this year and having set a February date for an auction of the property, the family decided to accept the city's offer in early July. The current status of the offer and the future of the stable will be updated at the meeting.

For background information about Kensington Stables, see these blog posts: 
A Bankrupt Kensington Stables May Not Be Auctioned Off 
The City Might Buy Kensington Stables
Kensington Stables Is Moving Closer to Being Purchased by NYC

57 Caton Place
The owners of this building next to Kensington Stables filed an application with the New York City Department of City Planning to rezone the building for use as a residential development. They've been invited to the meeting to speak to the community about their proposal. 

Before being converted to a warehouse, the building housed Park Circle Roller Skating Rink.
 
72 Caton Place
The parking lot of Calvary Cathedral of Praise is located at this address. In 2015, the church partnered with a real estate firm to erect a nine-story residential rental and retail building.
 
Activity has been observed at the location, including surveys and soil borings, but no information has been forthcoming about plans for the site. Residents may, nonetheless, want to start a conversation about it, however speculative it may be.

All East Windsor Terrace/Stable Brooklyn residents and anyone else who feels they may be affected by developments at any of these three sites are invited to attend.

If you can, RSVP to Catherine Zinnel, Deputy Chief of Staff in Councilmember Lander's office, at czinnel @ council.nyc.gov.

Meeting location
P.S. 130 Upper School
713 Caton Avenue
between E. 7th and E. 8th streets
Windsor Terrace - Kensington

KENSINGTON STABLES IS MOVING CLOSER TO BEING PURCHASED BY NYC

UPDATE:

DNAinfo, Kensington Stables Owner Accepts City Buyout at Prospect Park Horse Barn
"The city and Parks Department are hammering out the details of a contract of sale with the Blankinships, but have not arrived at a sale price yet."

 ---------------------------------

Brooklyn Paper, Stable-ized! Kensington Stables owners working on deal to sell barn to city

"The Parks Department is hammering out a deal to buy Kensington Stables, which it will continue to operate as a public horseback riding amenity."

---------------------------------

Curbed New York, Prospect Park’s endangered horse stables will likely be purchased by the city

"Kensington Stables will stay operating if ownership and the city can strike a deal. [The owners] decided to sell the barn to the city at well below market value instead, to insure it remains in the horse business, according to the family’s real estate agent."

---------------------------------

Windsor Terrace Patch, City Close To Deal To Buy Kensington Stables, Broker Says

"A judge has approved a liquidation plan that would allow the bankrupt property to be sold to the city's Parks Department." 

---------------------------------

Previous posts on this blog about why the stables are being sold:

UPDATED FEBRUARY 21ST AND 23RD: A BANKRUPT KENSINGTON STABLES MAY NOT BE AUCTIONED OFF

THE CITY MIGHT BUY KENSINGTON STABLES

 

---------------------------------

 

Kensington Stables
51 Caton Place, at E. 8th Street
phone: (718) 972-4588
e-mail: info [at] kensingtonstables.com
website http://www.kensingtonstables.com 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KensingtonStables
Twitter: https://twitter.com/bklynpony?lang=en

THE CITY MIGHT BUY KENSINGTON STABLES

With Kensington Stables in about $1 million in debt and in bankruptcy, "the city’s Economic Development Corporation is looking to purchase the property and hand it off to the Parks Department for operations," Brooklyn Paper reported yesterday.

After that, "the Parks Department plans on contracting out the stables’ operation following a bidding process."

In response to the public's desire for the stables to be kept open, Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams tweeted yesterday that he "redirected $500K to @NYCEDC for the public preservation of #Kensington's @BklynPony." 

Kensington Stables declared bankruptcy after 100 years of operation. The Blankinship family has owned it for the past 24 years. The real estate listing for the property stated that it would be auctioned off on February 23rd, with a starting bid of $2,000,000, but owner and manager Walker Blankinship announced two days before the auction that it had been postponed.

On February 23rd, Windsor Terrace Patch wrote that

"multiple prospective bidders are interested in the property, including those looking to redevelop it into a mixed use residential property, a warehouse, and at least one who would maintain it as a stable."

