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IBX Moving Forward - Let's Wait and See

This is a continuation from our blog on September 29th 2024.The Interborough Express (IBX), a proposed new transit line connecting Brooklyn and Queens will move forward with a design and environmental review process. If, approved and funded, the IBX would provide rapid public transportation to underserved areas of New York City.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority will release a request for proposals (RFP) for engineering and design of the fourteen mile IBX project.

Midtown Manhattan South Proposed Rezoning Plan

Mayor Eric Adams is proposing to update decades old zoning rules for new housing to be allowed in parts of Midtown Manhattan. The new zoning will include a 42 block area from 23rd Street to 40th Street and from Fifth Avenue to Eighth Avenue. Currently zoned and designed for manufacturing use, this proposal lines up with another of the mayor’s proposals to facilitate and expedite office to housing conversions in all NYC boroughs as we continue to face a housing crisis.

The Midtown South Neighborhood Plan would update zoning rules to literally transform four areas in Midtown South into a vibrant, live/work community with affordable housing and good jobs. This plan would boost economic growth, support local businesses, and create jobs.

MTA Customer Satisfaction Survey 2023

Last month, the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) announced it's Spring 2023 Customer Satisfaction Survey. The results of the online survey identify key attributes of service that are important to customers. The survey provides the MTA with current data on how customers rate the service and areas where the transit system needs improvement.

According to Shanifah Rieara, MTA Acting Chief Customer Officer “It's great to see customer satisfaction continue to rise across the transit system, including subway, bus and commuter rail”. Rieara continued to say “These surveys tell us what customers care about – reliability, cleanliness, safety and how to make their journey as enjoyable as possible”.

The MTA's Fall 2022 survey showed another upswing in customer satisfaction compared to Spring 2022.

Higher Funding For Tree Planting Approved

The Mayor's office has approved the funding to allow The Parks Department to plant 20,000 trees a year for the next few years.

However, considering the extreme weather events NYC has been experiencing, some council members say that pace is not fast enough to replenish the city's tree canopy.

According to Shekar Krishnan, Chair of The Committee on Parks and Recreation “This is both a climate justice issue as well as  a racial justice issue”.  Krishnan explained that “Not only do we need much more tree canopy coverage in the city but this actually affects communities of color disproportionately in the sense that less tree canopy coverage directly translates into hotter temperatures on average for some neighborhoods in the city than others”.

New York City Adapts To The Reality of Change

Everything has changed in our daily lives, our habits and rhythms have been forced to change to accommodate the restrictions upon us due to Covid 19.

Maximizing the use of outdoor space and having improved mobility, economic recovery and recreation is and will be the goal of urban planners. In order for these changes to happen cities are adding temporary bike lanes, extending sidewalks, closing streets to through traffic, requisitioning public space for outdoor dining and designating zones for curbside pickup.

Executive Director of the NYC Hospitality Alliance Andrew Rigie says “we need to reimagine how we use public space – parks, street and public plazas to set up tables and chairs so restaurants can generate much needed revenue outdoors, because they will likely have reduced occupancy indoors”.

Tactical urbanism, according to urban planner Francesco Cerroni at the consulting engineer and advisory company Buro Happold, is a good temporary solution to the use of space, using different color paint or some cones and markings to separate and define a different use of space at a very low cost. This would serve to designate curbside pickup and delivery and make it easier to create outdoor dining.

Washington Heights New York, NY

Vibrant and thriving, Washington Heights has a rich history, cultural diversity and gorgeous parks.

Washington heights is located on the North end of Manhattan from 190th Street to 150th Street. It is bounded by the Harlem River to the East and the Hudson River to the West.

Washington heights has been hailed as the new hipster haven. There are more millennials in Washington Heights than any other New York neighborhood including Bushwick, Crown heights and Williamsburg.

Washington Heights draws nearby Columbia Medical school students, professors, young professionals and young families with children.

