Greenpoint

Step forward for Greenpoint office development replacing rooftop bar

February 15, 2019 By Lore Croghan Brooklyn Daily Eagle
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A City Council subcommittee gave a thumbs-up to a proposed seven-story office, light-manufacturing and retail development in Greenpoint, where rooftop bar Northern Territory now stands.

The Subcommittee on Zoning and Franchises voted unanimously on Thursday to support zoning changes for Simon Baron Development’s proposed mixed-use project at 12 Franklin St.

The vote clears the way for final full City Council approval.

“It’s an exciting prospect to have commercial development and light manufacturing in our communities [and] that people can continue to have good-paying jobs and advance skilled careers,” Councilmember Stephen Levin said before the vote.

Levin represents the district where 12 Franklin St. is located.

Shops and restaurants will occupy the first floor of a seven-story, 167,174-square-foot building that Simon Baron Development will construct if it obtains zoning changes, according to documents filed with the city last year.

The second floor will house light-manufacturing tenants; office tenants will occupy the other floors.

The types of industrial businesses that could move to 12 Franklin St. include jewelry makers, digital printers, commercial artists, graphic designers, bread and pastry bakers and woodworkers, according to the documents.

One of the zoning changes the subcommittee OK’d on Thursday reduces the number of parking spaces required at the development.

FXCollaborative Architects drew up the proposed design for 12 Franklin St.

Demolition of existing buildings approved

The project also took a separate step forward earlier this week.

On Feb. 11, the city Buildings Department approved the developer’s applications to demolish existing buildings on the site, agency records show.

The irregularly shaped property is bounded by Franklin Street, Meserole Avenue, Gem Street and North 15th Street.

Here’s another glimpse of the proposed design for 12 Franklin St. in Greenpoint.

The buildings currently standing on the site are one or two stories tall.

The site’s rooftop bar tenant Northern Territory, which serves Australian food, is closed for the winter, its website says.

Another tenant, Greenpoint Beer and Ale Co., has moved out, according to its Facebook page.

Simon Baron Development paid $24 million for the site in 2016, city Finance Department records indicate.

Construction planned in a 100-year flood zone

The property at 12 Franklin St. has housed various industrial tenants over the past decades.
They included the Bulmer Lumber Company, the Sterling Horse Feed Company, the Warner Dog Food Company and a garage with three gasoline tanks.

The 12 Franklin St. site is located in a 100-year flood zone — meaning there’s a 1 percent chance it will be inundated in any given year.

FXCollaborative Architects’ design includes measures to prevent flood damage, such as raising most of the building’s first floor about 13 feet above the ground and putting mechanical equipment on the second floor and the roof.

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