Neighborhoods
Prospect Lefferts Gardens
Prospect Lefferts Gardens is a residential neighborhood in Flatbush in theNew York City borough of Brooklyn. The area is bounded by Empire Boulevard (formerly Malbone Street) to the north, Clarkson Avenue to the south, New York Avenue to the east, and Ocean Avenue/Prospect Park to the west.[1]Prospect Lefferts Gardens is part of Brooklyn Community Board 9 and is serviced by the NYPD 71st Precinct.
The area was originally settled by a Dutch family in 1660. In 1893 the Lefferts estate was divided by James Lefferts into 600 building lots, now known as Lefferts Manor, and sold to developers. Lefferts observed construction from theLefferts homestead, then located on Flatbush Avenue between Maple and Midwood Streets (now a historic museum located in Prospect Park).[2] In order to ensure that the neighborhood would contain homes of a substantial nature, Lefferts attached land-use deed restrictions, dictating that each lot contain a single family residence built of brick or stone at least two stories in height, among other restrictions. The land-use covenant still exists in Lefferts Manor.[3] Houses in Lefferts Manor were mostly constructed during the late 19th Century, the last of which were constructed in the late 1950s.
