More on 42 Third Place

Of all the things I blogged about on my "Positively Third Street" day on Tuesday, the item on the unsightly growth atop the Carroll Garden's brownstone 42 Third Place received the most attention. So I decided to revisit the property.

Built in 1910, the owners got the go-ahead from the Department of Building to added two extra floors back in April 2008. Since then, there have been plenty of official complaints and violations, including charges of unsafe scaffolding, the new floors not being equipped with proper ventilation, a lack of safety netting, and work continuing when a Stop Work order was in place. Not much work has taken place since May.

One reader wrote in, saying "But there are brownstones just down the block just as tall. Are they all inappropriate?" I checked out the block. It's mostly two-and-a-half story brownstones. There are a few that go up an extra story. But this is the only building that goes up as high as it does on the block. Another reader suggested that the new Carroll Gardens downsizing wouldn't prevent this sort of building, as I had said, since 42 Third Place is under 50 feet. Maybe so. It's hard for me to judge 50 feet with my eye.