Brooklyn Tomorrow 2016

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DUMBO 2.0 The next phase for the borough’s most spectacular nabe

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has over 1,000 affiliated physicians. These experienced doctors, many trained at the world’s most prestigious universities and medical centers, represent just about every medical specialty you might need.

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HELPING BROOKLYN THRIVE

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Brooklyn Tomorrow

Contents Coming soon

Empire Stores

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Current projects in the works across the borough

A letter from the editor

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rban farms in the sky. Charging stations in condos for electric cars. A new panorama of fun-parks and hotels in Coney Island.

Tomorrow’s Brooklyn promises to be better, stronger, faster than ever, judging from the projections of our local industries.

Our 2016 “Brooklyn Tomorrow” publication spills the beans on the commercial enterprises and institutions working to give our borough a progressive edge with unprecedented construction projects, innovative resources, and creative services.

What happens in Brooklyn recalibrates global progress. It’s no coincidence then that our “crossroads of the world” is a laboratory propelling commerce to the next level — with plenty of game-changers along the way.

Here’s a sneak peak at the buzz: • A youth farm in Crown Heights teaching kids about farming and gardening, then incorporating the fruits and veggies of their labors into dishes at local restaurants — boosting their skills and self confidence, and our local economy.

• A 200-year-old shipyard in Fort Greene charting a new course as the commercial destination for a flotilla of cutting edge companies.

• Commuter options that complement our borough’s diverse personality, including a proposed Brooklyn–Queens tram line along the East River and a bike path on the Verazzano Bridge.

• A seaside amphitheater that will bring top-notch entertainment back to Coney Island while breathing new life into a landmark building.

Early Dutch settlers recognized Brooklyn’s value as an industrial springboard. They established local enterprises that grew into international commercial successes, and solidified the borough’s reputation as a vital outpost of trade and emigration. In those days, sharp-minded entrepreneurs turned our lazy waterfronts into world-class manufacturing sites, while innovative mom-and-pop stores represented the population boom ushering in grand diversity and top talent.

Today’s commercial visionaries are equally psyched to catapulting Kings County into a new league of enterprise and industry, making “Brooklyn Tomorrow” an epoch-making organ of manufacturing, production, and creativity.

— Courier Life Publications and Community News Group

One MetroTech Center North 10th Floor Brooklyn, NY 11201 (718) 260–2500 Brooklyn Tomorrow 2016

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The cutting edge A Brooklyn-born whiz kid is creating the Band-Aid of the future in Sunset Park

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Rising tide Sheepshead Bay — a fishing village no more

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Coming in to play Coney Island’s amps up with new theaters

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Moving innovations Ferries, streetcar carry borough into the future

Brooklyn farm to Brooklyn table

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Urban farmers keep food fresh and local

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Sea changes Big business, brands docking at the Navy Yards

Charge!

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Tesla electrifies driving in Brooklyn

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Third is first Where to shop on Bay Ridge’s Third Avenue

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Dumbo 2.0 The next phase for the borough’s high-tech nabe

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Moving on A cartoonist’s vision of Brooklyn Tomorrow

Ceo

Publisher

Editor-IN-CHIEF

Art Director

Les Goodstein

Clifford Luster

Vince DiMiceli

Leah Mitch

President & Publisher

V.P. of Advertising

Assistant Editors

Jennifer Goodstein Ralph D’Onofrio Cover image courtesy of Empire Stores

Ruth Brown Courtney Donahue Max Jaeger 5

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profile The nyU Tandon School of engineering

Engineered in Brooklyn since 1854 B

rooklyn has no shortage of things of which to be proud, from hiphop elite to a bridge that bears its name. Brooklynites have crowed about “No Sleep” to cheesecake, the maker movement and its claim to fame as the hub of innovation. The NYU Tandon School of Engineering should count as one of those points of pride as well, since it plays a major role in ensuring that the borough continues to produce the next generation of engineers, entrepreneurs and innovators.

Founded in 1854 as the Brooklyn Collegiate and Polytechnic Institute (and best known as Brooklyn Poly), the school has retained its core mission throughout its name changes: placing technology in service to society foremost as it educates engineers to solve pressing public problems.

Brooklyn was the birthplace of the American Dream – it was our alumnus James Truslow Adams who coined that phrase back in 1931 – and now, as NYU Tandon, it is the birthplace of countless innovations that are making the world safer, healthier, more sustainable and better connected.

From Telephone Cords to 5G Wireless Unless you’re an old movie buff, you might never have seen a telephone with a mouthpiece mounted on a tall candlestickshaped base, a separate receiver and a hand-cranked generator. In 1879 alumnus Robert G. Brown combined the receiver and mouthpiece of the phone, modernizing telephone calls forever.

Today, Tandon is still at the forefront of the field as the home of NYU WIRELESS, an academic center acknowledged as the world leader in fifth-generation (5G) telecom-

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protect the people from cyber attacks.

munications research. Its pioneering exploration of underutilized radio-wave spectrum could lead to a thousand-fold increase in capacity, vast improvements in speed and an inexpensive way to bring Wi-Fi to millions.

From Radar Systems to Cyber Security Since its founding, the school has been engaged in keeping the public safe, from

early radar systems that helped to win World War II to the massproduction manufacturing process for penicillin.

Now, with digital data essential to almost every facet of our lives, online safety is the new frontier, and NYU’s Center for Cyber Security (CCS) is researching cutting-edge ways to foil hackers, by bringing engineering, law, business and psychology together to ensure the privacy of Internet users and

From the Unimaginable to the Possible Today, Tandon’s engineers are engaged in multidisciplinary collaborations that would have been inconceivable in 1854. They’re bridging the gap between technology and culture with programs in game and digital media design, increasing public engagement and encouraging transparent government through the use of technology, working with medical professionals to speed innovations from lab bench to patient bedside, and more. And they’re doing all that right here in your own backyard.

James Truslow Adams believed that the American Dream was “a dream of social order in which each man and each woman shall be able to attain to the fullest stature of which they are innately capable.” Technology is making that happen and at Tandon, we are making that dream a reality.

