Credit: OM Vision
Greenpoint is wonderful, but its waterfront still has room to grow. However, that's been changing over the last decade as an assortment of parkland, commercial, and housing projects replace vacant lots and underutilized industrial areas. While shipping uses aren't making a comeback, living in New York City seems to be as popular as ever, especially for those who can afford it.
Just north of the to-be-expanded Bushwick Inlet Park and across from a large development site owned by the Gotham Organization, construction has begun at 79 Quay Street, an eleven-story residential project at the northeast corner of West Street being developed by local upstart Strekte and builder Folxco. Dubbed Quay Point, the 132-unit project will likely be of rentals. Unlike previous Strekte projects in Brooklyn, it's unlikely there will be any 'affordable' units here, as the 421-A tax abatement expired in 2022 and foundation work has only just begun.
Credit: OM Vision
Renderings by OM Vision show that Quay Point will have an expressive design with balconies, operable windows, white and buff-colored brick, and articulated spandrel areas. The serrated massing vaguely nods to the area's manufacturing history with the use of natural raw materials such as exposed concrete and bronze-finished railings. Balconies, which promise a forest of oversized house plants, are angled to make the most of East River and Manhattan skyline views.
However, the ground floor appears rather uninviting to passersby, with a fenced-in colonnade lacking ground-floor retail, fronting a nonsensical 54-car parking garage as required by the city's zoning. The site is also in a low-lying flood zone, requiring many of the building's crucial mechanical elements to be elevated above the floodplain.
Axonometric diagram of current design
According to listings on our website, the few market-rate availabilities in Greenpoint have one-bedroom units averaging $4,162/month and two bedrooms for $5,077/month. Without much more supply, we will soon be saying goodbye to perogies and hello to trophy apartments. However, the change from a beloved ethnic enclave to a playground of the elites may be slow, as the 2005 Bloomberg rezoning of the neighborhood restricted large new developments to the waterfront, while charming interior blocks would retain their low scale.
Quay Point is situated in an area that will transform greatly in the coming years. The building is located five blocks south of New York Ferry's Greenpoint landing at India Street and a moderate distance from the Nassau Avenue station that serves the precious G train. Dining, entertainment, and leisure options abound and grow in number with each passing year.
Once entirely low-slung factories and humble walk-ups, Quay Point shares its block with a new interesting rental called Franklin Court at 33 Franklin Street. designed by the talented StudiosC Architects, studios start at $3,069/month, one-beds from $3,253/month, and two-beds from $5,700/month. Across West Street is the massive West Wharf master plan where the next 30-story rental tower has gotten underway. Directly across Quay Street, the Gotham Organization is angling to build Monitor Point, a 40-floor, 900-unit mixed-income tower that would include a permanent home for The Greenpoint Monitor Museum.
As we covered last week, Brooklyn's East River waterfront has undergone rapid transformation. Once a symbol of the decline of urban manufacturing and shipping, it has evolved into a mixed-use residential district, flanked by parkland and interspersed with commercial space. Spreading northward from Williamsburg, the Greenpoint waterfront is also experiencing significant development. Projects like Greenpoint Landing, 1 Java Street, and Tower 77 have brought online thousands of new apartments, with a portion of units dedicated to low- and middle-income New Yorkers. While these towers have tended to be prosaic in design and sit on superblocks that stand apart from their walkable and inviting neighborhoods behind, they've introduced acres of new parkland, many small businesses, and much-needed housing."
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