BROOKLYN HEIGHTS — Permits have been filed to construct two residential towers at Pier 6 in Brooklyn Bridge Park, according to records filed with the city's Department of Buildings.
The permits for 50 and 15 Bridge Park Drive, located on parcels of land near Atlantic Avenue and Furman Street, were filed Friday, Oct. 15, records show. Both buildings are being designed by ODA Architecture.
A rendering of the proposed buildings at Pier 6 in Brooklyn Bridge Park. [Credit: By Labtop courtesy of ODA New York]
This past June, the city-run board of the Brooklyn Bridge Park Corporation approved the controversial development plan in a 12 to 4 vote that moved forward despite strong community opposition to the plan. RAL Development Services was selected to build the project.
According to the permits, 50 Bridge Park Drive will be 30 stories in height with 126 residential units. The building at 15 Bridge Park Drive will be 16 stories with 140 units and 4,181 square feet of retail.
Mayor Bill de Blasio's administration said in June that the shorter tower will hold 100 affordable rental units that will be rented to those making between 80 to 165 percent of the area median income.
The permits were first reported by New York YIMBY, which also pointed out that a previously planned pre-K space, a community facility and additional retail were not mentioned.
According to Brooklyn Bridge Park officials, those amenities, including the preschool, were part of a modified version of the "General Project Plan" (GPP) for the development. However those modifications required approval by Empire State Development Corporation, a state agency, which declined to vote on the project. Park leadership reverted to an unmodified version of the GPP, which did not allow for a pre-K.
[Credit: By Labtop courtesy of ODA New York]
Spanning 1.3 miles along the waterfront, Brooklyn Bridge Park was created on the premise that residential and commercial development in the park would fund its maintenance and operation.
But highly-organized community groups that oppose the project claim that the Pier 6 revenue would not be financially necessary for Brooklyn Bridge Park's continued operation. Park leadership has maintained the funding is needed.
"As anticipated when it was approved last June, the Pier 6 project is moving ahead toward construction," Belinda Cape, BBP's vice president of strategic partnerships, said in a statement Tuesday.
"As the final component of our funding model, Pier 6 will ensure the park's longterm financial stability and deliver union jobs and desperately needed affordable housing in the process. It's a project we're proud of and we look forward to starting construction."
