Tag: development

Another Whole Foods in Williamsburg Rumor

03/14/2012 | Comment

The empty hulk of a building at North 4th and Bedford is the site of the latest Whole-Foods-in-Williamsburg rumor.

The Post reports that the property has changed hands, with the Backer Group having sold to new owners. The new owner confirms that “several national tenants are interested” in the property (isn’t that always the case?), and the Post says that “sleuths have ferreted out” that Whole Foods is the intended tenant.

This latest rumor has a bit more heft than the recent vague rumors of a Whole Foods on Kent Avenue. The fact that the property has new owners also lends some credence to the idea (the Backer Group had previously floated CVS, Marshalls, Starbucks, Capital One and other national chains for their various properties on this block of Bedford Avenue).

Still, some things don’t quite add up. The Post has the new owner saying that the development will be 150,000 square feet, a third of which will be luxury rentals. According to city records, the whole site (lots 6 and 24) is 47,400sf – at an FAR of 2.0, that only yields a tad less than 95,000sf (maybe I’m missing something with the MX M1/R6B rules). But others are telling the Post that Whole Foods will occupy about 40,000sf, and New York Sports Club another 15,000sf on the second floor. That works out to about two-thirds of the development, in line with the owner’s estimates.

Other numbers that have to be worked out are the size of the market itself. 40,000sf is, believe it or not, on the small side for a Whole Foods – both their Union Square store and their proposed Gowanus Store are 50,000sf or more. And while there will certainly be plenty of foot traffic at North 4th and Bedford, between customers and deliveries, a market of this size will make the vehicular traffic in this corner of the neighborhood even worse.

And I wonder what Williamsburg Food Town (a Backer Group tenant) thinks of all this? (Or Retro Fitness, for that matter, which is just opening up a 20,000sf fitness center around the corner on North 3rd and Berry.)

[via Brownstoner]

Domino for Sale

03/12/2012 | Comment

In news that should surprise no one (but is surprising nonetheless), the Observer reports that the Domino site is on the block. Apparently, the Katan Group and their development partner CPC Resources have been shopping all or part of it to potential buyers.

A spokesman for CPCR told the Observer:

We are pursuing various options that will achieve our goals: to realize value for ourselves and our partners, and to insure that development is consistent with all project entitlements

Chief among the entitlements CPCR received (and of primary value to them, their partner and any potential buyers) was approval from the City to redevelop the site for as many as 2,400 housing units. In exchange, CPCR promised to build 660 units of affordable housing, a lot of open space and a public school, all (nicely) designed by architects Rafael Viñoly and Beyer Blinder Belle. Most of this of these benefits were not guaranteed – something that was a very big issue for people opposed to the project back in 2010.

Hopefully we were wrong.

Building Heats Up Down By The East River

03/11/2012 | Comment

Crain’s looks at development on the East River and finds things are booming up and down the Brooklyn waterfront. From the next tower at Northside Piers, to a hotel at Brooklyn Bridge Park, to industrial redevelopment at Bush Terminal, a lot is happening. But no news on the Greenpoint waterfront, and nothing new at Domino, which “hopes to set a start date soon” (they originally had a start date in 2011).

Checking in on the Wiliamsburgh Savings Bank Reno

02/16/2012 | Comment

The developer for the Williamsburgh Savings Bank renovation was at CB1 last night for a Landmarks approval, and Brownstoner has the details.

Things got a bit testy – and surreal – when the developer refused to admit that they were building an event space (it’s a museum!) or even had any plan to make money from the development. According to the Chief Financial Officer, they just haven’t worked any of that out yet.

The CFO did have the Landmarks proposal well in hand. The substance of the application to Landmarks was straightforward – so much so that it is not clear why it even requires a public review at LPC.

Domsey Development Site Up For Auction

Brownstoner reports that the former Domsey parking lot at South 8th and Kent is up for sale at a foreclosure auction. The property was rezoned ages ago, and development at the former used-clothing mecca started in 2008 and then stalled. $30 million, and it’s yours.

Details on North 6th Street Church Purchase, Conversion

Brownstoner has a post about the DOB applications that have been filed for the conversion of St. Vincent de Paul Church on North 6th Street. One application is to convert the rectory into 10 apartments, while the second is to convert the church itself into 33 units (neither application has been approved yet, though the demolition of the church interior is a go). Presumably there are more applications to come, as the church property includes the former school on North 7th Street and the large parking lot to the west of the rectory.

The architect for both jobs is Zambrano Architectural Design, whose local projects include 8 Hope Street. The development company, North Flats LLC, appears to be headed up by Michael Lichtenstein; the same developer who is behind the new Karl Fisher building going up at Grand and Driggs (once upon a time, a mini-tower).

Jardin Going Rental

Jardin (née Urban Green), the development that takes up the middle of the block of North 5th/North 6th and Bedford/Berry is repurposing itself yet again, this time as luxury rentals.

For a development with three very big things in its favor (location, location and location), this project has been particularly star crossed. It went into the ground at least 5 years ago this month, spent at least two years completely stalled, and then was revived as Jardin this past summer.