2016 Brooklyn Tomorrow

BROOKLYN COLLEGIATE AND POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE

TECHNOLOGY IN SERVICE TO SOCIETY SINCE 1854

NEW YORK UNIVERSITY TANDON SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING

engineering.nyu.edu

Brooklyn Tomorrow

Coming soon These projects are changing the face of our borough

199 Jay St.

D

Woods Bagot

eveloper AmTrust Realty is in the midst of building a 33-story apartment complex at Jay and Nassau streets, right near the on-ramp to the Brooklyn Bridge.

The rust-colored building, designed by architecture firm Woods Bagot, will sport: • 272 residential units • A residential gym • A residential lounge on the top floor • Ground-floor retail • Office space on the first floor • Parking for 112 cars and 139 bicycles The building was originally supposed to have 18 hotel rooms as well, but that has since been nixed according to a Woods Bagot rep.

Workers broke ground in 2015, but the foundational work is still underway, and the Woods Bagot spokesperson could not give a completion date.

— Madeline Anthony

25 Kent

T

Steelblue

hey want to put industrial Williamsburg back to work.

Developer Heritage Equity Partners is hoping to build an eight-story office and manufacturing complex at 25 Kent Ave., which it is pitching to creative and tech firms.

The staircase-shaped building at West Avenue would be divided between 10 percent ground-floor retail, 17 percent industrial space for businesses such as microbreweries and metalworking studios, and just over 70 percent for offices.

Architecture firms Hollwich Kushner and Gensler envisage a pedestrian walkway running through the middle of the complex, bookended by two cobblestoned pedestrian plazas.

The City Planning Commission okayed the building in May, and next it will move to the Council. If the city does endorse the plan, construction should kick off later this year and wrap up by the end of 2017.

— Madeline Anthony 8

2016 Brooklyn Tomorrow

Since 2013, the number of people working at Industry City has more than doubled to 4,100. And approximately half of those who work here, live nearby.

At Industry City, we call that a good start.

Manufacturers, tech companies, creative ďŹ rms and other innovative companies are reusing empty factories and storage warehouses. And community organizations, City Tech, CUNY and others who help prepare workers for new jobs are training area residents, helping local entrepreneurs and making sure opportunities stay close to home.

If you’re looking for work, want help starting a business or just want to know more about what is happening at Industry City, go to www.industrycity.com.

INNOVATION AT INDUSTRY CITY IS OPPORTUNITY IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD

Coming soon Red Hook Innovation Studios

I

Raft Architects

talian developer Est4te Four is planning a massive office and shopping hub on the Red Hook waterfront dubbed the Red Hook Innovation Studios.

The company has already sunk $61 million into buying up six properties between Coffey and Sullivan streets, and eventually plans to spend $400 million on the gargantuan project — which will be the site of more than 20 football fields — where it hopes to lure creative, fashion, and tech businesses.

Raft Architect’s latest designs for the site includes a hotel, a marine education school, stores, an event space, and parks and plazas, but the project is still just a proposal while the developer seeks financial backers.

Est4te Four is already in the process of turning a massive old New York Dock Company warehouse on nearby Imlay Street, between Verona and Commerce streets, into a 144-unit condo building, which is expected to be ready in spring 2017.

— Lauren Gill

461 Dean

SHoP Architects

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Marvel Architects

P

acific Park is blossoming.

Workers are nearing completion on 461 Dean — the first residential building of the massive, $4.9-billion mega-development formerly known as Atlantic Yards.

Crews built the 32-story tower in parts at the Navy Yard using modular construction materials before assembling them on-site near Flatbush Avenue.

The tower will house 363 units — half of which will be below-market-rate — plus a yoga and dance studio and ground-floor retail.

The building will begin leasing in the summer of 2016, and residents should be able to move in by fall.

Other forthcoming properties in the sprawling 15-building development include the 17-story, 278-unit condominium building at 550 Vanderbilt Ave. and a 300-unit apartment building at 664 Pacific St. that will also house a new public middle school.

Pacific Park will also include a literal park, spanning two city blocks.

— Lauren Gill

Cadman Plaza library

G

rab your library card and check this out!

The city is selling the Brooklyn Heights library at Cadman Plaza West to developer Hudson Companies, which will knock it down and build a wedge-shaped, 36-story residential tower in its place with a brand new book-lending branch at the base.

Following a contentious, years-long public review process — hey, Brooklynites love their libraries — and negotiations with local pols, the Council in late 2015 approved the $52-million sale with a plan that includes: • A new 26,620-square-foot library branch.

• A second 5,000-square-foot branch to be built in Dumbo.

• 9,000 square feet of science and technology classrooms for use by the local school district • A residential component with 134 apartments, and amenities including a gym and a 52-car garage.

• Ground-floor retail.

Construction is slated to begin in fall 2016 and wrap up in summer 2020.

— Ruth Brown 2016 Brooklyn Tomorrow

Coming soon NYU Jay Street

T

Mitchell-Giurgola Architects

his long-time Downtown eyesore is looking better already — and that’s just because it is covered in scaffolding!

New York University is transforming the drab former Metropolitan Transportation Authority building at Jay and Willoughby streets — widely considered one of the ugliest buildings in the neighborhood — into a modern hub for researching and teaching the science of cities.

The higher education giant originally planned to wrap the entire structure in a flashy glass facade, but has since revised that into a more modest proposal to restore the 13-story building’s limestone edifice and do a gut renovation.

Three floors of the building will be dedicated to the university’s Center for Urban Science and Progress, while other spaces will go to classrooms, and “incubators” for fledgling businesses.

Workers are also adding new mechanical, plumbing, and electrical systems, as well as a 1-megawatt “micro-turbine” that will help power the property.

The five–year project is supposed to wrap up in spring 2017, but a rep for the university says the exact date is constantly changing.

— Madeline Anthony

Macy’s Downtown

New York Methodist Hospital

T

he iconic Downtown department store will undergo a major revamp after it sold off five stories of its more than century-old building to developer Tishman Speyer for $170 million last year.

Macy’s will condense its operations into the first four stories of its nine-story Fulton Mall building, and use the sale money for a renovation that includes new escalators and restrooms, uncovering windows to allow in more natural light, and video screens showing the borough’s most iconic landmarks.

The building will also undergo exterior renovations, including replacing its green awnings on Fulton Street with metal and glass archways. Work is scheduled to wrap in 2018.

