Gowanus Batcave
Gowanus Batcave | |
---|---|
Brooklyn, New York | |
Country | United States |
Coordinates | 40°40′36″N 73°59′20″W / 40.676629°N 73.988899°W |
Completed | 1903 |
Website | |
www |
The Central Power Station of the Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company building, commonly known as the Batcave or Gowanus Batcave, is a former transit
In 2012, philanthropist Joshua Rechnitz purchased the property for $7 million with plans to turn it into The Powerhouse Workshop, an arts space focused on the fabrication of artistic goods. It is managed through the nonprofit Powerhouse Environmental Arts Foundation. In 2019, the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission designated the Gowanus Batcave as an official city landmark. The arts space reopened in 2023 as Powerhouse Arts.
Early history and construction
![Architectural diagram of the building, displaying measurements, doorways, and position of a variety of elements inside the structure. The image is taken from a book about power stations from 1910, and the bottom of the image includes the text "Fig. 47 - Cross Section, Central Power Station, B. R. T."](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/10/Central_Power_Station_diagram_%28Murray%2C_fig._47%29.png/300px-Central_Power_Station_diagram_%28Murray%2C_fig._47%29.png)
A Sanborn map from 1886 shows the site had been home to Nassau Sulfur Works and Smith and Shaw Mattress Materials and Paper Stock.[1] In the late 19th century, as the Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company (BRT) expanded, increased demand was placed on its power supply. In the time before the Central Power Station was constructed, the system had been operated entirely by direct current, with boosters used where long distances required them. As territory grew to be farther and farther away from the power stations, and as the company looked for ways to increase flexibility to adapt to future growth, it was decided that the best way to increase power capacity was to adopt a new system which would allow them to use large, single stations in central locations with convenient access to coal and water. Alternating current could be distributed without excessive loss to any part of the system, and the high-tension feeders underground removed the need to string heavy overhead cables.[2]
The need for a new power house was emphasized when a power station in Ridgewood, Queens, burned down on December 4, 1900.[3]: 11 [4] The following month, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported that a site had been found on the Gowanus Canal, an active industrial hub in South Brooklyn.[5] The site, located at Third Avenue and First Street, had easy access to coal, water, and other supplies. It was large enough to hold a new building and a large store of coal while also allowing for future expansion.[6][2]
Construction was overseen by Charles Edward Roehl.[3]: 12 [7] Work on the building's foundations began in May 1901 and was finished the following January, though further work was delayed by equipment shortages and labor strikes.[3]: 11 [8][9] At the time, it was estimated that the Central Power House would cost $3 million.[7] The brick facade of the building was erected in 1902.[3]: 11 Construction was completed in 1903,[10] and the first engine started operating that March.[11] Four engines were operational by June 1903, and by the following year, the structure was declared "practically completed", with all eight engines working.[3]: 11 [12]
![Photo of dynamos from New York Tribune, November 1, 1903. p. 27.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/11/CentralPowerStationDynamos.png/300px-CentralPowerStationDynamos.png)
The Central Power Station's design, which combines elements of
Coal was brought to the plant on barges via the adjacent canal. Conveyors moved the coal to be crushed and then to the coal storage in the upper part of the boiler house, to be dropped down to the boilers as needed. To facilitate additional coal storage, the owners purchased an additional lot in 1903. In the other building, eight 4,000 horsepower engines produced both alternating and direct current via different sets of generators. The direct current was used to power nearby train lines while the alternating current was sent through underground cables in terracotta ducts to substations around the city, which would in turn convert it to direct current.[3]: 14–15
The BRT became the
Abandonment
Squatter community
![The large south-west facing side of the building, with graffiti along the top, several broken windows, and utility vans in a parking lot in the foreground](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ef/Old_Gowanus_Power_House_%28cropped%29.jpg/300px-Old_Gowanus_Power_House_%28cropped%29.jpg)
The Batcave became home to
