Greatest Neighborhoods In America - Park Slope, Brooklyn

Chancellor of Huddersfield College in England, recipient of the Order of the British Empire, X-Men's Charles Xavier, and Star Trek's Captain Jean Luck Picard, Sir Patrick Stewart purchased a home in Park Slope, Brooklyn, New York City in the early 2010s.

He is to be married for the third time, to singer/songwriter Sunny Ozell in 2013 and the couple will share the home. The most populous borough in NYC, Brooklyn must be interesting to draw such talented people into its neighborhoods and Park Slope was named one of the Greatest Neighborhoods In America by the American Planning Association.

New York Magazine went further and named it Number One for a variety of reasons that include an excellent school system, great dining and nightlife, much open green space and other attractions.Imagine a neighborhood that features retail districts, a large park with a lake and an inner forest, a zoo, a music conservatory, two libaries, museums, and several buildings on the National Register of Historic Places. This all makes it perfect for a family visit.

This upscale neighborhood is named for its location on the western slope of Prospect Park. Most of the commerical enterprises and retail establishments in the neighborhood are found along 5th and 7th Avenues.

Park Slope Boundaries:

• North - Flatbush Avenue
• South - Prospect Expressway
• East - Prospect Park West
• West - Fourth Avenue

You'll find a lot of interesting and useful places in Park Slope, but take the corner of 5th Avenue and 9th Street, for instance -- All at the same corner, we find a McDonald's, a Chase Bank, Smith's Tavern and Tip Top gifts and martial arts supplies; a News Stand, a Dunkin' Donuts, an Electronics Store, a Greek diner, a Deli and Smoke Shop, an American diner, a Locksmith, and a multitude of food trucks. Park Slope is packed with places to go; between the shops and places to visit are apartments and brownstone, along with mansions of the first founders of the town. Here are other great sites:

• Brooklyn Botanic Garden -- In Prospect Park, just across from the zoo.
• The Brooklyn Bridge - Designed by the same Roebling that designed the Cincinnati Roebling Bridge, the Brooklyn Bridge and its park and a related ferry service are just to the northwest of Park Slope, with an easy walk into Manhattan if you wish.
• Brooklyn Superhero Supply - 372 5th Avenue. Here, you can try on a cape in a kind of wind tunnel to see if it will fly right. The shop raises fund for a nonprofit kids writing organization - they sell cans of antimatter and invisibility!
• Brooklyn Conservatory of Music -- 58 7th Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11215
• Brooklyn Museum
• Central Library | Brooklyn Public Library
• Donuts Luncheonette - This is a well known 24-hour diner at 324 7th Avenue at the corner of 9th Street. Fiunded in 1977, donuts are baked right ther in the storefront shop and the owners offer free delivery. The large yellow menus in the front windows list many types of breakfast and sandwiches and there are likely some surprises once you get inside. Next door are a Wine Store, a UPS Store, and a Cleaners; and on the other side is an Optical store and a casual clothing store. Across 9th Street is a Hair Salon and Spa with Flipsters Burgers in the basement. On the opposite corner is Smiling Pizza - that one must be good! Then there is a small Crepe and Expresso Bar next to the Smiling Pizza. A 24-hour grocery store is ust a couple of doors down as well.
• Iron Chef Masaharu Morimoto -- Morimoto restaurant is not in Park Slope, but it is not fsr awauy - located across the Brooklyn Bridge in Manhattan, but only a short cab ride to 88 10th Avenue at Chelsea Market. Sushi, sashimi, and even Bento Boxes are offered here. The menu is expensive, but it is the one place I would leave Park Slope to dine occasionally and perhaps meet Chef Morimoto himself. For current hours and reservations call (212) 989-8883. Visit the Chef's webpage, because it is like an amusement park ride! -- http://www.morimotonyc.com/full-screen.html
• Mezcal's - Authentic Mexican food at the corner of 221 5th Avenue and President Street, across from the Cat Clinic.
• Park Slope Library | Brooklyn Public Library
• Prospect Park Home --The official website of Prospect Park in Brooklyn, New York. Outdoor concerts and picnics; athletics and education; landmark structures and natural beauty. The lake in the park is 60 acres large.
• Prospect Park Zoo -- Would you not love to have a zoo within blocks of your house? See the film to the right of the zoo's Pallas Cats. Address: 450 Flatbush Avenue.
• Quaker Cemetery - The large cemetery is in the west portion of Park Slope.
• The Old Stone House -- This Old Stone House is an Historic Interpretive Center, operated by the First Battle Revival Alliance (FBRA) to comemorate the Battle of Brooklyn (Battle of Long Island) in the revolutionary war. Built by the Dutch in 1699 along a creek, the house has seen over 300 years of American history. Once an active farm, this house now is home to many exhibits open to the public - it was used by General George Washington as his headquarters for the American Army during the local battle.

In 2010, Park Slope was named Number One on the Best Place to Live In New York list of New York Magazine. Reasons given for this honor were the high quality public schools, fantastic range and high quality of dining, fun nightlife, retail shopping, great public transit, an abundance of open green space, historic mansions, a walkable neighborhood, good safety and low crime rates, and creative capital.

Park Slope also seems a mecca for writers and artists. Performance arts are also supported in this neighborhood at a variety of venues that offer concerts, comedies, drama, and special events.Overall history and culture are supported by the many museums and libraries central to Park Slope and on its outskirts.

Address: 782 Union St, Brooklyn, NY 11215 near 7th Ave.

Founded in 1973.

The co-op helps out recycling by accepting some items that the rest of the NYC recycling programs do not take. The coop is a membership organization that attemtps to keep the prices of fresh foods low. They even take coupons. The member work requirement is low - just 2 3/4 hours every 4 weeks; it's a way to make new friends. Open 7 days a week, the co-op maintains a free childcare room.

All suppliers operate within 500 miles of the co-op, from Pennsylvania through parts of Vermont.

For more information and an online health and wellness library, see http://www.foodcoop.com.

Washington Park in Park Slope has been the home to Major League Baseball in the past at a pair of parks located at the intersection of 4th Avenue and 3rd Street. The Old Stone House museum is also located at that area.

Teams that called the park home were the Brooklyn ball club and the Atlantics. By 1913, they were consistently called the Brooklyn Dodgers and played at the newer Ebbets Field.

For one year, 1913 - 1914, the Brooklyn Tip-Tops, named for a local bread bakery, used Washington Park and its ball field and then went defunct.

A film of Jackie Robinson's rise in Major League Baseball with the Brooklyn Dodgers was released in the spring of 2013. it's name, 42: the Jackie Robinson Story. Interestingly, Douglas Adams's answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, The Universe, and Everything was 42. He may have beeen correct.

Zillow real estate website provides infolmation for this snapshot of available properties at the end of March 2013:

• Number of Properties: 284
• Price Range: $480,000 to $19.8 Million
• Median Price: $800,000