Tishman Speyer also plans to add 10 floors of high-end office space above the department store.

— Lauren Gill

New York Methodist Hospital

T

FRCH Design Worldwide

his is no cosmetic surgery!

New York Methodist Hospital in Park Slope is in the process of building a new facility at Sixth Street and Eighth Avenue. The six-story Center for Community Health is expected to treat 100,000 patients a year and will include: • An outpatient surgery center, with 12 operating rooms.

• A suite for endoscopy, bronchoscopy, and pain management procedures.

• A cancer center.

• Specialty institutes for orthopedics and cardiology.

• A radiology imaging center.

• A pre-surgical testing suite.

Construction is slated to begin in September and wrap up three years later.

— Ruth Brown 12

2016 Brooklyn Tomorrow

Architectural style made easy.

A-SERIES WINDOWS AND DOORS

Brookly

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profile

fidelis care

Health Insurance Provides Safety Net from Summer’s Mishaps S

ummer is a great time for children to be more active.

School is out, and kids spend more of their days having fun outdoors. Whether your children are exploring the playground or splashing around at the beach, here are some ways to help keep them safe and healthy this summer: • Watch children around water: Kids of all ages should be supervised at lakes, pools, or other bodies of water. If your child doesn’t know how to swim, he or she should wear an approved life jacket.

• Wear sunscreen: When going out in the sun, especially between the hours of 10 AM and 4 PM, make sure children put on sunscreen with an SPF of 15 or more that blocks UVA and UVB rays. Clothing that covers their skin can also help protect them. Just a few serious sunburns can increase your children’s risk of skin cancer later in life.

• Bicycle safety: Be sure children wear a helmet, and follow traffic signals and signs. Dress children in bright clothes, and don’t let them ride at night.

• Protect from pests: Use bug spray containing DEET to keep mosquitoes away, and check for ticks after being outdoors.

• Car safety: Infants and children up to age 4 are at greatest risk for heat-related illness. Never leave infants or children in a parked car, even if the windows are cracked open.

• Eat healthy: Visit the Public Market for some tasty fruits and veggies. Fresh peaches and berries are great to have

14

on hand for snacking, and are healthier than a dessert from the ice cream truck. Make sure to drink plenty of water to avoid getting dehydrated.

• Be insured: In New York State, almost all children up to age 19 qualify for free or low cost health insurance through the State-sponsored Child Health Plus program, offered

by Fidelis Care. Child Health Plus completely covers regular health checkups, prescription medications, immunizations, hospital visits, emergency care, and routine dental and

eye care with no copayment or deductible.

“As the doctor for almost 80,000 children enrolled in Child Heath Plus, I know how important it is for children to have health insurance coverage all year long,” said Fidelis Care Chief Medical Officer Sanjiv Shah, MD, MPH. “During the summer, we treat more cases of children suffering from painful bug bites, skin rashes, or ear infections than the rest of the year. Parents can rest easy knowing their children are always protected.”

Fidelis Care is the largest provider of Child Health Plus coverage in New York State, recently receiving four out of five stars in the Consumer’s Guide to Medicaid and Child Health Plus.

Fidelis Care Representatives make it as easy as possible to apply for enrollment, often meeting with residents in their homes or at a convenient location in the community. For more information, call Fidelis Care at 1-888-FIDELIS (1-888343-3547) or visit fideliscare. org.

2016 Brooklyn Tomorrow

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To m o r r o w

profile

AtlAs steAkhouse

By Camille Sperrazza Prime, aged steaks; a fascinating array of cocktails; impeccable service; and wonderful entertainment — the elegant Atlas Steakhouse brings a Manhattan-style experience to Brooklyn.

Customers are awed when silver-colored trays display monstrous superstars like a 48-ounce Tomahawk steak, a 32-ounce Porterhouse, a 24-ounce rib eye, and an eight-ounce filet mignon — fabulous quality cuts of beef that will all be prepared the way each customer prefers.

Quality is everything, says owner David K. Yet, he manages to offer it at fair and reasonable costs.

“Our prices are better than what you find in the city by 10 to 20 percent,” he says, and portions are large enough to share.

Service is equally important.

“Customers are welcomed into our home,” he says. “Being greeted

Atlas Steakhouse offers delicious, elegant dining

properly is a very big deal, and our knowledgeable staff does that.”

Everything about the restaurant is designed with guests’ comfort in mind. Like the steaks, the chairs are oversized — luxurious brown leather behind spacious square tables, set with bone-colored linen table cloths. For larger parties, there’s couch-like seating along a side wall.

Crystal light fixtures and scenic murals add to the refined ambiance.

The lively bar is adjacent to sliding doors that open wide, letting in the sunlight or moonlight.

More than a place to dine, Atlas Steakhouse is a place to experience.

On Friday nights, from 7 to 10 pm, customers can enjoy live saxophone entertainment. On Saturdays, from 7 to 10:15 pm, a pianist performs. On Sundays, from 5:30 to 8 pm, a singer and guitarist put on a show.

Singer Arielle Hill lit up the room with her rhythm-and-blues sounds and brilliant smile on June 16.

A master mixologist keeps the drinks flowing. It’s all top-shelf liquor; the finest ingredients, as David is uncompromising.

“I only serve the kind of quality food and drinks I would eat myself and serve to my own family,” he says.

A sommelier has carefully chosen the wines, and an impressive wine wall lines the back of the restaurant.

Brunch is offered on Saturdays and Sundays. You can get a mimosa and a choice of four mouthwatering omelets for $13.99. Or, maybe a Belgium waffle or a chicken crepe cooked in a creamy mushroom sauce. For $18, enjoy a cocktail of your choice, eggs benedict, and a Caesar salad. Coffee, tea, or orange juice is served with all options.

For special occasions like graduations, weddings, engagements, birthdays, and retirements, Atlas offers a family-style banquet menu.

“There’s food galore,” says David.

No one has to decide what to order because dishes of appetizers, meat, fish, chicken, salads, and lots more will be brought to the tables, served family-style. There’s a $65 per person option and a $100 per person option.

“We are open to anything clients want,” says David, and discounts on alcoholic drinks can also be arranged.

“We want to make sure our customers have a good time when they are here,” he says.

