New York - New Yorkers are well-accustomed to confining spaces, but could they stomach shopping or living in a building that shares space with a functioning prison?
The answer may lie in downtown Brooklyn, where real estate is so hot that even a city jail is being eyed as a potential home for shops, a restaurant, or maybe even some apartments.
Built in 1957 and closed since 2003, the Brooklyn House of Detention seems an unlikely candidate for gentrification.
Standing 10 stories high, the cross-shaped concrete tower is unwelcoming at best. Razor wire encircles part of its base. Metal cages cover its facade. It looks like the prison it is.
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But in real estate, location is everything, and in that respect, the jail has it all.
The building lies a short walk from the Brooklyn Bridge on Atlantic Avenue, a once-shabby boulevard now lined with trendy restaurants, specialty food shops and clothing boutiques. Luxury condominiums are under construction around the corner and down the street. Nearby brownstones are selling for $1,5-million and up.
More big changes are coming. Just eight blocks away, New Jersey Nets owner Bruce Ratner plans to build apartment towers and a glitzy new arena for his team.
To the dismay of some locals, there is also talk about reopening the House of Detention, but with some changes that might make it more palatable.
Department of Correction Commissioner Martin Horn has suggested turning 2 230 square metres of space on the jail's ground floor into retail space, which might be rented to shopkeepers or an upscale grocery.
Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz has been pushing a grander idea: Tear down the jail and build a new one that would include a floor or two of retail, plus residential housing and possibly a hotel, in addition to jail cells.
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