Park Slope

Park Slope lies along the western edge of Prospect Park and is known for its brownstone streets, family-friendly feel, Fifth and Seventh Avenue shops and restaurants, and strong public-library and school presence. Much of it is a protected historic district.

Park Slope’s historic blocks were built from the 1860s to the early 1900s, when wealthy Brooklynites and professionals commissioned limestone and brownstone mansions along Prospect Park West and rows of townhouses on the side streets. Decline in the mid-twentieth century was followed by a restoration movement in the 1960s and 1970s, led by new homeowners who saved many of these buildings, and the neighbourhood was designated a historic district in 1973.

The park is the neighbourhood’s heart. Prospect Park, designed by Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux, who also designed Central Park, offers a lake, woods, the Long Meadow and the Prospect Park Zoo, and hosts free summer concerts. Close to the northern edge of the neighbourhood, Grand Army Plaza has a monumental arch, the Central Library of the Brooklyn Public Library and a popular Saturday farmers’ market.

Fifth Avenue and Seventh Avenue are the commercial spines, lined with restaurants, bookshops, bakeries, bars and neighbourhood shops, and Fifth Avenue continues south toward Sunset Park. The F and G trains stop along Seventh Avenue and Fourth Avenue–Ninth Street, the R train runs along Fourth Avenue, and the 2 and 3 serve Grand Army Plaza. Many residents walk or bike to work and school.

Park Slope is known as a family neighbourhood, with well-regarded public elementary schools, playgrounds and strollers on every block, but it is also expensive, and buildings in the historic district have rules about exterior changes. If you are considering a purchase, ask your agent about the building’s age, any landmark restrictions and the cost of upkeep, and compare listings in nearby Windsor Terrace, Gowanus and Prospect Heights.