A lot has happened in the past 48 years, but not in Dutch Kills. Not when it comes to hearth and home, anyway. The industrial patch of Long Island City was officially deemed a manufacturing zone by the city in 1961; new homes were prohibited, and old ones were grandfathered in but classified as "nonconforming," making residences tough to insure and buy (mortgage complications). The zoning was recently overturned, and now the 'hood is set to welcome its first new housing, kinda! An engineer named Dominic Stiller bought the corner brownstone at 30th Street and 39th Avenue (above) to use as a home and office, and his two-story extension to the house is wrapping up construction. He's being celebrated in press releases as a freedom fighter or a foreign conqueror arriving with exotic teas and spices, and it's all a bit weird if you don't understand the charms of Dutch Kills.
Via the power of Google Street View, here's a look at the other corners of the intersection where Stiller's new home sits:
Here we have some green space. Is this part of Mayor Bloomberg's plaNYC initiative?
Holy moly, a residential boom? LIC diehards, feel free to inform us on what we're looking at here and if construction is still kicking.
At least they'll have somewhere to get their ink cartridges refilled.
· End of an era in Dutch Kills: House move-in zaps 1961 ban [NYDN]
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