The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) has approved revised plans for a 420-foot-tall mixed-use tower at 188 Duffield Street in Downtown Brooklyn at a public meeting on June 9. Designed by Hill West Architects and Acheson Doyle Partners Architects, the project will preserve the landmarked Duffield Street Houses, located at 182-188 Duffield Street, incorporating them into the base of the tower. The proposal was filed by 188 Duffield, LLC. The property is located between Myrtle Avenue and Willoughby Street.
The renderings preview the tower with a monolithic massing culminating in a mechanical crown. The façade will be composed of beige brick surrounding a grid of punched windows grouped in two- and three-story increments. The southern lot line wall will be mostly blank, with narrow rectangular windows lining the edges.
Rendering of 188 Duffield Street. Image: Acheson Doyle Partners Architects and Hill West Architects
According to the presentation, the latest design responds to feedback received during earlier LPC reviews. Revisions include a 30-foot reduction in the tower’s height, a reworked massing strategy intended to better relate the tower to the proportions of the landmarked houses, refined connections between the historic structures and the new building, and enhancements to the scale and usability of a shared courtyard space. The proposal would result in a 10 FAR development on the site.
Current context of Downtown Brooklyn, via LPC proposal.
The landmarked houses at 182, 184, 186, and 188 Duffield Street were built in the 1830s and 40s and represent a mix of Greek Revival, Federal, and later Queen Anne and Second Empire influences. The buildings at 182-186 Duffield Street will be developed into townhouses. The entrance to the tower will be located in 188 Duffield Street, which will contain retail space.
Initial permits for the project from 2024 called for a 30-story, 323-foot-tall tower with 115 residential units. The new proposal does not specify a revised unit count.
Rendering of 188 Duffield Street. Image: Acheson Doyle Partners Architects and Hill West Architects
Rendering of 188 Duffield Street. Image: Acheson Doyle Partners Architects and Hill West Architects
The closest subways from the site are the A, C, F, N, R, and W trains at the Jay Street–MetroTech station, and the 2 and 3 trains at the Hoyt Street station.
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Wow, that’s some cantilever. This new design is really quite good. I guess restoring these historic and rare houses isn’t enough. This new situation isn’t ideal, but at least the houses will remain.
Looks great to me!🇨🇦
Thank god it’s not another soulless glass box
A disappearing mirror glass box might not be so bad in this particular situation.
Dog… My thoughts exactly. In the one place where a nearly invisible glass slab ideal in context, they go the opposite direction.
Decent filler. Absolutely brutal for many of the units with lot-line windows in the Bell Tel Lofts building. Massive devaluation for condo owners, but c’est la vie.
Judging by the rendering it seems like the new building will be set back a bit from the lot line.
Definite improvement over previous facade only version