Kensington Stables
51 Caton Place, at E. 8th Street
phone: (718) 972-4588
e-mail: info [at] kensingtonstables.com
website http://www.kensingtonstables.com 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KensingtonStables
Twitter: https://twitter.com/bklynpony?lang=en 

READ AT OPEN MIC NIGHT AT KENSINGTON STABLES

                         Spoken Word Open Mic Night
          Friday, April 7th, 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.

"New York Stories" is the theme for Kensington Stables' next spoken word open mic night. The theme is meant to serve as an inspiration, and readers and speakers shouldn't feel constrained by it. Bring something you wrote, or bring something you like that someone else wrote.

A riding lesson will be raffled off during the evening.

Support Kensington Stables--the only horse stable in the Prospect Park area that remains--on Friday, April 7th, from 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.

Kensington Stables offers pony rides, lessons, trail rides, children’s programs, teen horsemanship, and horses for special occasions.

Location
Kensington Stables
51 Caton Place at E. 8th Street
phone: (718) 972-4588
e-mail: info @ kensingtonstables.com
website: http://www.kensingtonstables.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KensingtonStables
Twitter: https://twitter.com/bklynpony?lang=en

KENSINGTON STABLES' NEXT EVENT: SPOKEN WORD OPEN MIC

Spoken Word Open Mic

Friday, March 3rd, 7:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m.

Kensington Stables is still open for business, and "Work" is the theme for its next spoken word open mic night. The theme is there for inspiration; readers and speakers shouldn't feel constrained by it.

Support Kensington Stables, the only remaining horse stable in the Prospect Park area, by showing up to tell and listen to great stories on Friday, March 3rd, from 7:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m.

Introductory riding lessons will begin at 7:30. Readers and speakers can start signing up at 8:00. Reading and storytelling will kick off at 8:30.

A $10 cover (or more, if you're so inclined) will help support the stables. Wine and cheese will be served.

Location
Kensington Stables
51 Caton Place at E. 8th Street
(718) 972-4588
info @ kensingtonstables.com 
http://www.kensingtonstables.com 
https://www.facebook.com/KensingtonStables
https://twitter.com/bklynpony?lang=en

SUPPORT LOCAL, INDEPENDENT SMALL BUSINESSES!

UPDATED FEBRUARY 21ST AND 23RD: A BANKRUPT KENSINGTON STABLES MAY NOT BE AUCTIONED OFF

UPDATE, February 23rd:

Windsor Terrace Patch, 'Kensington Stables' Owner Expresses Optimism About Business' Future 

"Walker Blankinship said he's had multiple offers that would leave a horse stable on the property."

 
UPDATE, February 21st:

Pictaram, Kensington Stables
"To all our customers concerned with the recent press the stable has gotten: Everybody's reservations are safe. Thursday's auction has been postponed, and regardless of when that takes place there will be horses here for quite some time. We have had our customers in mind throughout this whole process. Thank you for your support."

Windsor Terrace Patch, Kensington Stables Could Stay A Horse Habitat, Auctioneer Says
"multiple prospective bidders are interested in the property, including those looking to redevelop it into a mixed use residential property, a warehouse, and at least one who would maintain it as a stable."

News 12 Brooklyn, Kensington Stables bankruptcy prompts community support
The owner is "about $1 million in debt." 

---------------------------------

After one hundred years of operation--with more than twenty of them (since 1993) under the ownership of the Blankinship family--Brooklyn's Kensington Stables has declared bankruptcy.

The real estate listing for the property states that it will be auctioned off this Thursday, February 23rd, at 2:00 p.m., but Curbed says that the auction has been postponed. The starting bid had been set at $2,000,000.

COMMERCIAL WAREHOUSE / POTENTIAL REDEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITY. This property will be auctioned at 2:00 p.m. on Thursday, February 23, 2017 in the office of Backenroth Frankel & Krinsky LLP, 800 Third Avenue, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10022.

To participate in the auction sale you must submit a bid no later than 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday, February 21, 2017. Please contact broker/auctioneer, MYC & Associates, Inc., for a copy of the Bid & Sale Procedures and Contract of Sale.

