Hello Sydney, 957 Pacific Street: Review and Ratings

Review of 957 Pacific Street by Carter Horsley

This attractive, 5-story residential condominium building at 957 Pacific Street between Grand and Washington avenues in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, was erected in 2007 by Hello Living, which is headed by Eli Karp, and was designed by Loadingdocks 5 Architecture.

Durukan Design was responsible for the interiors.

It has 18 apartments.

It is one of several buildings erected by Mr. Karp in Prospect Heights.

According to an article by Molly Shaw in the Fall 2013 edition of US Builders Review, Mr. Karp “started out with just one development” but then realized” no one was going to want to live in an area surrounded by abandoned property, so the solution was to develop the whole area.”

He ran into some difficulties with his investors on this building that led him to withdraw from the project but it still appears on his company’s website and he continues to be very active.  An article by Tanay Warerkar in the November 13, 2015 edition of ny.curbed.com reported that construction had begun on the 23-story, Ziggurat-like tower with 153 apartments by Mr. Karp’s company at 1580 Nostrand Avenue in Flatbush.

Another tall Karp project is the 12-story, 44-apartment Hello Albemarle on the former parking lot next to the renovated Loew’s Kings Theater.

Prospect Heights is along the northern edge of Prospect Park and bounded to the north by Atlantic Avenue and to the south by Eastern Parkway.

Bottom Line

The building is notable for its large scrims that “hide” its exterior stairways on the middle three floors between broad balconies.  Their placement enables the apartments to have very similar, floor-through layouts with “verandas.”  

Description

According to the architects, by moving all circulation such as stairs, elevators and corridors to the perimeter of the building “simple, rectangular floor-through apartments” were created. 

“The exterior corridors facing south also function as generous sized balconies, almost vertically stacked front porches,” they said.

The building has floor-to-ceiling windows with southwest and northeast exposures and glass doors fold back to expand entertainment spaces.

Amenities

The building has a concierge, cold storage, a 50-foot lap pool, a garage, a cinema room, storage, a business center, video intercom, a children’s playroom, a library and a billiards room.

Apartments

Apartments have open kitchens, exposed ceiling ducts and concrete slab walls.

Apartment 101 has 1,595 square feet of internal space and 822 feet of external space.  The cellar has 764 square feet of internal space with 245 square feet of rear garden and 70 square feet of porch.  The first floor has 370 square feet of rear terrace and 138 square feet of front porch.

Apartment 504 has 802 square feet of interior space  and 429 square feet of outdoor space.