Master plan unveiled for five-tower ‘resort-style’ development on Williamsburg waterfront
Renderings courtesy of Hayes Davidson
An “urban resort-style” development with five new residential towers and 850 residences is coming to the Williamsburg waterfront. Naftali Group on Wednesday unveiled “Williamsburg Wharf,” a 3.75-acre mixed-use development at Kent Avenue, between Division Street and South 11th Street. The multi-phase project will bring 1 million square feet of residential, commercial, and retail space–as well as a waterfront park–to 464-484 Kent Avenue. Construction on the first phase of the project is slated for completion in 2025.
The five 22-story luxury residential towers will be designed by a team consisting of Brandon Haw Architecture, Cookfox, Rockwell Group, Ward + Grey, Studio Munge, Hill West, Scape Landscape Architecture, and Future Green Studio.
When completed, the multi-phase development will feature roughly 850 residences, with a mix of condos and rental homes.
Each building will have a private entrance and resort-style amenities offerings. Williamsburg Wharf will feature shared outdoor spaces, including an open lawn, a public waterfront park, a dog run, and an expansion of Williamsburg’s cycling and pedestrian paths.
There will also be a pedestrian boulevard with a sculptural public art installation that will connect Kent Avenue to the waterfront.
“Williamsburg Wharf represents an extraordinary vision for the last developable site along Williamsburg’s East River shoreline,” Miki Naftali, chairman and CEO of Naftali Group, said. “We are excited to introduce a new neighborhood and truly urban resort-style destination to future residents in this highly desirable neighborhood.”
Naftali continued: “This master-planned development – designed by some of the finest architects and designers in the world – demonstrates our continued confidence in the strength of New York City and our promise to always deliver the highest quality residences to the market.”
Plans for new housing at the waterfront site first surfaced in 2008, when former property owner Abraham Rosenberg began the city’s land review process to rezone 470 Kent Avenue and allow for large-scale residential development, according to CityRealty.
The city in 2010 approved a rezoning for a five-tower, 754-unit project and required Rosenberg to designate a portion of the units as affordable housing and to build a waterfront esplanade. The site went off the market in 2013 due to lingering financial difficulties from the 2008 recession and the discovery that the land was contaminated with pollutants.
Naftali entered into a contract to buy the site in February 2019 and closed on it the next spring, according to The Real Deal. In November 2022, the developer secured a $385 million construction loan to move forward with the project.
The development is located a few blocks away from Domino Park. The 11-acre area, centered around the newly redeveloped Domino Sugar Factory, has already seen numerous residential buildings open, including One Domino Square, 325 Kent Avenue, and One South First.
SERHANT. New Development will handle sales and marketing for the project, which is slated to launch sales later this year.
Find out more about Williamsburg Wharf here.
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