by The City of New York Office of the Mayor on Jul 31, 2013
Mayor Bloomberg announced today that the Brooklyn Bridge Park Board of Directors has selected a joint venture of Alloy Development and Monadnock Development to design and develop a residential building at John Street in DUMBO. New parkland, to include pedestrian bridges over a tidal salt marsh, tree-lined pathways, and a 13,000-square-foot gathering lawn, will also be built at the John Street site. The 1.5-acre site, formerly owned by Con Edison, is at the northernmost section of the park. The residential building will include 47 apartments and cultural and retail space on the ground floor, to be occupied by the Brooklyn Children’s Museum. There will also be improved pedestrian access to the park at the Jay Street.
“Brooklyn Bridge Park has quickly become one of our city’s favorite parks, attracting visitors who enjoy its innovative design, new amenities and breathtaking views,” said Mayor Bloomberg. “New parkland and residential development at John Street will allow the park to grow and continue to thrive as one of the highlights of our city’s new green waterfront.” “Today’s board action is another positive step forward for the long-term financial stability of Brooklyn Bridge Park,” said Deputy Mayor for Economic Development and Brooklyn Bridge Park Corporation Chairman Robert K. Steel. “This investment in residential, retail and cultural space will strengthen the public-private partnership that has made this park so successful and spur healthy economic development that will extend beyond the neighborhood of Dumbo.”
“Brooklyn Bridge Park is emerging as one of our City’s premier waterfront destinations with stunning views and a sustainable design,” said NYC Parks Commissioner Veronica M. White. “Today’s announcement helps to ensure that the park will continue to be well maintained for years to come.”
“Securing residential development at John Street further strengthens the park’s financial footing and our ability to operate and maintain the park far into the future,” said Regina Myer, President of Brooklyn Bridge Park. “In addition, we are thrilled to be developing and integrating new parkland into the northern portion of the park and improving pedestrian access at Jay Street.”
“The Alloy Development/ Monadnock Development partnership to bring 47 residential units and the first annex of the Brooklyn Children’s Museum is truly the dot on the exclamation point that is Brooklyn Bridge Park,” said Borough President Marty Markowitz. “Not only will this development generate income to help achieve the goal of a self-financing park, DUMBO’s Johns Street will be on par with Sesame Street for the borough’s toddler and preteen set once the renowned Brooklyn Children’s Museum opens its doors on the waterfront. And kudos to the Brooklyn Bridge Park Corporation for moving forward on the construction of new parkland in the northern portion of the park and improving pedestrian access at Jay Street. With Brooklyn’s ‘Eden on the East River,” now stretching from Atlantic Avenue to north of the Manhattan Bridge, the rest of nation is green with envy.”
“Having lived and worked in DUMBO for many years, we are grateful for the opportunity to contribute to the experience of the Park,” said Jared Della Valle, President of Alloy Development. “1 John Street is a special site and we look forward to developing a meaningful piece of architecture there.”
“We’re very excited that the City is giving us this opportunity,” said Nick Lembo, President of Monadnock Development. “I want to thank the teams at Monadnock and at Alloy, the Brooklyn Children’s Museum, and, of course , Brooklyn Bridge Park and the City for bringing this to life. It’s humbling to work on such an iconic strip of waterfront, and we can’t wait to see the vibrance 1 John Street adds to this already amazing neighborhood!”
Located in the future John Street section of the park, the residential development will include 47 residential units comprising a total of 96,440 square feet, 2,650 square feet of ground floor retail and 1,750 square feet of cultural space, which will open the first annex of the Brooklyn Children’s Museum, a premier cultural institution based in Crown Heights, Brooklyn that provides exhibitions, cultural and environmental educational programming for children and families. Over the course of the lease term, the guaranteed payments from the development site are projected to result in $21.6 million of net present value. Alloy will design the property and expects to achieve LEED Gold Certification. Construction is anticipated to begin in 2014 with expected completion in winter 2015.
The development selection marks a milestone for the park’s long-term financial model with an additional source of revenue that will be directed to fund the park’s maintenance and operations. In addition, the acquisition of the site ensures site control over the entire area as outlined in the General Project Plan and the ability to move forward on the construction of new parkland. With support from Councilmember Levin, construction will also add a second major park entrance at Jay Street that will provide direct access to public transportation at York Street and increase connections to the growing commercial business on Jay Street and the surrounding Dumbo and Vinegar Hill neighborhoods.