River Park Place, rendering by Ismael Levya

High Profile Mixed-Use Site at 131-35 Roosevelt Avenue in Flushing Finds Buyer

6:00 am on November 17, 2016 By Reid Wilson

Corona-based United Construction & Development Group has entered into contract to purchase the vacant, 3.7-acre mixed-use development site at 131-35 Roosevelt Avenue, a.k.a. 39-08 Janet Place, in downtown Flushing. The sale is expected close for more than $100 million, The Real Deal reported. The site can accommodate up to 870,000 square feet of mixed-use development. In fact, plans for four 16-story towers, connected by a common base, were approved in 2008. That would include 457 residential units, 313,000 square feet of commercial space, and 7,500 square feet of community facility space. It’s unclear whether the next owner will move forward with those plans, but United has reportedly met with the Ismael Leyva Architects, who was responsible for them.

Touring the World’s Tallest Modular Building at 461 Dean Street in Pacific Park

4:00 pm on November 16, 2016 By Rebecca Baird-Remba

After four years of delayed construction, financial missteps, and lawsuits, Forest City Ratner and Greenland U.S.A. are finally welcoming tenants into 461 Dean Street, currently the tallest skyscraper in the world constructed with modular units. The 32-story tower on the edge of Prospect Heights and Park Slope offers sweeping views of brownstone Brooklyn, but its lengthy construction saga highlights the myriad issues facing developers who want to build with modular construction.

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A Closer Look at Progress On a Six-Story Mixed-Use Project, 27-05 41st Avenue, Northern Long Island City

3:00 pm on November 16, 2016 By Vitali Ogorodnikov

Earlier this month we released a brief update on Times Development’s 44-unit residential building at 27-05 41st Avenue in Long Island City. Today, we take a closer look at the six-story project that straddles the line between the high-rise Queens Plaza district to the south and the low-rise Dutch Kills neighborhood to the north. Structural steel has risen to the second level, while gray brick cladding already wraps around ground level columns. The project is designed by architect Michael Kang, who is also behind the nearby hotel at 40-47 22nd Street. Yan Po Zhu of Flushing-based River Bridge Tower LLC is listed as the owner. 6,970 square feet of ground level retail will contribute to the budding shopping corridor along the avenue.

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1817 University Avenue

Four-Story, Eight-Unit Residential Building Filed at 1817 University Avenue, Morris Heights

2:00 pm on November 16, 2016 By Reid Wilson

An anonymous Great Neck, N.Y.-based LLC has filed applications for a four-story, eight-unit residential project at 1817 University Avenue, in the West Bronx’s Morris Heights section. The new building will measure 8,666 square feet and its residential units should average a family-sized 912 square feet apiece. One of the units on the fourth floor will also feature space in an upper penthouse level. Mohammad R. Badaly’s Mount Vernon, N.Y.-based architecture firm is the architect of record. The 25-foot-wide, 2,651-square-foot lot is vacant.

1668 59th Street

Three-Story, Three-Unit Residential Project Coming to 1668 59th Street, Borough Park

1:00 pm on November 16, 2016 By Reid Wilson

An anonymous Brooklyn-based LLC has filed applications for a three-story, three-unit residential building at 1668 59th Street, on the southern end of Borough Park. The project will measure 7,617 square feet and its full-floor residential units should average a spacious 1,865 square feet apiece. Apartments that big probably means family-sized homes are in the works. Jose Lockhart’s Brooklyn-based Tecnico Engineering is the applicant of record. The 32-foot-wide, 3,205-square-foot property is vacant.