346 Broadway: rendering by Beyer Blinder Belle, photograph by the author

Mixed Rulings for Conversion of 346 Broadway, TriBeCa

It was back in December of 2014 that the Landmarks Preservation Commission approved (on its second attempt) the residential conversion of the former New York Life Insurance Company Building, later a city office building, at 346 Broadway, in TriBeCa. However, in just the past two weeks, two rulings have come down that will impact the plan from developers Peebles Corporation and Elad Group, being marketed using the alternate address 108 Leonard Street.

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At 88 Withers Street In Williamsburg, Former Paramount Studios Warehouse Makes Way For 12-Story Residential Project

Another block in central Williamsburg is shedding its commercial past as a warehouse at 88-92 Withers Street is torn down. It is slated to be replaced by a 12-story residential building, developed by Caro Enterprises and JHG Holdings. The 12,500-square foot corner lot sits across from the small park at the Badame Sessa Memorial Square, sandwiched onto a small triangular block by the side of the elevated Brooklyn-Queens Expressway. The cleared lot, situated within a residential-manufacturing M1-2/R6 zoning district, measures 125 feet along Withers Street to the north and 100 feet on Leonard Street to the east.

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160 Van Brunt Street

Commercial-Office Conversion Complete on Three-Story Building At 160 Van Brunt Street, Red Hook

Back in April of 2015, renderings were revealed of the planned commercial conversion of the Golten Marine building, a three-story, 98,650-square-foot former industrial property at 160 Van Brunt Street, in northern Red Hook. Since then, construction has been largely completed on the project and Tesla Motors was announced as the anchor tenant, as reported by Curbed NY earlier this year. Tesla is leasing 40,000-square feet on the ground floor, which it will use for dealership showrooms, offices, and a service center. The Brooklyn Paper also recently reported Tesla will install a reconstructed illuminating “Red Hook” sign on the ground floor. The building opened in March and contains additional yet-to-be-leased office space on the upper levels. LIVWRK is the developer and acquired the property for $21.5 million in 2014. New Jersey-based John Saracco Architects is the architect of record.