Demo Planned for Underground Railroad Stop to Make Way for Now-Shorter Downtown Tower

The tall tower JEMB Realty is developing at 420 Albee Square in Downtown Brooklyn will be a mere 35 stories instead of 65, according to the latest permit filings, first spied by New York YIMBY. Meanwhile, we see the developer just closed on an adjacent site with a historically significant building on it and is planning a demolition.

An old three-story 19th century wood frame building at 233 Duffield Street is one of three historic stops on the Underground Railroad on the block the Landmarks Preservation Commission tried to save from demolition back in 2007, as we reported at the time.

It’s still standing, and JEMB Realty closed on it in January for the eye-popping price of $7,250,000. A demo permit was filed earlier this month but has not yet been approved.

We’re guessing plans for the tower at 4290 Albee Square might have shrunk because the developer failed to buy adjacent land or air rights it was planning on. Or maybe other factors came into play. Jemb owns three contiguous lots behind 420 Albee Square, including 233 Duffield Street.

Other details of the tower have also decreased: The number of apartments will be 248, rather than 620, and total square feet will be 232,375, down from 751,548 square feet, YIMBY reported.

Under the old plans, 420 Albee Square would have been one of the tallest in the borough, although not the tallest. That honor currently goes to 388 Bridge Street, and will likely soon be surpassed by the 800-foot-tall tower in the works at 340 Flatbush Avenue Extension.

420 Albee Square Gets Height Chop, Will Now Stand 35 Stories Tall [NYY]
Another Tower Planned for Albee Square Near City Point in Downtown Brooklyn [Brownstoner] GMAP
Image via Google Maps