The neighborhood of Bay Ridge, located in southwest Brooklyn, is known for its 100-year-old houses, off-street parking and sunlight reaching between the buildings. It's also the place where Saturday Night Fever was filmed back in the late 1970's. The big city with a small-time feel has quite a colorful history that goes back more than three hundred years.

It was way back in 1661 when the Dutch colony of Nieuw Utrecht was chartered and the town we now know as Bay Ridge was born. Back then it was called Yellow Hook, named after the color of its soil, and the small village was one of the original six towns that make up the city of Brooklyn.

"After the yellow fever epidemic of the 1840s, everything associated with yellow had a bad connotation, so the people of the neighborhood wanted to find a new name," says Lawrence Stelter, vice president of the Bay Ridge Historical Society. "The locals got together and on December 16, 1853 they voted for the new name of Bay Ridge - a perfect description of the neighborhood with the bay and the ridge. It's been that name ever since."

Although there was a Native American village when the farmers of the Netherlands first settled, as the farms rose, the original inhabitants vanished and the Dutch were soon prospering in their new colony.

"There was wheat farming, vegetables, it was a big industry for many years," Stelter says. "Because of accessibility they could ship the produce to the markets from the shore. In the 1870s there was a steam engine and trolley which gave still more access, and then in 1916 the subway came."

The arrival of the subway meant a decrease in farms as the area was built up into more of what the neighborhood is today.

"Today, Bay Ridge is a great place to be," Stelter says. "It's convenient to where people work, schools are top notch and there's plenty of recreation. The population is growing, but we have a lot of residents who were born here."

According to the 2000 census, Bay Ridge's population grew by almost 11 percent during the 1990s, from 110,612 to 122,542 people. The population increase has been accompanied by a sizeable shift in the ethnic make-up of the community. Between 1990 and 2000, the white non-Hispanic population fell by almost 10 percent, from 93,102 to 84,120. Meanwhile, the Asian or Pacific community grew 123 percent and now accounts for 14 percent of the area's population.

"It's a melting pot," says resident Wendy Tullo. "It's very diverse and there is something for everyone."

"It's a mix of all types of people," adds Julie Thum of Re/MAX 1st Choice Realty. "There are a lot of families, a lot of kids. It's not a "˜yuppie' neighborhood like Park Slope. We do have a lot of older people because a lot of people who were born and raised here are still here. They live and die here."

Anyone familiar with Bay Ridge will almost surely mention Shore Road when asked to describe one of the neighborhood's best features. It overlooks the water and there are some old mansions that are beautiful. There's also a high concentration of co-op apartment buildings.

There's no typical way to describe the look of the area. In addition to the mansions, there are some brownstones, some older, semi-attached brick homes - many of which have been renovated - pre-WWII buildings, apartment buildings, and new condos recently added to the mix. Plus there are plenty of ethnic restaurants and shops in the area. There is also an abundance of pubs, lounges and coffee houses.

"Sometimes you forget you're in a borough of New York City," says Tullo. "There's an array of restaurants and shops along 3rd Avenue and then you make a turn and you're on a tree-lined block full of brownstones and Victorian homes."

Compared to Manhattan, prices in Bay Ridge are lower, but there is currently a low supply and large demand.

"Prices are high, there's a large demand and a small supply, especially when you are talking about Shore Road.," says Thum. "A lot of people from other parts of Brooklyn are coming to Bay Ridge, even though we're so expensive. The market has been excellent for the past two years and it's just been phenomenal and getting better."

"Obviously on Shore Road, it's higher, but around Bay Ridge generally the average price for a one-bedroom would be in the high $100,000s to low $300,000 for the larger ones," Thum says. "The two-bedrooms go anywhere from $300,000 to $500,000."

According to Thum, there's about a 50/50 mix of condos and co-ops in the area. "A lot of people here stay here and are either downsizing or trading up," she says. "There are private homes and the buildings have both [co-ops and condos] so it's hard to say."

One of the favorite parts about the neighborhood is the family atmosphere. "It's a great place to raise children," Thum says. "It's a safe environment, it's clean, and it's near the water. There's a great feeling of community."

For decades residents have worried about losing what makes the place special and have been fighting to preserve their small-town atmosphere. One of the chief concerns of the Bay Ridge Historical Society lately is about the old houses being torn down for new condos and other developments.

"Architecturally people like the older mansions, but a lot of places are being torn down now," Stelter says. "The ambiance of the neighborhood is being withered away."

This conflict goes back to the 1960s when homes began giving way to high-rise blocks and three-story condominiums. In the early 1970s the 300-foot tall Bay Ridge Towers went up on 65th Street and locals took action.

"They lobbied for a special zoning status and won," Stelter says. "In 1978, the city established the Bay Ridge Special District that restricted construction to three stories on residential streets and eight stories on the avenues."

History buffs love coming to Bay Ridge because of two forts that were constructed in the early 1800s in response to America's war with Britain in 1812.

Fort Lafayette, (originally called Fort Diamond because of its location on Diamond Reef in the Narrows) was established during the War of 1812. Ten years later, the cornerstone of Fort Hamilton was laid. During the Civil War, Fort Hamilton was used as a prison camp for captured Confederates.

"Fort Hamilton was founded in 1825 at the spot where the first shot of the famous Battle of Long Island took place in 1776,"Stelter says. "The fort later was the headquarters of the First Division, U.S. Army, and during World War II over 120,000 troops were processed here for overseas duty."

The remains of Fort Lafayette served as a foundation for the Verrazano Bridge, while Fort Hamilton remains an active military installation.

There's also the old Barkeloo Cemetery on Narrows Ave. where people like to visit. "There are revolutionary war vets buried there," Stelter says. "We are trying to get it landmarked."

Another thing that Bay Ridge has going for it is its great civic community that works to keep the area remaining strong.

"The Bay Ridge Community Council has over 100 groups in the area that are very prominent and are constantly looking out for the community," Stelter says. "The spirit from this group is very strong."

With great people, great businesses and a wealth of history it's obvious why Bay Ridge is such a popular place for people looking to move to Brooklyn.

Says Tullo: "It has quick accessibility to lower Manhattan, the Shore Road bike path on the water is great and it has a "˜home town' feel in a big city."