Brooklyn and the Navy Armed Guard | Episode 247

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Celebrate Navy Day with a discussion of one of the least-known units of World War II, the Navy Armed Guard. Serving in the U-boat-infested waters of the Atlantic, these sailors served in small detachments aboard merchant ships manning the deck guns. This virtual program will be hosted from the Sunset Park waterfront, where many sailors departed from the docks of the Brooklyn Army Terminal and Bush Terminal, and where the largest Armed Guard Center in the country was located, the Second Battalion Naval Militia Armory that once stood on 1st Avenue and 52nd Street. We will discuss the creation and evolution of the service during World War II, listen to oral histories of Armed Guard sailors, and visit one of the few memorials to the sacrifices of these brave men.

Photo Credit: Official US Navy photograph, taken by Clarence F. Korker

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Exploring Bush Terminal Park | Episode 229

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Built on the footprint of the piers and warehouses of the historic Bush Terminal, Bush Terminal Park provided much-needed green space and waterfront access to the Brooklyn’s Sunset Park neighborhood when it opened in 2014. Join us for a virtual walk through the 22-acre park, which offers remnants of the site’s maritime and manufacturing history, unique engineered tide pools and a wild-growing forest, and unparalleled views of the harbor and skyline.

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Housing for All: A History of Social Housing in NYC | Episode 224

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As we approach New York City’s primary elections on June 22, housing, as always, is a key issue on the ballot. So we are looking back at the history of social housing in New York – not just the city’s vast NYCHA public housing system, but also other forms of government and philanthropic intervention that have tried to tame the beast of unsafe, unsanitary, and unaffordable housing over the past 100+ years. This program will look at examples of model housing designed by social reformers, landmark cooperatives built by labor unions and community groups, the rise of public housing beginning in the 1930s, and public subsidies for private developments. This wide-ranging examination will take us from the Home and Tower Buildings to the First Houses, from Stuy-Town to the housing lottery.

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Virtual Ride on the South Brooklyn Ferry | Episode 168

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Take a virtual ride with us on the South Brooklyn route of the NYC Ferry. We will board at Corlears Hook and examine the Brooklyn waterfront as we ride past DUMBO, Brooklyn Bridge Park, Red Hook, Sunset Park, and finally end in Bay Ridge. Along the way, we will look back at the industrial history of these neighborhoods and see some of the last vestiges of the industrial and working waterfront in Brooklyn, including the Red Hook Container Terminal, Erie Basin, and the Brooklyn Army Terminal. We will also discuss many of things to see and do near the ferry stops.

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Fundraiser for Sunset Park Fire Victims

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A brick apartment building on fire with the street sign 44th street in the foreground

On the afternoon of Wednesday, April 3, a fire broke out at 702 44th St, an apartment building in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, leaving more than 100 people homeless. The community has rallied to provide assistance to these families, and the local Business Improvement District has set up a GoFundMe campaign for them – please consider donating.

On Saturday, April 6, we are hosting our regular Brooklyn Army Terminal Tour but this week we will be donating 100% of all ticket sales to the fire victims. So please join us – we will put special focus on the Army Terminal’s long history of providing aid and refuge to victims of war and disaster, from the 1928 Puerto Rico Hurricane to the Andrea Doria sinking to the September 11 Boatlift.>> Continue reading

Eating Around the Brooklyn Army Terminal

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A chicken taco with red and green sauce, cilantro, radishes, and a lime in a styrofoam container

Located on the border of Sunset Park and Bay Ridge, the Brooklyn Army Terminal is nearby to many options for brunch, lunch, or a drink before or after your tour. If you like Mediterranean food, head to Bay Ridge for Lebanese standout Tanoreen or grab take-out from the Family Store. Industry City offers a host of food options seven days a week, including a food hall and Japan Village, or try a craft beverage at Brooklyn Kura Sake or the nearby Five Boroughs Brewing. Sunset Park is second-to-none in New York City for Mexican food along 4th and 5th Avenues, including Tacos El Bronco (which has a restaurant and a food truck), Tacos Matamoros, El Maguey, and Rosa’s Bakery. Or you can head up the hill a few blocks to 8th Avenue, Brooklyn’s Chinatown, where we recommend weekend dim sum at East Harbor or noodle bowls at Yun Nan Flavor Garden. Click the map below for more information.  >> Continue reading

Five Boroughs Brewing Co.

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Five Boroughs Brewing is a craft brewery producing 4,000 barrels of beer at annually in the heart of the Sunset Park industrial district. Their taproom is a great place to try their wide and unique selection of beers and is open to the public Thursday–Sunday (visit their website for detailed hours). The brewery is a short walk from the Brooklyn Army Terminal, and it’s a great place to grab a drink after a tour. They don’t serve food, but there are many options to order take-out delivered right to your barstool.

215 47th St, Brooklyn, NY // Tasting Room // More Info

Food Manufacturing Hub Opens at Brooklyn Army Terminal

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Masaki and Yukimi Momose have been making their Japanese-style salad dressings for more than three years, but now, they are finally making it in a space they can call their own. Their company, MOMO Dressing, is the first tenant in the Brooklyn Army Terminal’s Annex, a former administration building for the military complex that is now being reinvented as a center of food manufacturing.

MOMO held their grand opening on August 10 with the New York City Economic Development Corporation, which spent $15 million renovating the 55,000-square-foot building. Also in attendance was another food manufacturer who calls the Terminal home – chocolatier Jacques Torres.>> Continue reading

Curbed: Developers Compete to Shape the Future of Brooklyn’s Sunset Park

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Curbed New York, February 25, 2016

by Nathan Kensinger

The next blow to Sunset Park’s industrial waterfront came fifteen years later, as shipping technology evolved away from long piers and tall warehouses. “The introduction of the shipping container in the late 1950s really dramatically transformed the industry,” said Andrew Gustafson, who leads historical tours of the Brooklyn Army Terminal for his company, Turnstile Tours. “Basically, these enormous facilities like the Bush Terminal and the Brooklyn Army Terminal became totally obsolete for their original use. … And then you also have the decline of manufacturing spaces,” said Gustafson.

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