5 River Park, 347 Henry Street: Review and Ratings

Review of 347 Henry Street by Carter Horsley

This 15-story residential building is part of a building complex, known as River Park, being erected by the Fortis Property Group on the former site of the Long Island College Hospital in the Cobble Hill section of Brooklyn that it purchased in 2014 for about $240 million.  

The building at 347 Henry Street between Pacific and Amity Streets will have 25 condominium apartments when it is completed in 2019.  It is replacing a five-story loft structure and a medical building that contained an outpatient clinic and pharmacy. 

Rominus Architecture has designed the building and it also designed the complex's attractive, 8 Polhemus Townhouses across Henry Street and the very handsome, 17-unit  Polhemus Residences, a pre-war condo conversion at the corner of Henry and Amity streets. 

The complex will also include a 15-story building, known as 1 River Park, at 350 Hicks Street that replaces the hospital's garage, and a 440-foot-high tower, known as 2 River Park, designed by Hill West Architects. 

When completed, the complex will include an international private K-12 school and a medical facility that will be built and operated by New York University Langone Health. 

According to an April 2, 2018 article by Ondel Hylton at cityrealty.com, Fortis presented a rezoning plan created by FXFowle Architects for the site in 2015 that would have yielded some affordable housing and moved some of the plan's bulk away from the low-scale Cobble Hill Historic District. 

"The rezoning was met with a tepid response," Mr. Hylton wrote, "leading Fortis to drop the rezoning pursuit and move forward with an as-of-right development." 

A September 13, 2018 article in The New York Times by Kaya Laterman said that the majority of apartments in this building will be three-bedroom units catering to families with children. 

Jonathan Landau, the chief executive of Fortis, said in the article he hoped 91 Pacific Street, a 36-story tower with 103 units also known as 2 River Park, will be completed by early 2021 and will have a 25,000-square-foot common roof deck.  It is being designed by Hill West and will have a curved glass façade partially covering its south façade that, according to an August 22, 2018 article by Sandra Herrera at cityrealty.com was described by its architects that "curves like the headsail on a yacht." 

"There will also be a 19-story, 48-unit condo building at 350 Hicks Street, at the corner of Atlantic Avenue, with parking spaces and a private early education school on the lower floors. This building will be tailored to have 'a livelier feel for a younger clientele,' with a cafe in the lobby area that will turn into a bar at night," the article continued. 

"Once the new medical facility is up and running, a new building with a private K-12 school on the lower levels and a condo tower above will be built on the current site," according to the article.

Bottom Line

A melange of disparate building types and styles, this complex has a fine-sounding name of River Park that apparently does not refer to any specific river or park.

Description

A rather ungainly red slab building with three balconies at its top sits on a handsome two-story base with an entrance marquee and large window surrounds facing a landscaped plaza in front of a taller gray building with many balconies jutting out on its west façade. 

Its fenestration pattern is a little confusing as the third column of windows in from the sides of the red slab has only indentations and no windows for the first five floors above the base.  Also, the top two floors on the east side of its main façade appear to be double-height. 

Amenities

This building will have a bocce court, table tennis, an entrance marquee, a 24-hour concierge, a fitness center with a pool, a jungle-themed and skylit children's playroom, a courtyard, on-site parking, a roof deck, a game room, basement storage, a lounge, a bicycle room, an outdoor playground with a tunnel and drawbridge, and a music studio.

Apartments

Apartments will have Town and Country antique white oak floors, custom stone and millwork, and Invisible Gray marble kitchen countertops and backsplashes with metal inlays, a Sub Zero wine storage and Gaggenau kitchen appliances. 

Apartment 12A is a three-bedroom unit with a 9-foot-wide entry foyer that leads to an 11-foot-wide open kitchen with an island that opens onto a 26-foot-wide great room and a 16-foot-long balcony in one direction and in the other down a 26-foot-long corridor to another 16-foot-wide balcony.  The foyer also needs to a 22-foot-long bedroom corridor. 

Apartment 8B is a four-bedroom unit with a 7-foot-wide entry foyer that opens onto a 14-foot-long open kitchen with an island that opens onto an 18-foot-long living/dining room. 

Apartment 4B is a four-bedroom unit with a 29-foot-long living/dining room with an open kitchen with an island. 

Apartment 5A is a three-bedroom unit with a 9-foot-wide entry foyer that leads to a 26-foot-wide great room with an open kitchen with an island and a 16-foot-long balcony, and a 22-foot-long gallery with a library alcove.