The South Slope, originally South Park Slope, is a neighborhood in Brooklyn, New York City, which is located between Sunset Park and Park Slope. Because there are no official borders to neighborhoods in New York City, definitions of the boundaries of the South Slope can differ significantly. The New York Times real estate listings, for instance, use 9th Street as the northern border, the Prospect Expressway as the southern border, with Fourth Avenue the boundary of the west and Prospect Park West and 8th Avenue to the east. Other definitions use 15th Street on the north and 24th Street to the south.
While the name "south Slope" has been used for many years, the area was officially designated "South Park Slope" when it was rezoned by the New York City Department of City Planning in 2005. It is primarily made up of pre-war row houses, although there has been a spate of new, non-contextual construction in recent years predominately in the inner blocks with higher density development along 4th Avenue due to the 2005 R8A zoning designation.
A saying that that the Brooklyn real estate market is “heading south" is so true- it does so, in a very literal sense. Cross into the South Slope — which extends from Ninth Street to around 20th Street, from Fourth Avenue to Prospect Park — and the sheer number of construction sites and new residential buildings is overwhelming. When we decided to check the restaurants in the South Slope proximity we we amazed to see 10 restaurants which were specified as 4 and 5 stars venues at Yelp.
Only half a block from Earth Basket, there is a bright and attractive supermarket on 17th Street and 4th Avenue with a great selection of fresh and prepared foods, both basic and fancy. On 5th Avenue, one block over, you will find more supermarkets, a wine store and specialty stores such as the legendary Polish butcher and bakery Eagle Provisions.
Street parking is free but please observe opposite side of the street cleaning rules. This means that for about 2 hours twice a week, you can only park on one side of the street. Parking spots are in moderate supply. You may have to park a block away.
With its beautiful but understated brownstones, South Slope feels easy going, but the restaurant scene tells a different story. The celebrity chefs on 7th Avenue cook up a storm every weekend and lines are out to the curb. This is a hood for down to Earth young families, professionals and academics, who value substance but don’t care for flash.
The Prospect Avenue R-train station at 17th Street and 4th Avenue is literally steps from our house. Take it to Lower Manhattan and beyond, or for a speed boost, cross the platform to hop on the N express-train at Atlantic Station. Next stop is Canal Street in Manhattan!
With its fantastic location next to the heart of Brooklyn and Manhattan, the area has all the reasons to become a major tourist location , but it also has local amenities and points of interest.
The prices in the area will be going up in the next year or so simply because there is no more space for the Park Slope, where the real estate prices have passed the test of ridiculousness a long time ago, so a wise investor should consider this area in due course. On top of it, this area is so very Brooklyn-like that you will indeed enjoy both the environment and the fantastic location a station away from Manhattan.