In the old days, railroad cars would on and offload goods to the loading docks sandwiched between the buildings from tracks that ran along 2nd Avenue.
With the new renovations, the area behind my studio has become a delightful setting for outdoor dining, special events and a pass through area to the building around the block which has the "Factory Floor": an enormous space that is leased out for special events. The new owners filled in the tracks, added furniture, plants, a Bocce Ball court, lights and during the warmer months added food vendors.
A weekly dance party called "Mister Sunday" (aka "Mister Saturday") brought enormous crowds out to dance Sunday evenings away, without bothering any neighbors as it is located on an industrial only zoned block. Eamon and Justin have flown the coop to Deejay in the UK as of November of 2014, now that the summer/fall season is over, but have a look at their website to see what they are up to: http://mistersaturdaynight.com
Here's a snap from a Mister Sunday party in June of 2014:
Here's the view out my studio window looking down at the party area. It was being prepped for a Karaoke event. Bocce Ball court on the lower right, with the Pizza vendor set up just to the right of the court. Delicious!