Flatbush Avenue Will Never Be The Same Again
Tomorrow morning, Marty Markowitz will don his dungarees and grab a shovel to help developer Ron Hershko celebrate the groundbreaking of the two Ismael Leyva-desgned towers at 306 Gold Street and 167 Johnson Street. (Alright, he’ll probably have a suit on but whatever.) Gold Street will be a 40-story tower with 303 condo units while…
Tomorrow morning, Marty Markowitz will don his dungarees and grab a shovel to help developer Ron Hershko celebrate the groundbreaking of the two Ismael Leyva-desgned towers at 306 Gold Street and 167 Johnson Street. (Alright, he’ll probably have a suit on but whatever.) Gold Street will be a 40-story tower with 303 condo units while Johnson Street will top out at 35 stories and have 214 apartments. In addition to being the tallest tower in Brooklyn, the development will also be distinguished by its amenities, which include a squash court, a swimming pool and an indoor basketball court.
Downtown Glitz Jumps Flatbush [Brooklyn Papers] GMAP
Huge Towers for Flatbush [Brownstoner]
I live in Greenpoint which is currently feeling like you’re holding onto a life preserver out in the water with sharks circling… Ok-maybe a bit over the top, but I lament that the current frenetic pace of development in my neighborhood is NOT being overseen by a board of people who are reviewing the asthetic appeal…Has anyone seen what some of these new buildings look like? Lego on LSD! Or just garrish. We pay a price from the mixed residential zoning that we pride ourselves on – there is less control about what gets built. And of course, Greenpoint has been NYC’s dumping ground for umpteen years and no one dares say that too publicly. Thank God, Greenpointers have a robust tenacity that most people keep underestimating. And for people in the Atlantic yards area – don’t diminish theirs – it’s completely understandable. Case in point, what would Park Slopers do if they were faced with new development in every remaining lot, and the promise of new ‘towers’. Wouldn’t even happen, aka ‘NIMB’ [Not In My Backyard].
Come to think of it, WHERE exactly are all the towers going up? Brooklyn Heights, Park Slope? No. The poorer/low-middle class neighborhoods…
I agree that there is a housing crisis – FOR THE MIDDLE CLASS. These new towers offer a % of space for low income and then the rest are at market price. Honestly: how many middle class can truly afford a condo that goes for > than 400k? Seriously, are that many people making that kind of money? What if you have kids? The 2BR, 3BR condos are even more.
The Future? (1) I think that the owner occupied apartment houses (2-fam, 3-fam, 4-fam..) are going to look really good, and will do very well from an investment potential in comparison to the towers. (2) Maybe the abundance of condos/coops will create surplus housing. And maybe that will help keep Brooklyn feeling the way Brooklynites (old and new) have always liked it: ethnically, culturally – AND ECONOMICALLY diverse. If that ever changes, Brooklyn will be BORING. But brother – that’s a big maybe.
Over and out for now.
I’m the anon from 10.18.
I agree that we need to landmark those buildings in Downtown Brooklyn that have historical significance. I’m a huge supporter of that effort. At the same time, I think that so long as such preservation is achieved, having significant new development in the form of highrise buildings or otherwise in Downtown Brooklyn is a great thing. It should be another true “downtown” neighborhood in NY, and Bkln specifically, that attracts retail and commercial businesses as well as residential development. It needs to thrive 24/7 and cater to the surrounding neighborhoods too.
In the meantime let’s push for landmarking those buildings in the Fulton Street area downtown. We don’t need to grow upward at the expense of our architectural (and cultural) history.
The Hudson shoreline in NJ is hardly a model I’d like Brooklyn to follow.
Hey babs might I suggest a map.
Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, etc – its all NYC and not trying to make a ‘copy’ of Manhattan.
For NYC to prosper and grow econmically we can’t be so NIMBYish…and need to have areas where
we grow ‘upward’ – since we can’t grow outward much anymore. See how Hudson shore line in Jersey is being built up – and taking business,etc that could be in NYC if weren’t for anti-growth attitudes of people living in some fantasy-world.
Downtown Brooklyn area (because of public transportation infrastructure) is prime spot for ‘upward’ growth and hope it continues for NYC’s sake.
No one is making Brooklyn a copy of Manhattan (as if that was even possible), what people are doing is developing properties which by relation of their proximity to buisness districts (Brooklyn and Manhattan), and mass transit warrant high rise construction.
What makes Brooklyn (and Manhattan Philly, Chicago etc…) great is that they were appropriatly laid out with a high density center that includes core buisness and adjacent residential. Such a layout allows for efficient mass transit as well making walking a viable option for everyday travel.
Restricting development in the center simply pushes development out, resulting in either no growth or economically inefficient and enviromentally costly development in a cities outer areas or the suburbs.
And Anon 10:18 I totally agree with you — minus those last stories this would have been a completely win-win proposition. As it is their remoteness from the WSB building makes them acceptable – like the Tour Montparnasse balancing out the Eiffel Tower.
Because otherwise that is a totally ugly and desolate area, and this will revive the Concord Village/Downtown area in a way Metrotech certainly never did (or could).
I haven’t said they were ugly, merely that I wouldn’t like to see that happen (and actually I was referring more to Ratnerville as an eventual and very undesirable possibility here).
And the developers could presumably have made almost as much money if they’d left off 5 or 6 stories here.
And there was of course a tallest building in Brooklyn before the WSB was built, but it wasn’t a point of reference for people. For generations that’s how you could always tell where you were — kind of like looking for the ESB in Manhattan.
I don’t think these towers will change that, thank goodness, but Ratnerville would.
These two projects are great news. It will not destroy any historical structures. Have any of you actually hung out on the Flatbush extension off the Man. Bridge in Bkln? This will provide a much needed facelift to an otherwise desolate stretch of road. It will also be a great contrast to the surrounding landmarked brownstone neighborhoods. A thriving, modern (with historical structures preserved and landmarked) downtown Brooklyn will be a great thing. I’m all for the upscaling of this area. Downtown Brooklyn is now an island of downscale shops surrounding by beautiful upscale brownstone neighborhoods (Bkln Heights, Dumbo, Vinegar Hill, Ft. Greene/Clinton Hill. What is out of context now is the current state of Downtown Brooklyn vis a vis the surrounding neighborhoods. Bring it on!