More Rentals in Williamsburg's Future

Rather than make developers lose their enthusiasm for the neighborhood, the cooling condo market in Williamsburg has merely made constructing a new rental building that much more attractive, posits The Real Deal in its current issue. The first major sign of this shift is a six-story, 70,000-square-foot design for 510 Driggs Avenue between North 8th and 9th Streets (above) designed by Stephen B. Jacobs for Kalmon Dolgin Affiliates. Like the condos that have gone up in the past couple of years, this won't exactly be targeted at starving artists: One- and two-bedroom apartments are expected to go for between $2,500 and $3,850, while the penthouses will run upwards of $5,000 a month. Whether this is a trend remains to be seen. Despite rumors to that effect, 55 Berry never went rental, despite disappointing initial sales. One developer is splitting the difference: After starting out as condos, 191 Woodpoint will now be a condo-rental hybrid. Wish some of that creativity had gone into the building!
Billyburg Shifts to Rentals [The Real Deal]