A bit of history from the Kensington Stables website:

Our barn at 51 Caton Place was built in 1930 as the last extension of the riding academy at 11 Ocean Parkway founded in 1917. The first extension was torn down to make the foot bridge over Ocean Parkway. The original riding academy closed in 1937 and is now a warehouse.

Today, Kensington Stables is the only remaining stable in the Prospect Park area. We continue to offer friendly, accessible, and affordable equestrian activities for New Yorkers and New York’s many visitors from all walks of life.

Walker Blankinship is the owner and manager of Kensington Stables. In 2005, land was sold that Walker was using for a barn (the Little Gray Barn), a pen outside the barn, and parking for horse trailers. The horses that were living in the barn were moved into the main building.

The Kestrel apartment building now occupies that land as well as the land formerly housing a tire factory.

These articles delve into the stables' history, what it offers to people of all ages--pony rides, lessons, trail rides in Prospect Park, children's programs, teen horsemanship, horses for special occasions, and, in the past, therapeutic riding lessons to people with disabilities--and what might become of the property: 

DNAinfo: Prospect Park's Only Horse Stable Faces Closure as Bankruptcy Sale Looms

Daily News: City Councilman urges future buyers of Brooklyn’s Kensington Stables to keep building open

Curbed: Locals want to save Prospect Park's endangered horse stables

Kensington Stables is located at 51 Caton Place at E. 8th Street.

phone: (718) 972-4588
e-mail: info [at] kensingtonstables.com
website http://www.kensingtonstables.com 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KensingtonStables
Twitter: https://twitter.com/bklynpony?lang=en 

SPOKEN WORD OPEN MIC

Spoken Word Open Mic

Friday, March 3rd, 7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.

Kensington Stables (the only operating horse stables in the Prospect Park area) hosts a monthly spoken word open mic. The next one will be on Friday, March 3rd, from 7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. Details about it haven't been announced yet.

Location
Kensington Stables
51 Caton Place at E. 8th Street
(718) 972-4588
info [at] kensingtonstables.com 
http://www.kensingtonstables.com 
https://www.facebook.com/KensingtonStables
https://twitter.com/bklynpony?lang=en

SUPPORT LOCAL, INDEPENDENT SMALL BUSINESSES!

HORSES AS THERAPY

     Lucara and Merlin                                 Pagi: high five

From GallopNYC:

GallopNYC offers therapeutic horseback riding lessons to children, adults, and school groups. Kensington Stables graciously rents us horses and ponies and allows us to use the rear of the stable for riding.

As one Mom said,

[My child] LOVED his...lesson today. [The instructor] communicated so well with [my child], who had the BIGGEST smile on his face, and I had tears in my eyes repeatedly through the lesson. I felt so proud, as did he! The GALLOP days are the highlight of our week.

We work with children and adults with special needs as well as children with literacy delays, learning disabilities, family problems, or kids who are just having a hard time in life. We also work with veterans, kids in counseling programs, and at-risk kids. Some of our volunteers have a disability.

We offer lesson to 150 riders each week, at three locations, and  rely on about 200 volunteers (as well as 15 or so horses and ponies. The animals don’t exactly volunteer, but they do enjoy the carrots they get as rewards).

The teachers we work with say this about GallopNYC:

It is amazing to watch my unruliest students calm down, my most  scattered students focus, my quietest students shout, and my least  expressive students laugh when they interact with you and the horses.... I feel like we can never do enough to express our gratitude.  --Special Needs Public School Teacher

We see measurable gains in academic skills in our riders, and we also see an increase in confidence and empathy. In a recent New York Times article, Randall Lockwood from the A.S.P.C.A. explains: “…empathy is  essentially innate, but I also think empathy can be learned, and I know  it can be destroyed.” The article states that equine-therapy programs are “one of the most promising methods for healing those whose empathic pathways have been stunted.”

Without GallopNYC, many children with disabilities in New York City would not otherwise have the opportunity to ride horses or to enjoy any animals in a positive, meaningful way. 

Contact GallopNYC at www.GallopNYC.org or (917) 740-4696, or send an e-mail to info [at] GallopNYC.org.

Kensington Stables
51 Caton Place at E. 8th Street

Kensington, Brooklyn
(718) 972-4588
info [at] kensingtonstables.com
http://www.kensingtonstables.com