By day, locals and tourists visit 8 parks in Washington Heights. Historic Bennett Park is located at 183rd Street and Pinehurst Avenue. The park was once home to the Munsee Native Americans and the headquarters for George Washington’s army during the revolutionary war. It is here that you can visit the highest natural point in Manhattan at 265 feet above sea level. Other must see attractions are the Little Red Lighthouse, directly under the George Washington Bridge and the High Bridge and the High Bridge Water Tower at West 172nd Street.

Williamsburg’s New Office Building / Light Industrial Project

Approximately a decade ago New York City created 16 Industrial Business Zones (IBZ) across the City for industrial and manufacturing businesses, a few of them located in Brooklyn’s Neighborhoods such as Williamsburg, Green Point, Brooklyn Navy Yard, East New York, North Brooklyn, SouthWest Brooklyn and Flatlands/Fairfield.

Developer Rubenstein Partners are planning to build

The Brooklyn Queens Connector - streetcar line project

A streetcar line called The Brooklyn Queens Connector is receiving big support from Business and Government.

The proposed route for the streetcar line would run from Sunset Park through Gowanus, Red Hook, Cobble Hill, Brooklyn Heights, Downtown Brooklyn, Dumbo, Vinegar Hill, The Brooklyn Navy Yard, Williamsburg, Greenpoint and on to Long Island City and Astoria Queens.

Brooklyn’s Barclay Center - A Magnet for Restaurants

As a real estate broker and lifelong resident of Brooklyn, I occasionally like to write a blog about Brooklyn neighborhoods, food and Brooklyn Commercial Real Estate news.

Brooklynites, whether newcomers or lifelong residents can all agree that when it comes to food, there is no better place for great quality and more diversity of cuisines in so many restaurants as we have in Brooklyn, NY.

From 8^th Avenue in Sunset Park,

Strolling the Streets of Sunset Park

This is exactly what the Landmarks Preservation commissioner is scheduled to do in late March. The purpose of the visit is to decide whether to create a historic district in Sunset Park.

Sunset Park has a magnificent housing stock of Brownstone, Limestone and gorgeous brick homes of red, orange or gold colors built from 1890 to 1910.

Brooklyn Zombie Run and Celebrating Halloween in NYC, 2014

Zombies arrived in Brooklyn, just in time for Halloween 2014! A Run For Your Lives, 5K Zombie Run event was held on October 25th at Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn. Event creators Ryan Hogan and Derrick Smith came up with the slogan before they came up with the event to go with it. 

  There was a zombie transformation process which included makeup, bloodiness and shredded clothes. Both zombie and non zombie participants run a muddy track with hurdles, rope ladders, water slides and other obstacles. Eventually run participants arrived at a safe zone called the Apocalypse, where there was drinking, dancing and plenty of partying going on to celebrate Halloween!

Brooklyn Residential Development Projects, Rental vs Sale

The construction of new Brooklyn residential properties had been greatly affected by the last recession. As a result, we are seeing much more development of rental units as opposed to condominium units. A slow economy and low consumer confidence along with the banks tight lending practices resulted in some development projects that were originally planned as condos to be switched to rentals. For example, one of the development opportunities that we at Accord Real Estate Group have in our inventory was planned as a high end condominium project.

Current Housing Inventory Shortage Big Plus For Sellers

There is no doubt that the housing market in Brooklyn New York has improved over the last 2 years. Sales of residential, commercial, mixed-use and investment properties have increased.  However, many Brooklyn neighborhoods have a low inventory of properties available for sale at this time, especially Brooklyn neighborhoods in the Northern section of the borough such as the neighborhoods of Williamsburg, Greenpoint, Bedford Stuyvesant (Bed Stuy), Bushwick, Clinton Hill, Downtown Brooklyn, Brooklyn Navy Yard, Brooklyn Heights, Fort Greene (Ft Greene), Prospect Heights, Carroll Gardens, Cobble Hill and Boerum Hill. These Brooklyn neighborhoods are in very high demand for housing and investing because of their close proximity to Manhattan (NYC) and their uniqueness of character.

