Construction is progressing on 280 Kent Avenue, a two-skyscraper residential complex along the Williamsburg waterfront in Brooklyn. Designed by REX and developed by Two Trees, the twin 50-story structures will stand 591 feet tall and span roughly 1.17 million square feet with 1,262 units. The project will also include 12,230 square feet of commercial space and an enclosed parking garage. Twenty-five percent of the homes will be reserved for affordable housing. The project, also known as Building B in the five-structure Domino Sugar masterplan, spans an entire city block bounded by South 1st Street to the north, South 2nd Street to the south, Kent Avenue to the east, and River Street to the west.
Substantial progress has occurred on the north tower since our last update in late December, when foundation work was still finishing up. The reinforced concrete superstructure has been built to roughly two-thirds of its full height and is rapidly being enclosed in its glass façade. Work is much further behind on the southern counterpart, which stands only a few floors above street level. It seems likely that this tower will not begin to rise until structural work concludes on its sibling. YIMBY expects the first skyscraper to top out this winter.
280 Kent Avenue. Photo by Michael Young.
280 Kent Avenue. Photo by Michael Young.
280 Kent Avenue. Photo by Michael Young.
280 Kent Avenue. Photo by Michael Young.
280 Kent Avenue. Photo by Michael Young.
The following photos offer a closer look at the floor-to-ceiling glass façade and wraparound balconies with elliptical cutouts that will provide private outdoor space for every unit. Wavy glass railings are being installed on the balconies, matching the aesthetics of the undulating glass curtain wall on the podium floors.
280 Kent Avenue. Photo by Michael Young.
280 Kent Avenue. Photo by Michael Young.
280 Kent Avenue. Photo by Michael Young.
The renderings in the main photo and below preview the finished appearance of the skyscrapers and their commanding presence along the waterfront. Upon completion, the project will stand as the tallest in the neighborhood, surpassing the 550-foot height of One Domino Square’s taller tower at the southern end of the masterplan.
280 Kent Avenue. Designed by REX.
The nearest subways from the ground-up development are the L train at the Bedford Avenue station and the J, M, and Z trains at the Marcy Avenue station.
280 Kent Avenue’s anticipated completion date is slated for fall 2030, as noted on site.
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These new towers completely wipe out the southern “million dollar views” from the building directly to its’ north.I know views aren’t guaranteed, but this is a particularly egregious case of view distruction, there needs to be a law…
The entire plan has been out for years and it was known that these towers would be going up eventually.
Yes, but often you have to actually see it to grasp its impact..
Lol and what exactly would that law say if they are not guaranteed? Building code is dumb enough lets add another worthless and better yet subjective parameter
There absolutely does not have to be a law to protect views. Nothing would be built.
i agree lets make private property illegal.
I thought down syndrome cases in NY were coming down, guess not.
Good thing those are all rentals
Home sweet home
Beautiful!
Nice photos from the East River
This whole project is a bit dystopian, but I’m glad these two towers look different from the other hole-punched white boxes. The balconies are interesting, but with no thermal break, apartment floors are going to be cold in the winter.
Thermal breaks were incorporated. It’s required by code now. It would not pass DOB plan reviews without.
So the 3 buildings that qualify as architecture are now dwarfed by 4 soulless boxes. Typical.
This was all supposed to be an ensemble of similar buildings, and they blew it. Big surprise.
Is the space under the glass roof in the Domino building actually occupied? It’s hard to believe it could be comfortable.
I wondered too. If you believe Google AI, it claims the building is 90% leased by tech, media & AI startups. It must be strange being inside a glass box inside a brick ruin.
Thank goodness the Domino bldg was salvaged & repurposed. How uninspired and dismal this site would look w/o it.
Some brick industrial buildings are of great architectural merit, especially in the UK, but I never considered the Domino plant to be one of them. It is no De Vinne Press Building.
20% affordable housing, which said another way. 80% of the building will be subsidizing 20% of the rent, to gain government approval.. And they wonder why rents don’t go down..
i wish they would have kept the original roof connected version instead of these boring twins, but glad its finally getting built — it will look ok.
Bad Shein knockoff
These towers are really on top of each other–the Brickell of Brooklyn lol