Uncertainty over the future of an important tax exemption for residential construction, 421-a, is forcing developers in the outer boroughs to focus on building office and retail space. The latest example comes to us from East Williamsburg, where the Loketch Group aims to put up a six-story office and medical building.
For close to a century, J. Josephs & Sons Co. has sold furniture and appliances out of three storefronts on Manhattan Avenue in northern Greenpoint. Now, the shops and their distinctive metal signage will bite the dust for a new apartment building at 1056 Manhattan Avenue.
Brooklyn-based property owner Joel Berkowitz has filed applications for a seven-story, 16-unit mixed-use building at 236 Stagg Street, in East Williamsburg, located three blocks south of Grand Street stop on the L train. The structure will measure 23,496 square feet, and will include 3,307 square feet of ground-floor retail space. Residential units will begin on the second floor and should average 833 square feet apiece, indicative of rental apartments. Amenities are set to include bike storage, an eight-car garage, and an 101-square-foot medical room in the cellar. Nataliya Donskoy’s Brooklyn-based ND Architecture & Design is the architect of record. The 4,658-square-foot lot is currently occupied by a single-story warehouse. Demolition permits have not yet been filed.
Back in July of 2015, six four-story, single-family townhouses – located at 51-59 South 4th Street, in Williamsburg, two blocks in from the East River – were two stories above street level and rising. Now, the project, dubbed the Townhouses of Wythe Lane, have topped out and are nearing completion, Brownstoner reports. Four of the townhouses will measure 3,714 square feet each, one will measure 4,088 square feet, and the last will encompass 4,471 square feet. Each residence will feature private underground parking and over 1,000 square feet of private outdoor rooftop space. KUB Capital is both developing and designing in-house, with SZ Projects aiding in the design process. Occupancy can likely be expected within the next few months.
Last week, Chelsea-based developer and design firm Flank acquired the development assemblage at 41-53 South 3rd Street, in Williamsburg, and now the firm is purchasing another assemblage of properties two blocks to the north. Frank is paying $21.6 million for the two-story building at 70 Grand Street, the corner lot at 72 Grand Street, and the single- and two-story buildings at 314-326 Wythe Avenue, according to the Wall Street Journal. The property assemblage could accommodate 26,904 square feet of new development if the current structures are demolished. Current plans call for the renovation of some of the buildings, in addition to the construction of new ones (which means something is likely to be demolished). The program will include residential units, office space, and retail.