Coastal Brooklyn Neighborhoods Gradually Recovering From Sandy

Just this past Sunday, I attended a birthday party for a friend. The topic of conversation that dominated the afternoon was super storm Sandy.  I am certain that the tragic loss of life and devastation of whole communities that Sandy caused will forever remain in every New Yorker's mind and heart.  Most Brooklynites, who own homes in the Brooklyn neighborhoods  not effected in any significant way by Sandy have long since gone back to their normal lives. The homeowners whose property is located in coastal neighborhoods in Brooklyn, that were badly effected by Sandy are gradually pulling themselves up by the bootstraps and working very hard to get their homes and lives back to normal again. An example of the fortitude of one woman who is a homeowner in Manhattan Beach (a neighborhood very badly hit by Sandy) is a real estate broker, the co owner of Accord Real Estate Group and my business partner and friend of 11 years Anna Kader. Anna's home was significantly damaged by the storm. Through weeks of negotiating with contractors and insurance companies, overseeing renovations, shopping for materials and working through the nightmare of a process of cleaning up and rebuilding her home, Anna and many other Brooklyn homeowners are getting the job done!

The effect that Sandy is having on the Brooklyn Real Estate market will vary from neighborhood to neighborhood and property to property. In the long term however, residential and commercial property sales in even the worst hit Brooklyn neighborhoods will rebound and the future of real estate in Brooklyn NY is still very bright.

For more information about Brooklyn Real Estate, call or email us. We will be happy to assist you in every way we can.

Thank you.

Hurricane Sandy 10-29-12, Brooklyn NY

Dear Brooklynites

Hurrican Sandy has deeply affected the lives of so many people, it was the largest Atlantic hurricane on record. Most of us did not want to believe that it would be as devastating as it was. Although power has been restored to many areas affected by Sandy there are still thousands of Brooklynites without power or running water or even worse - without a roof above their heads.

As a lifelong Brooklyn resident, I lived with my identical twin brother Jay and our parents in Brighton Beach when we were young children. I have many very happy childhood memories of those years going to Manhattan and Brighton beaches, the boardwalk, Coney Island, Lundy's restaurant (designated as a landmarked building) on Emmons Avenue, in Sheepshead Bay for the best seafood dinners around. As an adult and a licensed real estate broker for the past 25 years, I have been servicing the coastal neighborhoods of Manhattan Beach, Brighton Beach, Sheepshead Bay, Sea Gate, Coney Island and Red Hook amongst many other non coastal Brooklyn neighborhoods that were also badly affected by the super storm.

After driving around these neighborhoods, seeing for myself, and talking to many neighborhood residents about  the devastation that Hurricane Sandy left behind, at Accord Real Estate Group our hearts go out to the many, many folks whose lives were changed by Sandy from losing family members, having their home and personal property destroyed and dreams shattered.

We sincerely want to help our neighbors and friends and anybody in needs in any way that we can. Whether it be by giving helpful information, referring good plumbers or electricians or just to listen to you. We understand you maybe more because unfortunately some members of our team are also suffering the devastating effects of the hurricane.

Please click on the links below for some helpful information.

Hurricane Sandy Emergency Information:

For online registration go to www.disasterassistance.gov/ or
call FEMA Helpline - 1-800-621-FEMA (3362) (TTY -1-800-462-7585 for the hearing impaired) in addition to having a pen and paper, please have the following information ready:
your Social Security Number
A description of your losses that were caused by the disaster
Insurance information
A telephone number where you can be contacted

• Find Overnight Warm Shelter location list
• Find daytime warming center locations
• Find Disaster Assistance Service Center location
• Mobile Mediacal Van Location

We will be honored to help you. Do not hesitate to call us at 917-804-3198 or 718-375-2065.

Thank you.