Atlas Steakhouse [943 Coney Island Ave. between Newkirk and 18th avenues in Ditmas Park, (718) 940–9454, www.AtlasSteak.com].

Open Mondays through Thursdays, 4–10:30 pm; Fridays, 4–11:30 pm; for Saturday brunch, 11 am–3 pm and dinner 4–11:30 pm; for Sunday brunch, 11 am–3 pm; and dinner 4–10:30 pm.

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2016 Brooklyn Tomorrow

Photo by Georgine Benvenuto

bio-tech Tomorrow

Brooklyn Heights biotech whiz kid Joe Landolina pioneered Vetigel, a blood-clotting gel that can stop bleeding in 10 seconds without pressure.

The cutting edge Medical innovators flocking to Sunset Park

By Julianne Cuba

T

here’s no stemming the flow of progress.

A Brooklyn biotech wunderkind’s miraculous new wound-sealing gel may be the next big thing in doctor’s offices and hospitals across the borough — and the country. New York University Polytech grad Joe Landolina created a goo that stops bleeding in under 10 seconds, and the 23-year-old pharmaceutical phenom is about to swell research and production at a new Sunset Park laboratory in a bid to win federal approval to use the high-tech band-aid on people. The topical tourniquet is already okayed for use in animals, and Landolina expects his new office in Industry City will let him pump out a prototype approved for people by 2018.

“We’re about two years away from having our first human approval from the FDA,” Landolina said. “We are building a 25,000 square foot new facility in Industry 18

City, that will be done at the end of this year.

And then once that’s completed, we will be able to support manufacturing for both markets — animal and human. Out of that facility we will submit the first human FDA approval.”

Landolina invented the plant-based cutcloser — called Vetigel — and founded research company Suneris in 2010. The operation grew in the heart of Greenwood Heights, but the transplant to Sunset Park will let Landolina continue to expand the company by bringing in new blood, he said.

“It’s exciting, I really have enjoyed the whole process, growing the product, growing the team, and getting that product out there,” the biotech engineer said. “It’s really going from a facility that we built about two years ago, that’s only about 3,000 square feet. It will allow us to produce a lot of product, to produce the best product possible, and to supply demand.”

Suneris has just 30 employees at its current lab — roughly the size of a tennis

court — but the new space, which will be nearly 10 times that, could house up to 120 workers, he said.

Brooklyn has the cure And a mile down the waterfront, other Brooklyn biotech companies are tackling some of the world’s greatest health care issues at the Brooklyn Army Terminal.

IRX Therapeutics is developing methods to help the human immune system fight cancerous tumors. Typically, malignant lumps suppress the body’s normal desire to attack outside organisms and internal growth run amok. But IRX is developing a drug to restore some cancer patients’ ability to fight tumors from within, and the regimen may reduce the risk of cancer returning after it is surgically removed, according to information from the company.

And nearby, the International Aids Vaccine Initiative is developing and testing drugs that could prevent Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome — still among the top 10 causes of death across the globe, according to the World Health Organization. The company has offices and partners nationally and internationally, but the Aids Vaccine Design and Development Laboratory that opened in Sunset Park in 2008 is the company’s hub for creating and testing the potential remedy, according to information from the company.

2016 Brooklyn Tomorrow

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development Tomorrow

Rising tide!

Sheepshead Bay going from fishing village to boom town

By Julianne Cuba

S

Perkins Eastman

heepshead Bay is the borough’s new development hot spot.

A 28-story condo — soon to be the area’s tallest structure — is going up on Voorhies Avenue, a seven-story condo is rising where the El Greco Diner used to be near Emmons Avenue, and a slew of multistory residences and office buildings are in the pipeline. Simply put, Sheepshead Bay is on fire with development, one real estate expert said.

“Sheepshead Bay — it’s hot, it’s hot,” said Aliaksandr Svetlakou of real-estate firm Cushman and Wakefield.

(Above) The Voorhies tower’s glassy facade looks more like the mega-structures rising on Brooklyn’s northern waterfront than something in sleepy Sheepshead Bay. The tower (left) will easily be the tallest structure in the area when completed.

(Below left) A rendering of the seven-story condos planned for the former El Greco Diner.

Greek architecture

Going up!

And Muss Development is building what will easily be the area’s tallest structure at 1501 Voorhies Ave. — just outside of the Sheepshead Bay Road subway station. The 28-story-complex will tower 120 feet over the Saint Marks Roman Catholic Church’s 16-story steeple — the neighborhood’s current tallest point.

The luxury building will have 236 apartments for rent, and possibly condos, an insider said.

The high-end building will also feature a gym, a landscaped roof deck, a pool, and a grand lobby, said Muss chief executive of20

CityRealty

The condos replacing El Greco Diner will be the neighborhood’s centerpiece, according to Svetlakou.

“The former El Greco site is definitely going to be the center of attention, with all the business and the future development, the community will only benefit. It will definitely be a destination.”

Ryback Development is erecting the seven-story, 58-condo building at 2804 E. 19th Street at Emmons Avenue. A rooftop pool and some other luxury amenities will class up the seaside nabe, a Ryback spokesman said.

“It’s going to be a very high-amenity building with a pool on the roof and with a doorman,” said Dennis Druzhinsky. “Definitely going to be a change for the area.”

Construction is expected to wrap by 2018, but developers will start selling condos in June, he said.

There are four new buildings — all six stories or higher — in the pipeline within a five-minute walk from the neighborhood’s eponymous subway stop.

Builders filed nine applications for new buildings six stories or more along Kings Highway in the last year, records show.

And the city has already approved four similar-sized residential buildings along Ocean Avenue between Avenues S and U, according to buildings department filings.

GFI Realty Services

Rumors building

ficer Jeff Kay. Builders plan to complete the development sometime in 2017 — and the firm can’t wait for its grand opening, said Kay. “We’re excited about the development in Sheepshead Bay, there’s a lot going on, there’s a lot of people looking for some new, good products,” he said.

More on the horizon And there’s a boatload of construction happening all over the marina town, with most interest centered around the Sheepshead Bay Road subway station, Kings Highway, and Ocean Avenue.

Development mania hit fever pitch recently, when the rep for a condo-hungry cadre of investors made a pitch to buy two blocks of waterfront restaurants for redevelopment as housing, one area property owner said.

