Warren Lewis Resources
Keyline

Neighborhoods

Kensington

Kensington provides space that can be hard to find in other New York City neighborhoods.  Nowhere is this more apparent than in the ease of finding a parking spot here, a process which New Yorkers know can take half an hour or more in the city or in Park Slope.  In addition to parking spaces, Kensington has brick pre-War apartment buildings and row houses, as well as Victorian one-families, all on quiet streets just a few minutes from Prospect Park.

The Kensington Stables, located at the southern edge of Prospect Park, are left over from the time of the Caton Place riding academy, which closed in 1937.  Riding lessons are still offered here, in a section of the park dubbed “The Shoe.”  The Parade Grounds of Prospect Park are close by, providing tennis courts and baseball and soccer fields.

Coney Island Avenue is Kensington’s eastern boundary, with McDonald Avenue to the west.  North to south, the neighborhood stretches from Caton Avenue to Foster Avenue.  The most convenient subway line is the F/G, which takes residents to Park Slope or Carroll Gardens in a matter of minutes.  Local and express buses also serve this neighborhood.

Kensington is an admirably diverse neighborhood due to the flow of immigration from all over the world that occurred in the 1980’s.  Church Avenue is the main commercial center and offers plenty of shopping and a fair amount of restaurants.  Ocean Parkway, a commuter thoroughfare, divides Kensington down the middle.  Lined with benches and tables, this avenue is often the setting for local outdoor chess matches.  Ditmas Avenue is also a small shopping center, and home to the Kensington branch of the Brooklyn Public Library.

Click here for restaurant suggestions in Kensington.