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Big garage on St. Marks (between Underhill and Vanderbilt) will become a 5 story condo building - Page 2 — Brooklynian

Big garage on St. Marks (between Underhill and Vanderbilt) will become a 5 story condo building

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  • Nice to see the progress. 
  • Did a little digging on this project since we haven't seen any renders to date, and DXA doesn't show it on their website.

    Looks like the developer also bought 106 Underhill - a 3 story residential building (or at least it's air rights - there was a $928K "easement" transaction back in January; and a landlocked lot in the middle of the block (Block 1152 Lot 163) to gerrymander a rather unusual looking new lot that reaches back behind 280 St Marks and includes 106 Underhill.

    Given that 106 Underhill shows up on their plot as "3 story building to remain", I'd guess it either allows an additional floor or additional bulk beyond the standard zoning.

    Come to think of it, that may be exactly what 317 St Marks did a block east: originally it looked like the big apartment building might have a rear entrance on Bergen, but now there's a separate building planned for the vacant lot that used to be part of the parking lot.

    Anyway, there's also a partial Stop Work on the 280 St Marks project for unsafe conditions and unpaid fines. The building itself looks pretty unremarkable based on the Zoning Diagram - 5 story, 50 ft plus bulkheads. Slight accordion shape on the facade. But based on DXA's other projects, hoping the devil's in the details and it will have some interesting architectural elements...
    Screen Shot 2015-07-01 at 1.38.15 PM
    Screen Shot 2015-07-01 at 1.56.08 PM
  • BTW, the parking garage went for $15,700,000. Add 103 Underhill at $928,428 (the third, interior lot seems to have been part of that package) and the cost of acquiring the property came in at a cool $16,628,428 - almost exactly $300 per buildable square foot (building will be 55,000 net residential square feet). 

    With neighborhood new-build condos pushing $1,000 per square foot, you only need to guess the construction and carrying costs to know what the developer plans to make on the project. The apartments will average a generous 1,700 sq feet each.

    Last ACRIS tidbits - looks like the owner of 103 Underhill bought the place for $28K back in 1985; so he cleared $900K in the deal (may just be for the easement!). 

    And the parking garage last changed hands in 2004 for $520K; so Marks Avenue Realty saw a 3,000% appreciation in 10 years and cleared a healthy $15,200,000. Kinda makes you want to quit parking cars for a living, right?




  • whynot_31
    edited July 2015
    I doubt the person that owned the garage also parked the cars.

    I wonder how much money the actual parking business made.
  • steveo
    edited July 2015
    Thanks for the research, @notsayin

    Got to love all the weirdly shaped diagonal lots in the vicinity of Wash. Ave.

    Kinda makes me wish I had bought a parking garage 10 years ago.

    How many cars do you think were parked there? 500? 500 x $250 = $125,000/month.
    Plenty to pay the mortgage on the $520K and a few employees.
  • Right, even accounting for inflation, the 103 Underhill owner made an $800,000+ profit! If only we had the foresight to by in this area back then. Ugh. 
  • @steveo not even close - that place on a good day (at least in the past 5 years) maybe had a few dozen cars in it - MAYBE 100 tops but they were refusing new monthlies for a while, probably anticipating the sale.

    Rate was around $250 - 300/month depending on size of your vehicle. I bet they cleared less than $40K/month even with daily parkers.

    And yeah, the diagonal lots...


  • steveo
    edited July 2015
    @notsayin Yeah maybe my memory is bad; I haven't been in there for probably at least a year.
    But the footprint of the garage was huge and I remember it as pretty filled up with cars -- they even had some car lifts in there to double up on spaces. 500 was admittedly a wild guess, though, and it makes sense that they were scaling down at the end.

    Thanks for the diagonal links!
  • Wait a day, get more detail. Builder posted the required new project signage on the fence Friday...including the world's worst elevation drawing, which (sort-of) confirms the building will have five floors, lots of rectangular windows, and (maybe) a door.closeup of render
    fence sign
  • Doors are essential.
  • I  wonder if the garage on Underhill between Prospect and St. Marks is next.
  • hey all - how loud and annoying are you all thinking the construction will be for folks who live on that block now that demolition is done?
  • The next phase is digging the foundation. It could be noisy. The subsequent phases should be pretty quiet.

    I am going to predict the construction is done in Spring 2017.
  • The noise is bad, but they're sticking to the 7am start time so far.
  • They can usually dig the hole and lay the forms for the concrete in about 2 weeks.

    The concrete pumping phase takes much longer, but is comparitively quiet.
  • Holy moley, the pile driving noise is insane. My whole building is shaking!!!
  • The noise is unbearable!!  It's also making my building shake.  I spoke to the project manager who said this will be going on for 3-4 days!  I made a complaint to 311 for noise and for the building shaking, I encourage all neighbors to do the same.  Not hopeful that much will change, but it at least mademe feel better
  • whynot_31
    edited August 2015
    Sample, for those who don't live on the block:
  • whynot_31
    edited September 2015
    "The five-story apartment building rising between Vanderbilt and Underhill avenues in Prospect Heights is being developed by DNA and is designed by DXA Studio. In addition to 32 apartments (all with private outdoor space), the building will have an underground garage with 34 spaces and 54 bike parking spots."

    image


    source: http://ny.curbed.com/archives/2015/09/08/the_45_new_nyc_developments_hitting_the_market_this_fall.php

  • whynot_31
    edited October 2015
    Teaser website now up:

    http://280stmarks.com/

    Will they be able to sell all of the units before construction is finished?

    ...no open house? No cookies?
  • Talk about a teaser, basically no information at all beyond some (pricey) prices.

    I pass this site every day... It's quite large. Seems very large for only 32 units.

    But my big question is, will 54 bike parking spots be enough? I just counted 75 bicycles in the basement of my 54-unit co-op. Could be close!

  • whynot_31
    edited October 2015
    Units go on sale tomorrow.   Occupancy Dec 2016.

    "One-bedrooms will start at $899,000, two-bedrooms at $1.299 million,
    three-bedrooms at $1.619 million, and four-bedrooms at $2.499 million.
    And, with a display of optimism for the ever-rising Brooklyn market,
    particularly in once-marginal neighborhoods, the developers told
    the Observer that a couple of the units will be over $3 million.
    Currently, the median price for a one-bedroom in the neighborhood is
    around $810,000."

    http://observer.com/2015/10/condo-development-built-on-site-of-former-prospect-heights-garage-launches-sales/
  • Lots more renderings now at 
    http://280stmarks.com/architecture/ (and the rest of that web site)

    Didn't find any floorplans though...
  • @notsayin -

    You are correct, this text does make me want to puke:

    "INSPIRED BY BROOKLYN’S ARTISAN TRADITIONS
    Located in the heart of Prospect Heights, one of Brooklyn’s most vibrant, diverse and historic neighborhoods, 280 St. Marks embraces a way of life that balances a personal point of view and a commitment to community. A vision of green, healthy living extends to interiors that welcome the outdoors in. Each home has been thoughtfully designed with its own private backyard, terrace, or balcony and crafted with materials and finishes sustainably sourced from local artisans and craftsmen. The residences evolve with you, with smart and functional floor plans that elevate everything you do."

    http://280stmarks.com
  • @notsayin -

    You are correct, this text does make me want to puke:

    "INSPIRED BY BROOKLYN’S ARTISAN TRADITIONS 
    I just threw up
  • Yep. 

    I believe Brooklyn has reached Peak Bespoke with this listing. 

    Not sure a single apartment building can contain any more Artisanal Craftsmanship - or ever be more Curated than this one.
  • It is coming along quickly.

    image
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