The West is leasing energy-efficient Greenpoint apartments from $2,771/month

By CityRealty Staff | From Brooklyn Wednesday, April 21, 2021

With a new decade underway, it's interesting to watch the city's renaissance of masonry architecture. While the original Blade Runner, set in 2019, predicted a future of dehumanizing metal, glass, and LED-screened buildings, it appears our earthly souls stubbornly savor substance. Among the innumerable brick and/or stone projects going up across the city is 144 West Street, a modest-in-scale 22-unit rental found at the corner of India Street, an earshot from the foghorns of the NYC Ferry, across from the megaprojects of 53 Huron Street and The Greenpoint, and across the street from incoming rental 18 India Street. Leasing has just launched, and move-ins are expected to begin in June 2021.

144 West Street (Credit: GF55 Architects)

Construction topped out in January 2020, and the brick facade was designed by GF55 Partners. In a 2015 interview, GF55 Partner David Gross said, "Our idea was to capture that feeling of factories with dark brick and lots of mullions on the windows.” This pays homage to the neighborhood's industrial past and makes this new building highly congruous with its surroundings.

Current availabilities start at $2,771/month for one-beds and $3,600/month for two-beds. These prices are net effective to reflect two months free rent on a 14-month lease, and roughly in line with the neighborhood median of $2,954/month and $3,700/month for similarly-sized apartments (figures per CityRealty listings) As part of an incentive that allowed for a bigger building, developers Caspi Development and Barone Management set aside seven affordable units; that lottery has already taken place, but ongoing affordable housing lotteries may be found here.

All units feature spacious floor plans, floor-to-ceiling windows, oak herringbone wood flooring, modern kitchens with quartz countertops and Bosch appliances, modern baths, and in-unit washer/dryers. According to MEP engineers Morozov, the building will be cooled and heated with a variable-refrigerant flow system instead of less efficient gas-fired boilers. Additionally, hot water provided to apartments will be generated via refrigerant-based heat pump water heaters. "Not relying on gas for heating will save 150 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions," explains Morozov.

Select apartments have private terraces, and all residents have access to The West's package room, bike room, urban garden, lounge with wet bar and furnished outdoor terrace, and rooftop sun decks with sweeping skyline views. The building also offers on-site parking for an additional fee, which seems superfluous given its proximity to public transportation: The India Street landing for the East River Ferry is one block away, and the nearby G train offers easy access to the 7 and L trains.