Massive Bjarke Ingels-Designed Williamsburg Development Kicks Off Public Review

An enormous new waterfront development, including two rental towers, took a first step toward joining the rapidly growing waterfront in Williamsburg.

The gigantic project, which will include a public beach, waterfront park and connect the already existing public space on both sides of the proposed site, was certified by the Department of City Planning on Monday, August 16, beginning the city’s official public review process, known as ULURP.

“This is among the most complex private applications that we’ve seen,” said City Planning Chair Marisa Lago.

Bjarke Ingels Group and James Corner Field Operations have been tapped for the project by developer Two Trees, which also includes a YMCA with an Olympic-sized swimming pool, retail and office space.

If the rezoning is approved, dual towers will include a combined 1,050 rental apartments (50 units more than initially proposed in 2019), with 263 units set aside as affordable under the Mandatory Inclusionary Housing program. A website for the proposed development says that 236 of the affordable units will be set at 60 percent of the area median income, with the remaining 27 set at 40 percent of the area median income.

The tallest of the two towers will reach 64 stories, with the smaller reaching 49 stories. Parking for 250 cars will be located underground.

Publicly accessible spaces with aquatic uses, including boating, fishing, tide pool exploration and swimming in the future, are expected for the outdoor areas of the proposed development. One of the more striking features of the project’s design is the circular esplanade, which will extend into the East River and help create a more resilient waterfront, according to the project team. Breakwaters, marshes and wetlands added to the site will help decrease problems from storm surges.

Copenhagen-born Ingels, who recently moved his home and office to Dumbo, is known for his innovative and high-profile projects, including Google’s North Bayshore campus in Mountain View, Calif., and VIA 57 West in Manhattan. In April 2019, his firm released an innovative proposal for the reconstruction of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway. So far the company has not completed a project in Brooklyn, although it’s also designing an apartment building at 175 3rd Street in Gowanus.

Right next to the massive Domino development, also developed by Two Trees, the property for the latest project includes empty fields that were previously home to tanks used to store oil and that have already been decontaminated. Until recently owned by ConEd, the lots are sandwiched between a New York Power Authority natural gas power plant to the east, apartment buildings to the north, and Grand Ferry Park and Domino Park to the south. Their addresses are 87 River Street, 105 River Street, and a waterfront sliver with no address adjacent to 49 River Street.

In July of 2019, Two Trees sought public opinion in a series of invitation-only meetings about plans for the park. Some wish-list items included “a peaceful spot to relax,” “access to water,” and “boat and kayak access,” one of the participants told Brownstoner at the time. Some locals have previously said they oppose a rezoning of the former ConEd property.

Two Trees purchased the three lots for a combined price of $150 million. In addition to the rezoning, both the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and the Army Core of Engineers will have to approve all work happening in the water.

Commissioners, while positive about the proposed project, had questions about how all the public space, including the proposed beach, would be maintained. Chair Lago said she anticipates these questions, and more will be answered at a public hearing, which will be set at a later date.

“I anticipate we will have a lively discussion when this returns,” she said.

[Renderings by James Corner Field Operations and Bjarke Ingels Group via Two Trees Management]

Related Stories

• Environmentally Themed Mini Golf, Farm Headed to Two Trees’ Williamsburg Waterfront Site
• Two Trees’ Proposal for Curved Towers, Beach on Williamsburg Waterfront Returns
• Bjarke Ingels-Designed Williamsburg Waterfront Development Includes Two Towers, Public Beach

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