Dear Glen: Your Park Slope Real Estate Advice Column

Photo by Park Slope Lens

"Dear Glen" is a recurring column meant to provide A's to your burning Q's about Park Slope real estate. Got a question for our undercover badass Brooklyn broker? Drop us a line or leave a comment in the box below. 

Dear Glen,

I currently live in Park Slope and DREAM of having a garbage disposal in my beloved brownstone. I have a great deal in the Slope and have lived here for 5 years (rent-stabilized, bitches!), but am willing to move for a disposal! I LOVE brownstones, so I want something with charm and original detail too. I’ve talked to several brokers and they’ve told me this doesn’t exist or haven’t called me back. Are these assholes lying to me?!

Sincerely,

Too Much Crap Clogging My Sink

Dear Full of Shit,

Listen. I want a Pegasus to chauffeur me around in a Ferrari convertible with an endless supply of Mike’s Hard Lemonade, but we don’t always get what we want. You picking up what I’m putting down?

Here’s the deal. New York has a tumultuous relationship with garbage disposals. In fact, in most of the City, they were ILLEGAL until 1997. That’s right: outlawed. The City was concerned about the impact that garbage disposals would have on the sewage system since in many buildings, the sewage and the storm drains were one in the same. So, only buildings built post-1997 have the chance of having a disposal. Conceivably, a prewar/brownstone building owner could put a garbage disposal in, but it would be a lot of money down the drain to just throw shit in the sink. Many older buildings still don’t allow them because the aged water waste line systems might not be able to handle more sludge and grossness.

Some geniuses have tried to get around the law with “self-containing” disposals (ie. essentially makeshift garbage cans in their sinks).  If you’re willing to forego your brownstone for new construction living, or decorate your sink with a trashcan, you’ll be able to put all kinds of shit in there!

Come on. You’re lucky enough to live in a kickass brownstone in Park Slope so buy a drain catcher, stop dumping your gluten-free spaghetti in your sink and get over it.

(For more info on garbage disposals in NYC click here, here and here).

Love,

Glen