“He tells me these people have $700 million and they’re buying all of Sheepshead Bay,” said Bobby Guarino, whose family owns a waterfront building on Emmons Avenue at E. 29th Street. “He said they want to buy everything from Il Fornetto to Stella Maris [two full blocks].”

And they may be more than idle rumblings, an area real estate pro said.

“I’m not denying what you’re saying,” said Allan Profeta of Premiere Properties, who refused to comment further citing client confidentiality. “Maybe down the road we’ll talk about it.”

2016 Brooklyn Tomorrow

2016

95 YEARS

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Brooklyn Tomorrow 2016

21

Coming into play Coney’s amusement district spreads as the city takes over unused property

By Dennis Lynch

C

oney Island is hotter than a frank on the Fourth of July!

The city and developers will be pouring millions of dollars into Brooklyn’s entertainment mecca in coming years to revitalize the People’s Playground to wow millions for another century. The city rezoned 19 blocks in the amusement district in 2009 to pave the way for a totally re-imagined stretch of fun parks, complete with hotels and new surf-side shops.

The Economic Development Corporation envisions amusement space, restaurants, and a high-rise hotel on four Surf Avenue blocks between the Brooklyn Cyclones’s home on W. 16th Street and its namesake roller coaster on W. 10th Street. A new tree-lined walkway — aptly named “Wonder Wheel Way” — will connect Coney landmarks the Cyclone, the Wonder Wheel, and the Parachute Jump and glue the amusement district together.

Expect more housing on the water, too.

Three blocks worth of residential zoning west of the ballpark between Surf Avenue and the Boardwalk allow for 100-foot tow22

ers surrounded by low-rise residential buildings and mixed retail and amusement space along the Boardwalk. The city also designated blocks directly across Surf Avenue from the ballpark to allow for shorter towers and ground-floor retail space.

The Coney Island Amphitheater And Sodom by the Sea is shaping up to be the go-to neighborhood for live music. Developers are putting the finishing touches on a nearly 5,000-seat, indooroutdoor concert shell in the long-disused, landmarked Childs Restaurant building on the Boardwalk and W. 36th Street.

Real estate firm iStar Financial will lease the amphitheater property from the city through 2025 and tapped Live Nation to handle booking there. The booking giant has already lined up 33 acts at the amphitheater for this summer season. An advisory board full of entertainment bigwigs formed by Barclay’s Center executives have their hands in operations and concession company Legends will handle food and drink there.

A set of hanger doors will close off the open side of the building itself in cold

iStar

Coney Island Tomorrow

The amphitheater will be the area’s largest livemusic venue. months to transform the stage into an indoor venue for concerts and dancing. A full-service rooftop restaurant recreates the dining experience 20th-century gourmands savored during the Childs Restaurant’s heyday from the 1920s to the 1940s.

Shore Theater A developer bought up the landmarked and long neglected Shore Theater in early 2016, and last we checked the builder determining the work needed to restore the locally beloved playhouse back to its pre-war glory. When finished, the 2,500-seat venue will again entertain throngs of tourists and locals, a lawyer for the new owners said.

“The people of Coney Island can start looking forward to an amazing theater,” attorney Igor Oberman said. “They don’t want this to be just a seasonal venue — it will be for all seasons benefiting not only tourists, but the people here year-round.”

And Boardwalk boosters are over the moon about the news.

“This is wonderful news,” said Coney Island U.S.A. founder Dick Zigun, who has long advocated for the ailing theater. “If Coney Island is on a trajectory to go year-round and build hotels, you have to have nighttime entertainment and that’s the place to do it, at a landmarked Broadway-equivalent theater.”

The six stories above the theater are zoned for apartments, but new owners PYE Properties have not said what they plan to do with it.

2016 Brooklyn Tomorrow

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Brooklyn Tomorrow 2016

23

Moving innovations Borough zooms into future with new transit

By Miriam Cleveland

B

rooklyn is on the move!

The city and state are working to improve commutes to the Borough of Kings — and make it easier to get around once you’re here — with a swathe of new bridge and transit projects on and around the borough’s waterfront.

Ferry tales A new city-wide ferry service will weigh anchor in 2017, adding five new stops along the Brooklyn waterfront and creating a more pleasant way for thousands of people to commute to work, according to Mayor DeBlasio.

“It’s going to be a commute like no other,” said DeBlasio, “fresh air, harbor views, and a fast ride on the open water.”

Come June, seafaring straphangers will be able to sail between stops in Bay Ridge, Sunset Park, Red Hook, Brooklyn Heights and Dumbo — then onto existing stops in Williamsburg and Greenpoint, or other boroughs if they wish — all for the price of a subway fare.

The city will pay $55 million to set up the system, then another $30 million annually for six years to keep it afloat, and the service’s operator San Francisco’s Hornblower Cruises and Events will kick in to buy 18 new 150-seat ferries equipped with wifi and bike racks.

City officials estimate around 12,000 people will ride the new boats every day, 24

and it will be a boon for other commuters, too — riders of the existing East River Ferry will see their fares drop from $4 to the same $2.75 fee as the new service.

Hello, trolley Trolley dodging is set to return to Brooklyn, with Mayor DeBlasio’s plan to build a $2.5-billion streetcar line from Sunset Park to Queens.

The ambitious project aims to connect transit-starved communities and growing business hubs — including Industry City in Sunset Park, Red Hook, and the Navy Yard in Fort Greene — that city honchos claim will help them become the neighborhoods of tomorrow.

“This corridor is where the present and the future of our city are happening,” said Deputy Mayor for Housing and Economic Development Alicia Glen. “It’s where jobs and housing are growing, and where innovators and businesses are moving every day.”

The city predicts some 50,000 straphangers will ride the rails once the tram starts running in 2024 — but a lot has to happen before then.

There will be a lengthy community consultation process to help determine the route, and then even more public hearings once it is announced.

Cross purposes Talk about building a bridge and getting over it!

Economic Development Corporation

Friends of the Brooklyn Queens Connector

Transport Tomorrow

(Clockwise from left) Exciting new transit projects include the streetcar — imagined here gliding through Sunset Park. The all-new Kosciuszko Bridge. And the city’s new ferries, which will have bike racks and wifi.

