All renderings courtesy of NYC Department of Housing Preservation & Development

Just this week, leasing launched at the splashy new Downtown Brooklyn rental 1 Boerum Place, with units including a $4,385/month one-bedroom and a $6,646/month two-bedroom. But if you earn 130 percent of the median income and are one of the 42 lucky applicants chosen, you can live in this luxury building for a lot less. A middle-income affordable housing lottery opened today and the available apartments range from $2,000/month studios to $3,120/month two-bedrooms. In addition to beautiful homes, the centrally located building offers a high-end amenity package that includes a rooftop terrace (complete with a “stargazing lawn”), an indoor swimming pool, sauna, and automated parking.

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“Arrivals + Departures” by YARA + DAVINA. Photo © Sam Polcer

Outside the main entrance to the Brooklyn Academy of Music, there’s a new public art installation that “offers a meditation on birth, life, and death through the simple, yet powerful act of naming.” Created by UK-based social practice artists YARA+DAVINA, the memorial called “Arrivals + Departures” takes the shape of a traditional train station arrivals and departures board, listing the names of those who have been born (“arrived”) or passed (“departed”).

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Map data © 2020 Google

New York City has officially purchased the property at 227 Duffield Street, a 19th-century rowhouse in Downtown Brooklyn recently designated as a landmark for its ties to the abolitionist movement. The Landmarks Preservation Commission last month granted landmark status to the home, occupied by known abolitionists Harriet and Thomas Truesdell from 1851 to 1863, after years of advocacy and a threat by a developer to raze it and build a mixed-use building in its place. First Lady Chirlane McCray, who has been a vocal advocate for the preservation of the site, announced the purchase during Mayor Bill de Blasio’s briefing on Monday and said the deal ensures the property will be “protected and celebrated for a very long time.”

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Rendering courtesy of Gillie and Marc

A statue of late United States Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was unveiled in Downtown Brooklyn on Friday. Created by artists Gillie and Marc Schattner, the six-foot bronze statue is located inside the Flatbush Avenue entrance of the mixed-use development City Point. Visitors can “Stand with Ruth” and take photos with the statue, but a timed reservation is required to maintain social distancing, according to City Point.

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227 Duffield Street; Map data © 2020 Google

The Landmarks Preservation Commission on Tuesday voted to designate a Brooklyn property that was home to known abolitionists, likely saving it from demolition. Harriet and Thomas Truesdell, members of the anti-slavery movement before the Civil War, lived at the Greek-Revival row house at 227 Duffield Street from 1851 to 1863. The commission recommended 227 Duffield for designation because it represents a rare surviving home to known abolitionists and marks Brooklyn’s pre-Civil War abolitionist movement. The push for landmarking the site was accelerated in 2019 when a developer filed permits to raze the three-story structure and replace it with a much taller mixed-use building.

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Renderings by Hargreaves Jones, courtesy of NYCEDC

After being in the works for nearly two decades, plans to build a public park in Downtown Brooklyn with a memorial to the neighborhood’s abolitionist history are delayed once again. The Public Design Commission last week tabled a conceptual proposal from artist Kameelah Janan Rasheed after preservationists and community members during an intense public hearing criticized both the design for missing details and the city’s lack of transparency.

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Photo by LWYang on Flickr

A new housing lottery has launched for 86 middle-income apartments at a brand new residential building in Downtown Brooklyn. Designed by J Frankl Associates and Charles Mallea, 260 Gold Street rises 13 stories on a former parking at the corner of Tillary and Gold. Qualifying New Yorkers earning 130 percent of the area median income can apply for the apartments, which include $2,241/month studios, $2,362/month one-bedrooms, $2,848/month two-bedrooms, and $3,282/month three-bedrooms.

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From its sky-high outdoor infinity pool to the chic interior finishes designed by Katherine Newman, no details were overlooked at Brooklyn Point, the 720-foot residential tower in Downtown Brooklyn. After topping out last spring, officially becoming the borough’s tallest tower, and commencing closings and first move-ins this summer, new photos of the building’s model unit were released in September, which show off the eclectic interiors by designer Charlie Ferrer.

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All renderings by Williams New York

Not only is Brooklyn Point the tallest building in the borough, but it has the highest infinity pool in the western hemisphere. Superlatives aside, the 720-foot condo tower has also proved popular for its location across from Willoughby Square Park and its inclusion in the larger City Point development in Downtown Brooklyn. And in true Extell Development fashion, the amenity package is stacked, including a huge landscaped terrace complete with BBQs and a putting green, a triple-height lounge, and another indoor pool. Just in time for residents to enjoy all these perks, Brooklyn Point has announced that it’s commenced closings and begun the first move-ins.

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Photo credit: Russ Ross, courtesy The Corcoran Group

Downtown Brooklyn‘s Belltel Lofts are housed in a landmarked Art Deco tower at 365 Bridge Street that just happens to be the borough’s very first skyscraper. Built in 1929 as the headquarters for the New York Telephone Company, the 27-story building was designed by “architect of the century” Ralph Walker. In 2008, it was converted to condos by Beyer Blinder Belle and now has 217 apartments. This sunny unit, listed for $1,395,000, has three bedrooms, two bathrooms, and a private terrace that overlooks Downtown Brooklyn and sits against the building’s gorgeous brickwork.

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