Bergen Street Brewery Off the Block
We noticed this beautiful building at the corner of Franklin and Bergen when we rode our bike past a couple of months ago and then swung by a couple of weeks ago for a second look. When we called the broker, Michael Silber, he informed us that the corner building was originally a brewery. He…
We noticed this beautiful building at the corner of Franklin and Bergen when we rode our bike past a couple of months ago and then swung by a couple of weeks ago for a second look. When we called the broker, Michael Silber, he informed us that the corner building was originally a brewery. He also informed us that it had recently sold—for somewhere just short of the asking price of $8 million. (The site, which includes two lots that run through the block from Bergen to Dean, has approximately 90,000 buildable square feet.) The developer who bought it will most likely do some kind of residential conversion. Hopefully, he won’t make the same mistake as most of the developers over on 4th Avenue and fail to turn the ground floor into retail. This stretch of Franklin could really use it. GMAP P*Shark
Hi Crow Hill Development folks,
That’s great news! I’m glad to see this will be put to good use. Love the brew/pub idea.
thats great!
Hi All:
The intention is to preserve all the 19th Century brewery buildings along Bergen and Franklin Streets. Along with some new low-rise construction on Dean Street, we should be able to hit the maximum FAR without bringing down any of the amazing structures that are in your photo – the insides are even more amazing.
And yes, although the CPC plans call for all residential, we will be bringing retail to the majority of the ground floor. We are even contemplating putting a brew-pub in the basement, which has 15ft vaulted ceilings, as a nod to the early use.
This complex was purchased specifically because of the opportunity it provides to develop a truly remarkable group of buildings.
Crow Hill Development
Dream on, Montrose Morris.
Franklin Avenue is slowly gentrifying. To date, there is an Indian restaurant, a sushi place, and a cafe, and, according to brooklynian.com, a falafel place is due to open this summer. Crime is still a problem, but that will likely improve with time. All in all, things look good.
I knew it was only a matter of time before the border nazis came on and threw a tantrum!
yes Crow Hill not Prospect Heights!
It looks like the buyer is Crow Hill Development LLC, a subsidiary of Fabian Friedland’s Montagu Square Development, LLC ( http://montagusd.com/ ), and the sale price was $7.5 million (all per ACRIS.)
To the developer, Please, please, please keep at least part of this intact. They are beautiful examples 19th century industrial buildings, and there are next to none in the area. Here’s a chance to do something truly edgy – work the buildings into a great architectural work. Tearing them down to build cinderblock and glass boring condos (practically all of the new construction in the area) would even cut back on potential sales. Why would anyone want just another new construction POS, when you could have a unique place in an historic building.
People here bitch that the area is worthless – not true. The Ice House green building is around the corner, the Jewish Hospital buildings are nearby, and this complex, if done right, could make Crow Hill a destination. Retail in the lower building facing Franklin. Mixed income, a bit of everything for everyone.
When I moved to this neighborhood two years ago I fell in love with this building so much so that I spent an afternoon at the Brooklyn Historical Society’s library reading up on it. I won’t clutter this page with all the little factoids I uncovered, but this site was used as a brewery as early as 1849, and for a while they produced a beer under the name “Budweiser,†in reference to the delicious beer brewed in Cesky Budovic in the Czech Republic, until Anheuser Busch sued them and won. Here is a web site that gives a nice summary of the old brewery:
http://www.nyfoodmuseum.org/bkbeer.htm#Nassau
I would also mention that CPC Resources, the prior owner of this site, had plans prepared that preserved the existing façade and yielded 69 loft apartments (styled as “artist loftsâ€), no retail. I believe that the back lot is slightly overbuilt, which would give the developer some incentive to preserve the existing structure and utilize that extra floor area. On the other hand, it is a very old building and probably jammed fill of hazmats, making it cheaper and easier to just knock it down and start from scratch.
i live right around the corner–that’s a fascinating building/complex, and i hope they preserve it. what they’ve done with the old jewish hospital (preserving as apartments) has worked out well, as has the building on dean that seems to be connected with this brewery. much more attractive than a drab new building.
you might be surprised just how much development is going on in my area. two new buildings going up on bergen st near classon ave, a new building on park pl near classon, a new building on bedford up near st. marks, one on st marks near franklin, st marks near underhill, and the list goes on and on…