The state Department of Transportation is building an entirely new Kosciuszko Bridge to replace the antique that has carried the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway over the Newtown Creek between Greenpoint and Queens since 1939.

Workers are replacing the creaky old six-lane span with a $554.7-million soaring truss bridge framed by several 275-foot-tall towers, sporting five Queens-bound traffic lanes and four Brooklyn-bound lanes, as well as bike and passenger paths.

Traffic will start moving to the new bridge in 2017, as workers begin dismantling the old one. The entire thing should be complete by 2020.

Ride on!

At long last, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority is seriously considering adding a bike path to the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge.

Transit advocates have been clamoring for a car-less crossing option practically since the bridge opened in 1964, and now the authority has committed $2.7 million to study the notion.

Officials are considering widening the span and adding bike and pedestrian lanes on the outside of the bridge, according to Bernard Kalus of engineering firm Parsons Brinckerhoff, which is conducting the study.

The authority anticipates the bike-path project would cost between $300 million and $400 million.

The study will be completed in 2017, according to a spokeswoman.

2016 Brooklyn Tomorrow

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Brooklyn Tomorrow 2016

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25

Brooklyn Grange Rooftop Farm

food Tomorrow

Brooklyn farm to Brooklyn tables

Herbal remedy Williamsburg restaurant Meadowsweet cultivates a herb garden in its windowsill, where cooks grow garnishes for dishes and drinks with a local touch.

The owners have a farm upstate, and say they wanted to bring that same homegrown approach into the eatery itself.

“We wanted to bring the growing process as close to guests as possible,” said Stephanie Lempert, whose husband Polo Dobkin is Meadowsweet’s chef.

The 6-foot long herb wall is filled with mint, pineapple, sage, cilantro, oregano, basil, and parsley.

Urban farmers get creative for local crops

By Madeline Anthony

B

The kids are alright

rooklyn is a garden of eatin’!

The borough’s pastoral days are long behind it, but a new breed of urban farmers are feeding residents’ appetites for local, sustainable food by growing fruit, vegetables, and herbs inside factories, on rooftops, and anywhere else they can find a scrap of spare space. Here is a sampling of the crop:

The farmers at Brooklyn Grange looked to the sky when searching for open space for an urban farm in 2010, and found it on the rooftops of two Navy Yard warehouses, where they grow a cornucopia of crops for Brooklynites looking to stay connected with their food source.

“We live in a society that is increasingly divorced from its food,” says Grange cofounder Anastasia Cole Plakias. “People are looking for a way to reconnect with it.”

The farm grows lettuce, tomatoes, honey, and fresh peppers across the twoand-a-half acre site, which it sells to dozens of restaurants as well as to regular consumers at an on-site stand, at farmers’ 26

Photo by Stefano Giovannini

Grazing the roof

(Top) Brooklyn Grange grows vegetables on the roof of buildings in the Navy Yard. (Above) Stephanie Lempert of Meadowsweet in Williamsburg. markets, and through a membership program that delivers a weekly box of edibles to your door.

It also sells honey it harvests from apiaries across the borough.

At the Youth Farm in Crown Heights, young people get their hands dirty learning how to garden and farm, and the fruits of their labors then go into dishes at a bunch of local restaurants including Carroll Gardens favorites Wilma Jean, Buttermilk Channel, 61 Local, and Nightingale 9.

Citizens can also grab eggplant, cucumbers, kale, and other fresh fare straight from the farm with membership boxes, or at an on-site store open Wednesdays from late June through October.

Growth industry Call them fun-gals — a pair of mushroom farmers are now growing an exotic fungus called lion’s mane inside a BedfordStuyvesant factory.

Jennifer Macdonald and Angela Watts first began growing the long, stringy mushroom variety in their closets and under their beds, but have now turned the hobby into an business at the old Pfizer building on Flushing Avenue called Shroom.

They plan to sell their product to local chefs.

2016 Brooklyn Tomorrow

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Brooklyn Tomorrow 2016

27

Marvel Architects

navy yard Tomorrow

Sea changes!

Big biz docking at the Navy Yard

BY Lauren Gill

Dock 72 This mammoth 17-story office building in the middle of the Navy Yard — the largest commercial construction project outside of Manhattan in decades — will house start-ups and tech firms anchored by coworking office company We Work.

Outside of the offices, the facility will also include in-house eateries, a basketball court, a massage room, valet bicycle parking, and a rooftop conference center.

Developer Boston Properties and Rudin Properties signed a 99-year, $47 mil28

S9 Architecture

T

he Navy Yard is looking shipshape!

Fort Greene’s two-century-old former shipyard is charting a course to become one of the borough’s biggest business hubs, with the city pumping plenty of money into the site that it eventually hopes will house 16,000 workers toiling away at cutting-edge companies.

“We’re proud to be investing in the Brooklyn Navy Yard as the center of a truly inclusive 21st-century economy,” said Mayor DeBlasio. “We’re also excited to be helping innovators pioneer urban technologies that will make our city more resilient for generations to come.

The massive waterfront industrial park between Vinegar Hill and Williamsburg is already home to film lot Steiner Studios, as well as 300 companies and studios making wine, art, toys, and tech products, and is now plugged into the city’s transit system, thanks to a new free shuttle bus running to local subway stops.

Here is a look at what else is on the way:

(Top) Russ and Daughters will make and sell its famed appetizing food inside Building 77. (Above) The Dock 72 building will house start-ups and tech firms, including co-working office company We Work. lion lease on the property in 2015. Workers broke ground at the beginning of May, and are expected finish at the end of 2017.

Building 77 This 74-year-old former Naval storage shed is currently undergoing a $185-million makeover to get ready for some highprofile tenants when it opens in 2017.

Iconic local craft brewer Brooklyn Brewery is relocating its headquarters from Williamsburg to the 16-story structure in 2018, where it will lease one-and-ahalf football fields’ worth of space that will include a rooftop eatery and brewery.

It will join another New York institution, Manhattan appetizing shop Russ and Daughters, which will open a bakery, shipping center, catering operation, and a grab-and-go store serving breakfasts and lunches inside the building’s food hall.

Upstairs, do-gooding tech incubator 1776 has signed on to open an outpost where it can help grow startups intent on transforming education, energy, health, and transportation industries.

