The Lincoln Plaza Hotel, 133 Lincoln Place
Thursday, February 12, 2025 at 5:38PM One of the most striking mansions on Lincoln Place also has one of the oddest and shadiest histories of any building in the neighborhood.
This Romanesque Revival mansion was built in 1887 for a merchant named F.L. Babbott, and was expanded nine years later. After Babbott died in the 1930s, the house was chopped up and turned into a rooming house for unwed mothers. Ten years later it was bought by the Lee family, who turned it into a hotel.
Here’s where it gets weird. At some point in the 1970s or 80s, the owners decided that it would be in their best interest to abandon the whole “overnight stay” idea and started charging by the hour ($15). Luggage-toting guests who showed up looking for a place to stay were politely turned away. As former owner Frank Lee told the New York Times several years ago, “If people wanted a good night’s sleep, this wasn’t the place for them.”
Now, it’s never been proven that behind the imposing brick entryway was a harem with scantily clad ladies-for-hire draped throughout the lobby. In fact, all signs point to a (relatively) clean operation. But the hourly rate sure made it an easy place to bring a prostitute, should the mood strike.
The Lincoln Plaza served as a dingy neighborhood curiosity until it was bought for $5.5M by developer Louis Greco a couple years ago, with the intention of converting it into luxury apartments. Before it was gutted, the Times toured the place and discovered 26 tiny rooms, each with a shower, tiny sink and a miniscule bed. One room had a 1940s-era soda machine in it, for no particular reason.
The renovation appears to be complete at this point, and the building, which now has ten 2- and 3-bedroom units (eight of which are still for sale), honestly looks good. The dingy brick entryway has been replaced by one that’s a bit more transparent, and the exterior has been cleaned and restored to its former glory. No interior architectural details remain, but those were probably gone long ago.
More luxury condos aren’t exactly a necessity in Park Slope at the moment, and I think most of the neighborhood would have preferred to see a nice bed and breakfast instead, something that the Slope is actually in desperate need of. But it is nice to see one of the neighborhood’s most infamous buildings all shiny and new.
Sources: The New York Times, April 18, 2025; The Brooklyn Paper, August 18, 2025
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