In 2004, several other squats around the city were torn down or otherwise cleared out, increasing the number of people coming to the Batcave, which led to diminishing of the community spirit.[6] In 2006, the New York Daily News ran a sensational article about the space, characterizing it as violent, drug-addled, and dangerous. The reporter talked with people in their teens and twenties who told stories of doing drugs, panhandling, a homeless person thrown out a window, and an addict who overdosed and was left on the street for police to find.[17][16] The property owners—Shaya Boymelgreen, Isaac Katan, and Africa-Israel Investments, who purchased the structure in the 2000s—had plans to build a large condominium project called Gowanus Village on the land occupied by the building and adjacent lots. In preparation for this project, they had building security improved, doors welded shut, and hired a guard to keep the building clear.[16][17][18] Architectural Digest described the unused, post-squatter building "an emblem of gentrification, urban development, and street art".[19]
Underground arts and urban exploration
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/37/Powerhouse_Arts_%2812499%29.jpg/220px-Powerhouse_Arts_%2812499%29.jpg)
As the Gowanus Village development plan failed to come to fruition, security again became lax. The Batcave became a popular location for graffiti artists, underground parties, concerts, and urban explorers in the late 2000s and early 2010s.[16] The top of the building, facing 3rd Avenue, has displayed a variety of politically oriented messages painted by artists.[16][20][21] In 2008, owners Africa-Israel and Katan, who had ended their relationship with Boymelgreen, put the building on the market for $27 million. The following year they updated the listing to say "make an offer", and eventually sold it in 2012 for $7 million.[22][18] Even after the sale, people snuck in for parties, cutting through fences and prompting the new owners to once again tighten security.[23]
Powerhouse Workshop
In 2012, the Powerhouse Environmental Arts Foundation, a nonprofit founded by philanthropist Joshua Rechnitz, purchased the property for $7 million, with initial plans to turn it into studio space for artists.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/17/Gowanus_batcave_new_addition_%2874959%29.jpg/220px-Gowanus_batcave_new_addition_%2874959%29.jpg)
An environmental assessment found high levels of
Powerhouse Workshop was originally planned to open in 2020,[14][25] but as of April 2020[update], the opening date had been pushed to 2021.[31] Powerhouse Arts opened within the Gowanus Batcave in May 2023.[26][32] During the project, workers had to remove massive amounts of groundwater and treat the heavily polluted soil under the building's site. In addition, though the contractors wanted to preserve the building's graffiti, much of the graffiti had to be painted over while the facade was restored. The renovation included a new roof and new concrete floor plates,[33] and a new lobby and eastern entrance was built.[34] The engine house was converted into the Great Hall, with a grand staircase. Two additional spaces, the Loft and the Small Hall, were constructed in a neighboring annex.[32][33] The six-story annex was designed in a similar style to the original power house.[34] A ceramic studio was also added to the top story, while a printmaking, art fabrication, and metalwork studios were opened on the lower stories;[33] these workshops occupy about half of the building, which covers 170,000 square feet (16,000 m2).[26] The project cost an estimated $180 million in total.[26][33]
See also
- List of museums and cultural institutions in New York City
- List of New York City Designated Landmarks in Brooklyn
References
- ^ a b "NYSDEC Certifies Cleanup Requirements Achieved at Brownfield Site" (PDF). New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. January 2018.
- ^ a b c d
One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain: Murray, Thomas Edward (1910). "The Central Power Station of the Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company". Electric Power Plants: A Description of a Number of Power Stations. Selbstverl. pp. 109–138.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company (BRT) Central Power Station Engine House" (PDF). New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission. October 29, 2019. Retrieved January 20, 2020.
- ^ "State RR Commissioners' Findings on BRT Service". Brooklyn Citizen. January 29, 1903. p. 7. Retrieved January 15, 2020 – via newspapers.com
.
- ^ "Must Have More Power". Brooklyn Eagle. January 1, 1901. p. 2. Retrieved January 15, 2020 – via Brooklyn Public Library; newspapers.com
.
- ^ a b Leckert, Oriana (2015). "Batcave". Brooklyn Spaces: 50 Hubs of Culture and Creativity. The Monacelli Press. pp. 12–15.
- ^ a b "New B.R.T Power House". Brooklyn Eagle. January 20, 1902. p. 3. Retrieved January 15, 2020 – via Brooklyn Public Library; newspapers.com
.
- ^ "Improvements On BRT Delayed". Brooklyn Standard Union. July 17, 1903. p. 3. Retrieved January 15, 2020 – via newspapers.com
.
- ^ "Improved Power Facilities for the Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company" (PDF). The Street Railway Journal: 61. February 1903. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 11, 2019. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
- ^ a b c d "History". Powerhouse Workshop. Archived from the original on October 23, 2018. Retrieved January 28, 2018.
- ^ "BRT Co's Plant to Be The Greatest in the World". Brooklyn Eagle. March 21, 1903. p. 9. Retrieved January 15, 2020 – via Brooklyn Public Library; newspapers.com
.
- ^ "Half a Million for BRT Improvements". Brooklyn Times-Union. August 26, 1904. p. 3. Retrieved January 15, 2020 – via newspapers.com
.
