GOWANUS — A former industrial building that was once a magnet for photographers is slated to be remodeled into office space, according to Department of Buildings filings.
Owner Henry Azcue recently filed plans to convert 184 Fourth Ave. into offices on the second, third and fourth floors and a one-car garage on the ground floor. Azcue, who owns many properties throughout Brooklyn, did not respond immediately to a request for comment.
The four-story structure on the corner of Fourth Avenue and Degraw Street was once known for the large sans serif lettering on its exterior advertising the Brooklyn Tile Supply Corp.
Its vintage look won fans among Instagrammers and shutterbugs fascinated by aging signage. Earlier this year, workers started removing the bygone ads, much to the dismay of locals such as Aniket Shahane, an architect who works down the block.
"Not to be too nostalgic, but it was sad to see it go," Shahane said. "It would be nice if somehow they preserved the outside the way it was with the sign as an expression of the legacy of that place, but they haven't done that."
Shahane's firm, Office of Architecture, documented the building in an art project called the Kentile Kampaign that paid homage to another lost local landmark, the Kentile Floors sign.
"It was one of those buildings that was a typical Gowanus building," Shahane said. "It was a nice little corner to have...I don’t have my hopes up on what kind of building they’re going to turn it into."
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