
The building under construction here is 111 Lawrence Street, which is rising fast and when completed will be Brooklyn’s tallest building. A project by the Clarett Group, it will be 50+ stories according to their site–DOB puts the number at 51 stories, or 514 feet tall. According to Wikipedia, that’s two feet taller than the current tallest Brooklyn building, the Williamsburgh Bank Building.
Belltel Lofts–the Art Deco building just to 111’s right–clocks in at 350 feet tall, so 111 Lawrence will be half again as tall as Belltel. DOB’s records show that 111 Lawrence will have almost 500 residential units. Click through for a closeup of the facade panels which have been installed so far, and a rendering. (more…)

The line of residential towers envisioned for Flatbush Avenue just off the Manhattan Bridge is materializing before our very eyes. Oro I is fully decked out, and the Toren Condos at 150 Myrtle Ave. are rising to their 38 stories quickly. Also, below, the first glimpse of Toren’s cladding peeks through–looks nice at this early stage from the shot below from the WiredNY forums. Full rendering of Toren here.
The Downtown Brooklyn Partnership has prepared a cool little animation of how Flatbush is changing – this is one of those planning visions which is actually happening, refreshing. Check it out here.

Toren’s new cladding.

A quick search on Massey Knakal’s listings site (say that five times fast) revealed several large parcels up for sale around Downtown Brooklyn. One parcel is four (count ‘em) buildings at 123-129 Livingston Street, yours for only $20 million–pictured above. The bail bonds and “psychic studio” are not included–the buildings “will be delivered vacant.” This could be the perfect location for a community center, arts studios, or heck, tear them down and build a park.
If you prefer you could be the proud landlord of Downtown Brooklyn’s Dallas BBQ at 180 Livingston–for only $40 million! If you were holding out for 300 Schermerhorn, though, you missed your chance, that one’s already sold, you’ll have to make do with buying some air (rights)–up to 150,000 square feet are available floating around CB2, apparantly. Happy shopping!
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It’s official — Downtown Brooklyn is the latest outpost in NYU’s violet empire. NYU had shuttered its engineering school in the early 70’s but has been looking to get back in the game. The state has now signed off on the schools’ plans to merge, the last hurdle in the legal process.
Technically, this means the Board of Regents of the State Department of Education has approved a plan for “affiliation” whereby Poly will become the “Polytechnic Institute of NYU.” Within three to five years, it is expected, the schools will consolidate. Skeptics have said it’s not only Poly’s tech prowess NYU covets, but its $213 million of real estate (according to a 2005 appraisal), including a good deal of air rights.
Welcome to Brooklyn, NYU!

After a tasteful renovation combining the original tin ceilings with clean, modern fixtures, Monty’s Pizza has opened for business at 90 Livingston St., between Boerum Place and Court Street. The pizza is tasty, they offer delivery, and also offer a variety of sandwiches and salads. Our experience with the staff was very friendly and welcoming — stop by and pay them a visit or call for a pie at (718) 855-0110.


The new condo tower at 200 Livingston under construction by Procida is taking on its final look. The grey tower, also known as Be@Schermerhorn, is almost fully enclosed. The new residents will be a welcome addition to the burgeoning Livingston corridor.