- ^ "B.R.T Central Powerhouse: Historical Background Report" (PDF). Higgins & Quasebarth. January 2005. p. 5. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 16, 2020.
- ^ a b c d e Plitt, Amy (March 7, 2017). "Gowanus Bat Cave will transform into an art space designed by Herzog & de Meuron". Curbed. Archived from the original on January 29, 2018. Retrieved January 28, 2018.
- ^ a b c Frishberg, Hannah (January 2, 2015). "The Vice and Vagrants of Old-School Gowanus". Narratively. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Party's Over At Gowanus Batcave, But Mysterious Millionaire Will Make It "F*cking Cool"". Gothamist. March 11, 2013. Archived from the original on February 24, 2018. Retrieved January 28, 2018.
- ^ a b c Sederstrom, Jotham (October 23, 2006). "Homeless Rule at the 'Bat Cave'". New York Daily News. Archived from the original on January 29, 2018. Retrieved January 28, 2018.
- ^ a b Rosenberg, Ariel (November 5, 2009). "The Gowanus Village project will include boardwalk along the water and cafes". Globes.
- ^ a b Wallace, Elizabeth (March 9, 2017). "Herzog & de Meuron Will Transform a Brooklyn Batcave into an Art Space". Architectural Digest. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
- ^ "Gowanus Building Updated for Wall Street Meltdown". Curbed. September 24, 2008. Archived from the original on January 29, 2018. Retrieved January 28, 2018.
- ^ "Gowanus Building Seems to Have Gone Anti-Corporate". Curbed. July 31, 2008. Archived from the original on January 29, 2018. Retrieved January 28, 2018.
- ^ "Gowanus Village Sites Back on Market; Available A La Carte". Brownstoner Magazine. October 21, 2009.
- ^ Riesz, Megan (January 7, 2014). "Heavy metals? Heavy lifting? No, the most weighty problem at this Gowanus building is squatters". The Brooklyn Paper. Archived from the original on April 13, 2020. Retrieved April 13, 2020.
- ^ Goodman, J. David (November 23, 2012). "The Mysterious Mr. Rechnitz". The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 29, 2018. Retrieved January 30, 2018.
- ^ a b c d e Chaban, Matt A. V. (March 7, 2017). "The Batcave, a Graffiti Landmark in Brooklyn, Grows Up". The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 29, 2018. Retrieved January 28, 2018.
- ^ a b c d e f Sheets, Hilarie M. (May 17, 2023). "Brooklyn's Batcave Reborn as Gotham's Art Factory". The New York Times. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
- ^ a b c "Ambitious, long-in-the-works plan to turn Gowanus Batcave into Artists Haven". Brownstoner Magazine. November 2, 2017. Archived from the original on February 7, 2019. Retrieved February 4, 2019.
- ^ Plitt, Amy (November 1, 2017). "Gowanus Bat Cave's tranformation into a shiny new arts space is moving forward". Curbed. Archived from the original on January 29, 2018. Retrieved January 28, 2018.
- ^ "Environmental Site Remediation Database Search Details". New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. Retrieved April 17, 2020.
- ^ Sanders, Anna (October 29, 2019). "Five Gowanus buildings made landmarks ahead of rezoning". New York Daily News. Archived from the original on January 16, 2020. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
- ^ "Our Home". Powerhouse Arts. Archived from the original on April 24, 2020. Retrieved April 24, 2020.
- ^ a b de Vries, Susan (May 24, 2023). "PHOTOS: A look inside the revamped Gowanus Batcave as it opens as Powerhouse Arts". The Brooklyn Paper. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
- ^ a b c d Baird-Remba, Rebecca (July 7, 2023). "Gowanus' Batcave Is Reborn As the Powerhouse Arts Center". Commercial Observer. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
- ^ a b Bernstein, Fred (June 20, 2023). "After years of work, Herzog & de Meuron's Powerhouse Arts in Brooklyn is now finished". The Architect’s Newspaper. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
Further reading
- Murray, Thomas Edward (1910). "The Central Power Station of the Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company". Electric Power Plants: A Description of a Number of Power Stations. Selbstverl. pp. 109–138. – A detailed, technical description of the power station as of 1910, written by the builder, American inventor and businessman Thomas E. Murray
External links
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- Powerhouse Workshop, official site
- Preserving a Brooklyn Temple of Graffiti, a 2017 New York Times video by Time Chaffee, Niko Koppel, and Kaitlyn Mullin