Welcome to Homecrest, Brooklyn NY

You may never have heard of the Brooklyn neighborhood called Homecrest, but it is an incredibly exciting and vibrant place to visit, and explore and to live. Easily accessible via the Q train to Kings Highway, Homecrest is worth the trip for many reasons. Homecrest has one of Brooklyn's most popular shopping and dining destination called Kings Highway. Kings Highway at any given point in time filled with the sounds of different languages of its diverse residents, such as Russian, Spanish, Italian, Arabic, Tagalog, Chinese, Greek, Hebrew, Pakistani and let's not forget English. When you arrive at Kings Highway, if you realize that you forgot to go to the bank to get some cash to spend, not to worry, there are at least 10 banks large and small within a 15 block stretch. The shopping on Kings Highway attracts people from all over Brooklyn with many boutiques, clothing and shoe stores such as FOX’s, Designer Off-Price Department Store, Aldo, Chuckies, Steve Madden, Central Sports, Baker, Shoe Lab just to name a few.

Historic and New Brooklyn NY Parks

How lucky can Brooklyn residents get? There are several outstanding, historic and one still under construction, but amazing and very worth seeing park in Brooklyn New York today. Let's start with Prospect Park, which was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux after they completed Manhattan's Central Park in Manhattan. Prospect Park has an amazing bicycle path that twists and turns all through the park. This path is a bike riders dream and bicyclists can be seen year round riding through the park's wonderful bike path. There are pastures and lakes and an amazing abundance of gorgeous trees throughout the park. There are many events, cultural and otherwise held in Prospect Park, especially in The Spring and Summer time such as Bird watching, The Greenmarket, Dog events, Craft activities, Googa Mooga festival - a celebration of food and music on May 20th, The Food Truck Rally (a favorite of many) on May 28th, The Rhythm Revue Jazz and R&B concert June 25th and much much more!

Brooklyn NY Real Estate

With its amazing choice of neighborhoods and lifestyles, shopping and transportation conveniences, majestic parks, a rich diversity of architectural styles, world class entertainment and dining choices Brooklyn NY real estate has become the number one choice for home buyers, business owners and investors to buy real estate properties. At Accord Real Estate Group we are proud of our long standing track record of excellent results in representing sellers and assisting buyers with their sale or purchase of Brooklyn New York real estate. From Sheepshead Bay to Bensonhurst, from Dyker Heights to Sunset Park, from Brooklyn Heights to Windsor Terrace, from Manhattan Beach to BoCoCa and many other Brooklyn neighborhoods, we at Accord Real Estate Group know Brooklyn NY real estate and we know that you deserve only the finest personal attention from experienced real estate brokers and agents when you are planning to sell or to purchase a property. If you are planning to sell real estate in Brooklyn New York you can rely on us to bring you the best price possible in today's market. If you are planning to buy real estate in Brooklyn NY for the 1st time, shopping for a Brownstone, Co-op, Condominium, Brooklyn Townhouse or if you are an experienced investor looking for a multi family, mixed use or commercial property or if you are a business owner, looking for a building to set up your business, we listen very carefully to your needs and expectations to find just the right property for you. In addition to our brokers and agents we are working with a wide range of professionals, who can assist you with every aspect of preparing to sell or to purchase real estate properties in Brooklyn NY including cleaning out and cleaning up a property in preparation to sell, staging and making necessary renovations to make the best 1st impression when showing your property, real estate attorneys, movers, mortgage brokers etc.

Brooklyn By The Sea

The neighborhoods of Sheepshead Bay, Brighton Beach, Coney Island, Sea Gate and Manhattan Beach are all located right on or are surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean. According to Jeff Grandis, a lifelong resident of Brooklyn and a Brooklyn Real Estate Broker " For a truly relaxing ,fun, historic, interesting and delicious experience every New Yorker or tourist should visit these Brooklyn neighborhoods." Sheepshead Bay is the New York version of Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco. Sheepshead Bay has both fishing and party boats depart from the piers going out to sea morning and night. Restaurants, clubs,shops and expensive condominiums abound. Brighton Beach is the mecca of Russian culture in Brooklyn. Brighton Beach Avenue is a wonderland of specialty food markets, cafes, nightclubs and restaurants. The boardwalk stretches for several miles along the beaches of Brighton Beach and Coney Island ending at Sea Gate, Brooklyn's oldest gated community. Coney Island is at least for now still the home some great old amusement park rides that are a wonderful slice of Brooklyn history, i.e. The Cyclone and The Wonder Wheel.

