Is this huge Ismael Leyva 40-story tower proposed for the Greenpoint waterfront something that's actually going to happen or just, you know, a pipe dream in a deflating real estate market where credit is hard to come by? We'll find out. This is what the developer of the Oro condo on Flatbush Avenue wants to build on a big parcel of land at 155 West Street in Greenpoint. (It's a bleak section of the neighborhood between Huron and India Streets.) How could it be 40 stories when the 2005 upzone only allows 30 stories? In this case, a sewage pipe and a tiny piece of "wetlands" that is leading the developer to ask for the extra ten stories. (Seriously.) The development as pitched would have 620 rental units, with 422 of them being in an Ismael Leyva-designed tower. Another 218 would be in six-story buildings and 140 of the units would be affordable. There'd also be a waterfront esplanade. Not everyone is embracing the idea, which would require a special upzoning. Assem. Joe Lentol tells the Brooklyn Paper that "a 40-story building would be completely out of context with the community, would cut off sunlight and further strain vital services in the area. I think they can expect a great deal opposition to this idea." The developer is "cautiously optimistic" he can get financing by Q2 2009. This could be a euphemism for frequent, desperate appeals to the Higher Power of one's choice.
· 40 Stories on the Greenpoint Waterfront? [Brownstoner]
· 40 stories and a rule [BP]
· Ismael Leyva Architects [imaelleyva.com]
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