Wegmans The cult grocery chain known for its dizzying selection and superior service is set to open its first New York City store in the Navy Yard in 2018.

The outpost will be Brooklyn’s largest supermarket — overtaking the Whole Foods in Gowanus by 20,000 square feet — but will be the smallest incarnation of the food mecca, which has 25 stores upstate.

The family-owned grocery store will also anchor the $140-million renovation of Admiral’s Row, a line of rundown houses that used house Coast Guard personnel.

Mast Brothers The local chocolatier is already manufacturing its confections in the Navy Yard, but is expanding its facility and doubling its 75-person workforce inside the Green Manufacturing Center, a repurposed old machine shop.

Inside, the company’s hipster Willy Wonkas will brew and bottle their non-alcoholic “chocolate beer” and offer educational tours to local grade-school students, as well as creating more signature chocolate bars.

2016 Brooklyn Tomorrow

business Tomorrow

Charge!

Tesla racing to get charging stations into luxury condos

By Max Jaeger

30

Photos by Stefano Giovannini

T

hey need the hook-up.

Electric car maker Tesla Motors, which opened a showroom in Red Hook in March, is racing to fill Brooklyn with charging stations so borough drivers will buy its cars. The company recently put nearly 70 jacks in Manhattan parking garages — now there is one every five blocks — but it had to shift gears in relatively public-garage-sparse Brooklyn and instead plug into luxury condo development, a company honcho said.

“Brooklyn is a tricky market — Manhattan, oddly enough, is much easier,” said Tesla East Coast director Jeremy Snyder.

“One thing I’m interested in is working with developers to ensure charge stations get specced into the garages that go into all of the new and re-purposed construction.”

There are fewer than two-dozen public vehicle-charging stations in Brooklyn, according to tracker plugshare.com.

And Tesla is wiring up every luxe crib it can, giving developers the charging stations for free if they install special highvoltage circuits in their buildings, development insiders say.

“We provide the infrastructure, and they provide the chargers. We’ve been actively working with them on almost every project we’re working on — seven right now, including two on the market and two that sold,” said Brendan Aguayo, managing director of Halstead Property Development Marketing, who cited hook-ups at

Tesla East Coast manager Jeremy Snyder says he is lobbying developers to include charging stations in new condos to promote electric vehicle ownership. (Below) Tesla Motors opened its Red Hook showroom on Van Brunt Street in April.

Boerum Hill’s 31-condo 610 Warren Street, all 10 spaces at the Bam-adjacent townhouses State and Bond, and in the garage at Williamsburg’s just-finishing, 216-unit Oosten.

Brownstone Brooklyn’s condo development is buzzing with Tesla, according to a real estate broker who pointed to upcoming Boerum Hill 30-unit digs 465 Pacific Street and almost-done Gowanus 32-unit 345 Carroll Street.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s in all the new developments that are happening right now,” said Millie Perry of Stribling & Associates.

Still, the cars have a niche market, and in a borough of rooftop dog runs and rooftop swimming pools, charging stations are not what makes one building stand out to buyers, but the charger-as-amenity will gain significance when Tesla rolls out its for-the-masses-priced Model 3 late next year, Aguayo said.

“I don’t know if it’s throwing anything over the top now, but as time progresses and Tesla becomes more name-brand, it’s going to be more appealing to a larger demographic,” he said.

Oh, and it’s laying cable in Brooklyn’s garages too, according to a Fort Greene operator who got hooked up two months ago.

“We had a customer who purchased a Tesla and ask us if we would install a charging station. I called up Tesla and they paid for it 100 percent,” said Robert Kotler of Discount Parking on Ashland Place.

2016 Brooklyn Tomorrow

Brookly

n

To m o r r o w

profile

Vascular institute

By Jack Ryan With the minimally invasive treatment for aneurysms now offered by the Vascular Institute in Borough Park, patients can now plan to go home the same day of an operation that once kept patients in the hospital for days.

Under the direction of Dr. Enrico Ascher, the Institute, offers the very latest state-of-the-art treatment for a wide range of vascular conditions.

No need to travel to Manhattan or Long Island when the very best care is available right here.

Dr. Ascher and his team are internationally recognized for developing groundbreaking treatments for patients with vascular disease. In some cases the endovascular techniques developed by this team have eliminated the need for surgery.

There was a time not long ago when patients seeking treatment for an aneurysm could expect to leave the hospital with an ugly scar run-

Brooklyn doctor provides treatment of aneurysms

ning from the collar bone to the groin.

It doesn’t have to be that way, says Dr. Ascher. The surgery that he has pioneered is done with the guidance of ultrasound on an ambulatory basis.

“This procedure is minimally invasive. The blockage can be removed with just a small incision in the groin,” he said. “The beauty of it is that we have simplified this approach. Instead of spending four or five days in the ICU, patients can expect to be home for dinner.”

This new procedure reduces costs and, more importantly, it reduces the risk of complications. In the not-distant future he expects to be able to perform the surgery, which is done with the patient under local anesthesia, in his Brooklyn facility.

To date more than 1,000 patients have taken advantage of the life-saving aneurysm surgery offed by the institute.

Aneurysms occur when part of a blood vessel or cardiac chamber swell because the blood vessel is

Doctor Enrico Ascher damaged or there is a weakness in the wall of the blood vessel. As the aneurysm grows there is a risk of rupture, which can lead to severe hemorrhage and other complications, including sudden death.

Dr. Ascher is currently the chief of vascular surgery at NYU Lutheran Medical Center. He is the founder of the Pan American Congress on Vascular and Endovascular Surgery, which provides a forum for surgeons from South America, Central America and North America.

The doctor has written more

than 250 articles published in medical journals. Put simply, it would be difficult, if not impossible, to find a more respected leader in the field of vascular medicine.

In addition to the treatment of aneurysms, the Institute provides the most progressive and advanced care available for the treatment of wide range of vascular conditions including stroke prevention and clearing blocked arteries. The Institute is also involved in wound treatment, saving limbs, and removing varicose veins.

Asked why he chose Brooklyn to set up his practice, Dr. Ascher said simply, “I am very happy the very best in vascular medicine is right here in Brooklyn.”

