50 Kenny Place

Renovated 12-Story, 148-Key Crowne Plaza Hotel Opens at 50 Kenny Place, Saddle Brook, New Jersey

6:00 am on April 21, 2016 By Reid Wilson

Last summer, Houston-based Unique Hotel Management Group acquired the shuttered 12-story hotel at 50 Kenny Place, in Saddle Brook, New Jersey (in Bergen County). Now, after six years of sitting empty, the hotel has finally reopened as a Crowne Plaza, according to NorthJersey.com. The renovated hotel has 148 rooms, a redesigned lobby, meeting and event rooms, a business center, and a restaurant, dubbed SKY, located on the top floor. The distinctly cylindrical tower was built in 1971 as a Holiday Inn, but closed in 2010 following the financial crisis, prior to being acquired by Unique for $10.7 million.

190-24 Woodhull Avenue

Two Three-Story, Three-Family Residential Buildings Coming to 190-24 Woodhull Avenue, Hollis

4:00 pm on April 20, 2016 By Reid Wilson

ACME New York Properties Inc. has filed applications for two three-story, three-unit residential buildings at 190-24 – 190-26 Woodhull Avenue, in Hollis, located a block from the neighborhood’s Long Island Rail Road station. Each one will measure 6,392 square feet, and across both buildings, the residential units should average a spacious 1,598 square feet apiece. The apartments will span an entire floor and will probably feature family-sized configurations, featuring multiple bedrooms. Richmond Hill-based Hansa Building Engineering Services is the applicant of record. The 50-foot-wide plot is currently vacant. Its two-story predecessor was demolished back in 2012.

188 Butler Street

Three-Story, 7,500-Square-Foot Office Project Coming to 188 Butler Street, Gowanus

3:00 pm on April 20, 2016 By Reid Wilson

Vasco Ventures has filed applications for a three-story, 7,552-square-foot office building at 188 Butler Street, in Gowanus, located seven blocks from the Union Street stop on the R train. The entire structure, which will include outdoor rooftop terraces, will be used for offices. There will be 4,973 square feet of space dedicated to commercial operations, and the structure will stand 58 feet above street level, which means that ceiling heights could easily top 15 feet per floor. Nataliya Donskoy’s Brooklyn-based ND Architecture & Design is the architect of record. Demolition permits were filed in January for the 25-foot-wide site’s vacant three-story townhouse.

245 East 53rd Street

Six-Story, Five-Unit Residential Building Filed at 245 East 53rd Street, Midtown East

2:00 pm on April 20, 2016 By Reid Wilson

Manhattan-based developer Gary Vinbaytel, doing business as an anonymous LLC, has filed applications for a six-story, five-unit residential building at 245 East 53rd Street, in Midtown East. The structure will measure 12,484 square, which means the residential units should average a spacious 1,995 square feet apiece, indicative of condominiums. The first unit will span part of the cellar level and the ground and second floors, followed by a full-floor apartments on floors three through five. The sixth floor and an upper penthouse level will contain the final unit. Roman Sorokko’s Little Neck, Queens-based Versatile Engineering is the applicant of record. The 25-foot-wide, 2,510-square-foot lot is vacant.

644 Gates Avenue

Co-Op School Planning Three-Story, 30,000-Square-Foot Facility at 644 Gates Avenue, Bedford-Stuyvesant

1:00 pm on April 20, 2016 By Reid Wilson

Bawabeh Realty Holdings, with the Co-op School, are planning to redevelop the single-story retail building at 644 Gates Avenue, in the heart of Bedford-Stuyvesant, into a three-story, 30,000-square-foot school. The existing structure will be gut-renovated and expanded two stories, according to Crain’s. It will have enough classrooms for 250 middle school students, plus it will have a library, an auditorium, a music room, and an 8,000-square-foot rooftop recreational area with a garden. The Co-op School has already leased the space from Bawabeh, the property owner. A Family Dollar must first vacate the property, and the new building is expected to open in 2018.