Historic Homes May Be Too Damaged to Save in Brooklyn's Navy Yard

"For more than three decades, Admiral's Row, like much of the nearby industrial waterfront, was largely left to rot. Further complicating matters was the fact that even though much of the 300-acre site was turned over to New York City in 1966, 10 former officers' homes and a timber shed that was once used to repair masts of large sailing vessels remained under the control of the federal government.

For decades, both sites languished.

The roofs on some of the old naval officers' homes, built from 1864 to 1901, collapsed long ago as weeds and vines took up residence. Meanwhile the storied Navy Yard - where 11,000 Colonial patriots lost their lives aboard British prison ships during the Revolution; where the Union outfitted ships to battle the Confederacy; and where the Navy established its radio command center for the North Atlantic Fleet during World War II - became synonymous with corruption and urban blight."

The new $60 million development plan will bring in a new grocery store, and try to salvage some of the homes on Admiral's Row. The set of homes has been largely ignored in the past, despite more than 40 preservation efforts underway in the Navy yard.