73-97 Empire Boulevard

Architect unknown
circa 1914

In 1913, Ebbets Field, home of the Brooklyn Dodgers, was one of the most popular gathering places in all of Brooklyn. To accommodate traffic to the stadium and to capitalize on patronage by the team’s fans, Empire Boulevard and the surrounding streets became home to an array of parking garages. Despite the utilitarian function of these one-story buildings, their façades were still richly adorned with a rhythm of terra cotta Gothic arches along the roofline, perhaps reminding sports fans of their religion – baseball. This building, which was converted to retail and commercial space, is one of the last remaining garage structures in this area, and is unfortunately in danger of being lost to a redevelopment scheme due to its location on Empire Boulevard, now a bustling thoroughfare.

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