Despite what you might think driving through parts of Williamsburg, new building development has not been at a complete standstill. According to an article today in the Wall Street Journal, 364 formerly frozen projects have started back up since February 2009; 108 of those have been in Brooklyn, and of those 31 have been completed so far. “The sites that have recommenced work tell you that there is greater depth to the market than just looking at stalled numbers would suggest,” says Kevin Price, a senior vice president of the Radco Cos., a real-estate development firm. “It shows cases where lenders and sponsors are coming to terms.” Still, don’t expect to see a return to the boom times any time soon. “You’re going to see a bifurcated market,” says Frederick Peters, president of Warburg Realty Partnership. “Guys with deep pockets have been able to finish their buildings, while a lot of first-time developers walked away.”
New Life in New York [WSJ]