Brooklyn Real Estate Market Outlook 2010 for Residential Property Sales

Residential property sales for the first quarter of 2010 showed bright spots in several Brooklyn neighborhoods, based on the business transactions made through the efforts of Accord Real Estate Group. For example, a detached brick two family house in Sheepshead Bay, sold in one week at full price, and there were many other interested, qualified buyers in need of a good house. Another example is a brick 3 family house in Bensonhurst, that sold relatively quickly at close to asking price and again there were many other qualified buyers interested in this house. Still another example of a Brooklyn neighborhood bright spot is a handyman's special brick 3 family house in Ft Greene. The house is located just 2 blocks from Fort Greene Park on the Myrtle Avenue side of the park and it was sold relatively quickly for a great price considering the amount of work needed to bring the house up to good condition. These sales, in my opinion as a Brooklyn Real Estate Broker, are a direct indication that the Brooklyn Real Estate Market is improving.

Brooklyn Real Estate Market Outlook for 2010 for Mixed Use and Commercial Property Sales

The Brooklyn Real Estate market in 2009 was a year that most if not all brokers, agents and realtors are glad is behind us. As a broker for 22 years selling Brooklyn Real Estate in many Brooklyn neighborhoods, I've seen in the last year that few Brooklyn neighborhoods saw any price increases in property values. For most Brooklyn neighborhoods, since we have been in a downward trend price wise, for the last 3-4 years prices remain at the lowest level since last real estate boom. While the 2010 Brooklyn Real Estate Market is expected to bring an improvement in sales volume, meaning, there will be more people selling and buying properties, I do not foresee an increase in property values yet and commercial property sales will still be slowed. Most mixed use and commercial properties will be difficult to sell in this overly cautious lending environment and slow business forecasts.

Signs of Life in the Brooklyn New York Real Estate Market

Jeff Grandis, a Brooklyn Realtor for 22 years points out that across the spectrum of properties for sale in Brooklyn New York today, whether Commercial, Residential or Mixed Use, buyers are out there shopping for values and buying. For example, whether it is a 1,300 Square Foot 3 bedroom 2 bath Luxury Condominium in Brighton Beach for sale at $535,000 or a one family 3 bedroom 2 bath duplex home for sale in Midwood for $450,000, or an extra large 2 family 3 bedroom over 2 bedroom house for sale in Sheepshead Bay for $689,000,or a mixed use building with one store and one 2 bedroom apartment for sale in Flatbush for $499,000 there is plenty of activity from qualified buyers and deals are being made. Grandis further points out that there are so many all cash investors out there hunting for deals and finding them at all price levels and property types. Now is truly a great time to buy. Even with the economy in a shambles and so much uncertainty and insecurity that exists in many peoples minds about what direction to turn in for a safe investment, Brooklyn Real Estate is still a solid choice for the long run.

Wow! So much Brooklyn Real Estate Information

"That's right" says Jeff Grandis, a Brooklyn Real Estate Broker, who proudly announcesthe launch of a completely redesigned and upgraded version of his web site. The web site is very helpful and informative to both sellers and buyers of Brooklyn Real Estate. There is extensive information on many different neighborhoods, such as architectural influence, lifestyle information, school information and much more. Please visit the different pages at www.jeffgrandis.com or call Jeff Grandis at 917-804-3198, your lifelong Brooklyn resident and your Brooklyn Neighborhood Real Estate Broker. You can also e-mail to Jeff at jeff@jeffgrandis.com

This is where you can share your best nightclubs and fun places to eat

This is where you can share your best nightclubs and fun places to eat: anybody can log in and post, just keep it clean or you will be blacklisted!

