The Darkness at Richard Meier's Brooklyn Tower
When Richard Meier, the architect famous for his glass and steel towers such as those on Perry Street in Greenwich Village, announced plans in 2005 for one of his signature buildings at Grand Army Plaza, the idea met with plenty of resistance from residents of Prospect Heights, Crown Heights, and Park Slope, as well as…
When Richard Meier, the architect famous for his glass and steel towers such as those on Perry Street in Greenwich Village, announced plans in 2005 for one of his signature buildings at Grand Army Plaza, the idea met with plenty of resistance from residents of Prospect Heights, Crown Heights, and Park Slope, as well as Brooklynites throughout the borough. Thus, some people might have read with relish the New York Times article profiling the building, now open ten months but on the market for much longer. Through interviews with neighbors and residents, the article leaves final judgment somewhat up to the reader: its vacancy rate proves the Richard Meier experiment in Brooklyn a failure, or a building planned in the boom years that is now struggling to fill spaces (the developers report sales of 50 percent of the units, while Streeteasy has recorded only 25), just like many other new developments, independent of architect or developer. Some residents of the sparsely occupied glass box expressed worry about the dropping values of their new purchases, while one retired couple showed more longevity of thought: “We’re living here for the rest of our lives. We know there are ups and downs in the market. It’s not a time to panic.”
Glass Half Empty: Richard Meier’s Brooklyn Tower [NY Times]
On Prospect Park: Is Anybody Home? [Brownstoner]
Photo via Curbed
for what it’s worth, my friend who lives in the bldg told me that the story was reported back in May and to get the numbers it did in terms of percent sold relied on counting apt units in floors not yet sold, not counting those under contract on those unfinished floors and bc. it was written in May didn’t have up-to-date figures.
as for design, i happen to like the looks of it. but if you don’t like modern design that’s your right, though it’s definitely not out of context with the neighborhood… there are plenty of taller buildings on grand army plaza, and OPP is roughly the same size as most of Eastern Pkwy.
I think most of the ones quoted had sold something else and moved here. So seems also sold into high market. And sounds like many had plenty of cash and maybe no mortgage anyway.
I think some folks here think whoever has the most money when you die wins.
These people spent money on a product they wanted. They are not buying to ‘invest’. Buying to consume.
I think it is great addition to area…and wish I could afford one.
One thing that this article fails to bring up is where these people get their money to buy these units. If I sold a house out on Long Island I bought for $90,000 twenty years ago and got $800,000 for it, I wouldn’t care if the market went up or down either. The problem is, your pool of buyers is limited to those who obtained money through the housing bubble. These prices are a much harder sell for first time buyers who actually worked and saved the money for a down payment. And the pool of buyers who would even be able to save up this kind of money is also limited – even in New York.
It was an interesting article. It mirrors very closely what is happening in my neck of the woods at One Brooklyn Bridge Park. Both are buildings that people love to hate, both offer exceptional and expensive apartments and both have fallen victim, for the time being, to the strong recession and drying-up of credit. The high-end real estate market is on hold, that’s what it looks like to me. Meanwhile apartments for the less high-and-mighty seem to be selling.
I can imagine it’s no fun to buy at the top of the market and then move into a largely empty building and see your investment go down and down, no matter how philosophically you take it. I also suppose being literally in a fishbowl, doesn’t help things.
I’m not a fan either. The structure is an eyesore and the apartments are extremely over priced.
“We’re living here for the rest of our lives. We know there are ups and downs in the market. It’s not a time to panic.”
Likelihood that a bubble buyer at Richard Meier’s OPP actually believes himself when those words come out of his mouth: approaching 0.0%
“We’re living here for the rest of our lives. We know there are ups and downs in the market. It’s not a time to panic.”
If only Team Bear could grasp the concept.
I don’t beleive anyone who bought here in the last year or so is worried about the value of their apartment dropping. It was a nigh on certainty that the value would fall for a while. These buyers are surely longer-term. A transpartent attempt to elicit schadenfreude by the reporter?
Not a big fan, but in the long run I actually think it is a great investment. You can’t beat the view and location. Nothing on that side of the park will ever be built.