155 Calyer Street Update

It has been some time since I have revisited this property. I have written about it rather extensively and as of the last post it has been served a Stop Work Order. A number of people have wondered what is slated to grace this property. Well, I have the answer: it is going to be a laundromat. I suspect many will agree with me that such a business is sorely needed in this part of Greenpoint.

But this post isn’t about a dearth of goods and services. That is boring. Rather, I am going to write about how I learned this space is going to be a laundromat. This is infinitely more interesting, as you will see.

After pulling some seriously brutal hours, the Mister took last Friday off. Inasmuch as I can deduce he spent it playing around on the computer. This is his usual m.o. when he has down time. In any case, whatever he was doing was interrupted by a phone call. It was our landlord. He was quite upset. Long story made short: he was the author of the work at 155 Calyer Street. After receiving a Stop Work Order his secretary did some research and discovered New York Shitty. Somehow they put it together who is the author of this site: me.

My husband informed me that our landlord seemed to be under the impression I was angry at him and raised a stink about 155 Calyer to take a dig at him. I can assure you (and him if he is reading this) this was and is not the case. Had I known he was responsible for this I probably would have approached the matter a little differently. I probably would have given him a head’s up that the work at this site has come to the attention of a number of people and the absence of any work permits was probably going to net a complaint to the Department of Buildings. But why trifle with what could have been? Here and now my landlord thinks I have it out for him.

I do not. But I (and a number of other Greenpoint residents) do have a “thing” for illegal demolition and construction work. Especially when it comes to landmarked properties. This is the result of witnessing years upon years of watching abuse being heaped upon this neighborhood and my community’s quality of life at the behest of unscrupulous speculators. And this city’s seeming unwillingness to do anything about it.

What’s more, I really like purple aluminum siding.

All in all, our landlord is a swell guy. Although I have voiced frustrations about the living conditions in our humble abode in the past, since there was a change in management— and our former Super was sent packing (that man was about as worthless as they come)— things have been quite good. When things break (and they do, this is inevitable) they are fixed in a timely manner and more importantly they are fixed properly. I would not have a signed a two year lease (sans rider— which was one of the most odious and legally questionable documents I have ever seen and it should be noted was NOT drawn up by our landlord) last month if I was unhappy. Much to the contrary: I am quite happy.

Except for the fact I probably had a hand in getting my landlord in trouble. I feel pretty bad about that.

I am certain when this laundomat is up and running it be an asset— not a detriment— to the community. Foremost and above all (and I suspect I speak for many when I write this) I am relieved that this space is not going to be another bar. We have way too many of these already.

Miss Heather