While the city considers rezoning a 20-block-long swath of Jerome Avenue beneath the elevated 4 tracks in the Bronx, developers are starting to bet big on the corridor’s commercial potential. Now two investors who lead 925 Capital Inc. want to sell or jointly redevelop a low-slung garage with retail at 1697-1705 Jerome Avenue, in Morris Heights.
Bical Development has filed applications for a three-story, 103,595 square-foot commercial building, dubbed Kristal Auto Mall, at the parking lot at 2859 Flatbush Avenue, in Mill Basin. The structure will house dealerships, a repair center and inventory storage/office space, according to the NYC EDC. The property was purchased from the City in 2013, and Redcom Design & Construction is the applicant of record.
Property owner Won Chong Kim has filed applications for a four-story, 19,060 square-foot mixed-use commercial building at 212-12 – 212-14 Northern Boulevard, in central Bayside. The 50-foot-tall structure will have retail space on the ground floor, offices on the second, and health care facilities on the third and fourth floors. Sokwon Im’s Doric Consulting is the applicant of record, and excavation has already begun at the site.
Construction is up to the 10th floor of Commune Hotel & Resort’s planned 20-story, 229-key hotel at 50 Bowery, in Chinatown. According to Bowery Boogie, the hotel will be operated by Joie de Vivre, and a retail portion is included in the base of the structure. Peter Poon is designing the project, which is expected to be complete in Spring 2016.
In December 2000, the city evicted 60 tenants from an illegally converted loft building at 247 Water Street in Dumbo, and landlord Joshua Guttman ultimately bought out the renters for $30,000 each. When he applied to legalize the building’s apartments, the city denied his request, and a week later, a mysterious four-alarm fire raged through brick factory. Now, after years of sitting vacant and boarded up, the five-story building between Bridge and Gold Streets may become office space.