Brooklyn New York Neighborhood Information

Please visit the Brooklyn Neighborhoods individul pages on our website to get detailed information for: Bath Beach Bay Ridge Bedford Stuyvesant Bensonhurst Bergen Beach Boerum Hill Boro Park Brighton Beach Brooklyn Heights Canarsie Carroll Gardens Clinton Hill Cobble Hill Columbia Street Waterfront District Coney Island Crown Heights Downtown Brooklyn Dumbo Dyker Heights Flatbush Flatlands Fort Greene Fort Hamilton Fulton Ferry Georgetown Gerritsen Beach Gowanus Gravesend Homecrest Kensington/Parkville Madison Manhattan Beach Marine Park Midwood Mill Basin Park Slope Prospect Heights Prospect - Lefferts Gardens Prospect Park Red Hook Sea Gate Sheepshead Bay Sunset Park Williamsburg Windsor Terrace

Selling a Lifestyle or a Home or both?

The fact of the matter is according to Jeff Grandis of jeffgrandis.com when working with a buyer a professional real estate broker must take the time to get to know that buyers needs in terms of what they can afford to spend, the amenities of the home and most importantly the location of the home". Is that home located near schools, houses of worship, transportation, shopping, fishing boats, beaches, libraries, a bicycle path, jogging trail, restaurants and cafes, night-clubs or other families with young children for their kids to play with? As a Real Estate Broker for over 25 years Grandis says we don't just sell buyers the walls, ceilings, floors, room sizes, a certain architectural style home, kitchens and bathrooms. We are selling them a lifestyle that is just right for their individual lives and unique needs. It is not an easy task, but its very gratifying when you can put all the right elements together for your buyers. For more information on selling different lifestyles or any questions regarding selling or buying Real Estate in Brooklyn New York call Jeff at 1-917-804-3198 or e-mail.

A New Year, A Different Market ? Thoughts on the Real Estate market In Brooklyn, New York

"What a difference a year makes", states Jeff Grandis of Accordrealestategroup.com. Last year at this time both buyers and sellers were completely confused about the change of market forces from a seller's market to a buyer's market. As a result many buyers sat on the fence and did not buy, thinking that the market will finally crash and prices will tumble. Well, according to Jeff Grandis in fact there was a price adjustment downward in many Brooklyn Neighborhoods. The adjustment was as much as 15% in some neighborhoods and less in others. For example, Midwood, Madison, Gravesend, Homecrest, Sheepshead Bay experienced a significant price adjustment. The downtown neighborhoods of Dumbo, Park Slope, Fort Greene, Clinton Hill, Carroll Gardens, Cobble Hill, Boerum Hill, Brooklyn Heights, Williamsburg and Greenpoint underwent a less severe downturn in price. Many sellers realized that the time of tremendous increases in price for their properties was over. Now, if a seller wants to sell, they have to be much more realistic about their expectations price wise says Grandis, who has been listing and selling Brooklyn Real Estate for over 19 years. According to Jeff Grandis, 2007 should be a much better real estate market. Now most sellers and buyers understand the changes that the Brooklyn real estate market have undergone. It was like a big storm, and now there seems to be a welcome calm. Sellers now know that they have to be realistic about price and buyers now know that prices have stabilized so if they need to buy, now it is a great time.

Dining Out In Boerum Hill, BOCOCA, Brooklyn New York

According to Jeff of Accordrealestategroup.com “ Smith Street has a high concentration of many different restaurants and cuisines”. Jeff goes on to say “ probably the best selection of restaurants in all of Brooklyn can be found in BOCOCA – ( Boerum Hill, Cobble Hill and Carroll Gardens ).

One of the best restaurants in the area is Cubana Café located at 272 Smith Street, between Sackett and DeGraw Street.

If you like to drink Mojitos, then this is the place for you. The mojitos here are the real thing with all fresh ingredients and made to perfection. The atmosphere is lively and always festive with Great Cuban music playing, Steve, the owner, greets you like family and absolutely great food, priced moderately.