41 Blue Slip: Review and Ratings

Review of 41 Blue Slip by Carter Horsley

This handsome, 40-story rental apartment tower in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, was built in 2020 by Brookfield Properties and Park Tower Group.  It has 421 apartments.

The waterfront tower was designed by Handel Architects. Gachot Studios did the interiors.  Futuregreen and James Corner Field Operations were the landscape architects. 

It is a third of a mile away from the India Street Ferry.

It is part of Greenpoint Landing, a 22-acre, 11-building residential complex that already includes the 30-story, 359 rental units tower at One Blue Slip and three "affordable" towers with a total of about 300 units erected by Park Tower Group and L & M Development Partners at 33 Eagle Street. Five Blue Slip and Seven Blue Slip. 

The complex will eventually include about 5,500 apartments and a new pre-K through 8th grade public school. The site is situated along a half-mile of East River waterfront and was designated for residential use as part of the 2005 Greenpoint-Williamsburg rezoning. 

The complex is near the Manhattan Avenue G train stop and the Greenpoint stop on the East River Ferry. 

Construction is now underway on the next phase of development at Greenpoint Landing, which includes one acre of additional public waterfront space designed by James Corner Field Operations. 

The next phase will include two new residential towers designed by Rem Koolhaas’ international architecture firm, OMA. One of the towers will be cantilevered in the direction of the other tower, which will be have slightly twisted sections. In addition to 745 units of mixed-income housing, the new towers will also add 8,600 square feet of ground-floor retail. 

The next phase of the esplanade expansion will add more than 40,000 square feet of new public space to the existing public waterfront, with a focus on landscaping and green spaces, including a lawn and picnic area. In total with the first phase of development, the esplanade (which is adjacent to the newly reconstructed Newtown Barge Park) will create more than two acres of continuous public space along the shoreline. New pedestrian connections on Dupont Street and Eagle Street—which will be extended to the waterfront—will make the area more accessible. Construction will be led by Brookfield Properties and Park Tower Group then donated back to the City so it can function as a public park. 

The OMA-designed towers will feature precast concrete panels surrounding large, square windows. Designed to maximize skyline views, the space between the two towers is intended to “frame a new view of Greenpoint and a new vista from the neighborhood to Manhattan.” 

“We’re excited to begin construction on what will be a new hinge point between Greenpoint and the waterfront,” said Jason Long, OMA Partner, in a statement. “The two towers are flanked by smaller buildings—7 stories at the corner and 3 stories at the water—to create a continuous yet shifting perimeter around the block. This variegated edge will extend Dupont and Eagle streets to bring activity and access to the East River.” 

Together with the adjacent seven-story building, the two towers will bring a total of 745 units of housing—30 percent of which will be affordable. 

According to Mr. Long, the two towers, "a ziggurat and its reverse," are carefully calibrated to one another "to frame a new view of Greenpoint and new vista from the neighborhood to Manhattan." 

Greenpoint Landing is a 22-acre site situated along a half-mile of East River waterfront. The site was designated for residential use as part of the 2005 Greenpoint-Williamsburg rezoning.

Bottom Line

An imposing and large residential tower with multi-paned windows that is the larger of two attractive industrial-style residential towers designed by Handel Architects at the northern end of a major riverfront complex with an esplanade and park.  The complex will also include a pair of towers designed by Rem Koolhaus's Office of Metropolitan Architecture.

Description

The building has a three-story, red-brick base with broad steel girder spandrels and angled windows. 

The dark red building has black-painted metal, multi-pane windows and much of its main façade has 7 dark red brick protruding piers that contain angled windows.  The piers do not extend to the glass setback top of the tower.

Amenities

The building has a concierge, a virtual doorman, a live-in superintendent, a garage, a children's playroom, storage, a fitness center, and a roof deck.  It permits pets. The building has a 1.5-acre waterfront park that will eventually join four other acres of parks.

Apartments

Apartments have 9-foot ceilings and keyless entry, and some units have walk-in closets. 

Kitchens have stainless steel appliances, Bosch washers and dryers and quartz counters.