252 11th Street

252 11th Street is a beautifully renovated brick and brownstone townhouse on a great community-oriented Park Slope block. This historic home was built in 1895 by William M. Calder, who would go on to become Brooklyn’s Building Commissioner and a US Senator. In the Senate he spearheaded the Calder Act, which established Daylight Savings Time. The beautiful townhouse he built at 252 11th Street was originally three floor-through apartments with an English basement. Today 252 11th Street is configured as a grand single-family townhouse with four bedrooms, two full baths and two half baths, a sprawling chef’s kitchen, two wood burning fireplaces, and a sunny south-facing garden. The current owners did a meticulous job of melding the best of old-world detail with contemporary finishes, fixtures, and systems to create a home that feels warm, friendly, and easy to live in. You’ll feel drawn to explore and linger here. There are solid oak floors and vintage tin ceilings in excellent condition throughout the house. The building facade is graced with its original cornice. Light shines deep into the house all day long from bay windows in the front and large south-facing windows in the back. Coming home to 252 11th Street, you’ll enter through the original wrought iron gate, up brownstone steps, and into an entry foyer that retains its original wainscotting, as do the hallways throughout the house. The original newel post and carpeted staircase provide a sense of warmth and elegance. A wood burning fireplace with a painted brick surround anchors the front parlor nicely. There’s a loft-like feeling here, with a light, open, and airy procession of spaces. The middle parlor features a dining room with an etched glass door that opens to a china closet. Moving further into the house you’ll find a grand and gleaming chef’s kitchen, perfect for entertaining and everyday life with counter seating for four. Large windows and a glass door cast light onto the Carrera marble countertops and stainless-steel appliances, including a six-burner Wolf-range, GE Profile refrigerator, undermount microwave and a full size wine fridge. A spacious powder room with an etched glass door and a marble tile floor completes this floor. The kitchen opens up to a sunny south-facing backyard with bluestone pavers and plantings on three sides. It’s the perfect private oasis from the bustle of Brooklyn. The loft-like atmosphere of the parlor floor continues on the upper floors, with high ceilings throughout. There’s a lot to explore here! The second floor has two sunny bedrooms, a sparkling new bathroom with a shower and two sinks, a large playroom, a study that could double as a bedroom, and an art room with a slop sink. On the top floor there’s a generously sized bathroom with a shower, two sinks set in Carrera marble, a deep tub next to a large window and a marble tile floor. The primary bedroom opens up to a dressing area and luxuriously large closets on both sides. The front room has a cozy wood-burning fireplace, and works great as either a bedroom or sitting room. Just beyond there’s a room large enough to be a bedroom but currently used as an office, with a large window that looks out over the townhouses and sky across the street. Downstairs you’ll find a finished English basement, with doors both to the street and the backyard. There’s a large open space perfect for playing, exercising, working, studying, teaching, or relaxing, as well as a half bath, lots of closet and storage space, and a spacious laundry room with large capacity front loading washer/drier and room for storage . 252 11th Street sits at the crossroads of Park Slope and Gowanus, and is close to the best restaurants, boutiques and amenities of both neighborhoods, including Whole Foods, Prospect Park, The Bell House, Stone Park Café, the YMCA, Barbes, Four and Twenty Blackbirds, and many more. The F, G, and R trains are about a block away at 4th Avenue & 9th St. for a quick commute to Manhattan and the rest of Brooklyn. Come see this beautifully renovated historic home and make it the backdrop for your life in Brooklyn!