The Vascular Institute of New York [960 50th St. between Ninth Avenue and Fort Hamilton Parkway in Borough Park, (718) 438–3800, and 2993 Ocean Parkway in Brighton Beach, (347) 533–8477, vascularnyc.com] Call or go the website to make an appointment.

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Drs. Enrico Ascher, Anil Hingorani and Natalie Marks have introduced for the very first time in New York City a minimally invasive technique to repair an abdominal aortic aneurysm via a tiny puncture in each groin under local anesthesia.

Patients may be discharged home the very same day and have supper with the family.

AORTIC ANEURYSMS ARE MORE COMMON THAN YOU THINK. THEY ARE KNOWN TO BE “SILENT KILLERS” If you are 60 years of age or older you may benefit from a visit to a board-certified vascular specialist LOCATIONS :

Brighton Beach:

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Brooklyn Tomorrow 2016

Boro Park:

2993 Ocean Parkway 960 50th Street Brooklyn, NY 11235 Brooklyn, NY 11219 Tel: 347–533–8477 WWW.VASCULARNYC.COM Tel: 718–438–3800

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2016 Brooklyn Tomorrow

VISION

The RMI

The Latest News from Bay Ridge Medical Imaging

Fall • 2014

CT Lung CT LungCancer Cancer Screening Available at BRMI Screening Available at BRMI.

By Dr. Joseph Abrams Lung cancer is the most common cause of cancer death in the United States. The National Lung Cancer Screening has inestablished ore people dieTrial from(NLST) lung cancer the ability of of low-dose e US than from breast cancer, colon CT scans to decrease lungncer and prostate cancer combined. specific mortality by 20% in his year aloneamore than 160,000 screened, high-risk popuEarly detection is a at sea level. The low-dose CT mericans will lation. die from this disease. exam does not require intraproven, successful ramatic published findings show thatstrategy.

Too many dose people wait until venous contrast. radiation w-dose CT (low they experience symtoms, Who is an appropriate canmputed tomography) can find lung like a chronic cough, before didate for low-dose lung CT mors long before they on screening. By screening for lung cancer? they getappear a lung Also, because half of new lung cancer aditional chestthen, x-rays.the Since lung may be more • Are you between the ages of cancer diagnoses are in former smokers, the difficult mors are usually the size to of antreat orangeand cure. 55 and 77? recommendation includes former That’s why it so important the time they’re discovered onisX-ray • Did you smoke, on average, smokersatwho quitone within the per past day 15 for to shcedule lung screening. least pack e cure rate is extremely low. aHowever, years.

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(BRMI) (718) 238-7000.

You can dividuals. Theradiation level of riskdose that qualifies mSv (millisieverts), which Bay Medical Imaging alsoisvisit us atRidge brmi.org.

A referral ndidates for screening is based on their less than the naturally occur- (BRMI) performs low-dose is necessary from your PCP e and smokingring history.

Generally,radiation to background that lung CT to screen patients or specialist. ualify, former and currentreceives smokers for one year a person who are at high risk for

tween the ages of 55-80 must have a moking history of at least 30 “pack ars.” Pack years are calculated by Brooklyn Tomorrow ultiplying the number of packs smoked the number of years smoked. So, for ample, someone who smoked two

2016

is ess ber aren m ve r Aw No

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33

street life Tomorrow

Third is first!

Bay Ridge shopping drag has it all — with a small-town feel

By Dennis Lynch

Wicked Monk This Irish pub is one of the neighborhood’s favorite watering holes. The owners imported stained glass and wooden fixtures that once adorned a century-old chapel at a monastery in County Cork, Ireland to create one of the most unique bargoing experiences in the neighborhood.

It is the holy grail of places to imbibe, grub, and take in the live music booked there on Saturday nights and Sunday afternoons.

Wicked Monk [9510 Third Ave. at 95th Street, (347) 497–5152]

Photos by Georgine Benvenuto

Y

ou don’t have to take a train to Long Island to get a taste of small-town life — just take a stroll down Bay Ridge’s Third Avenue.

The thoroughfare — the neighborhood’s longest — is lined with more than 300 businesses, most of them mom-and-pops, according to the president of the Merchants of Third Avenue business association. The convenience and charm of shopping along Third Avenue is a huge draw for new residents, and not surprisingly, it is one of the first things people miss when they move out, the business booster said.

“If you stop any shopper in Bay Ridge, I’m sure they’ll tell you they go to one place for sausage, another for bread, dry-cleaning, the baker — that’s the allure of our community, you can walk everywhere,” Bob Howe said.

Howe said Third Avenue’s economic strength is the strong community of business owners who go above and beyond — including through his organization — to make the neighborhood attractive to new residents and businesses with events such as the annual Summer Stroll, which turns Third Avenue into a pedestrian plaza and brings businesses right out onto the street.

Here is a slice of what you can find on Third Avenue:

(Clockwise from top) Art Room owners Justin and Leigh Holliday Brannan are surrounded by talent. Wicked Monk owner Bill DeLuca shares a beer with a patron. Tanoreen founder Rawia Bishara, right, styled much of the restaurant’s food on her mother’s home cooking, something her daughter and restaurant manager Jumana Bishara knows well.

Ridge’s most celebrated eateries.

Bishara’s 2014 cookbook, “Olive, Lemons, & Za’atar: The Best Middle Eastern Home Cooking” has helped spread her reputation far beyond Brooklyn’s borders — drawing celebrities such as Bill Murray and Sarah Jessica Parker to her table.

Tanoreen [7523 Third Ave. at 76th Street, (718) 748–5600]

Cocoa Grinder This hip and progressive coffee shop is the newest business on this list. The industrial-inspired interior, strong coffee, and vegan grub brings to mind visions of Park Slope or Williamsburg more than Bay Ridge, but locals have embraced it.

Cocoa Grinder [8511 Third Ave. between 85th and 86th streets, (347) 517–4561]

Giacomo’s Trattoria Tanoreen What started in 1998 as a small, storefront kitchen for owner Rawia Bishara to serve her mother’s unique interpretations of Galilean cuisine has become one of Bay 34

restaurants, including Giacomo’s.

The restaurant’s namesake, Giacomo Santangelo, recently started to bottle his beloved pasta sauce made with his family’s 54-year-old recipe to sell at supermarkets far and wide, meaning a local favorite could soon become a household name beyond Third Avenue.

Giacomo’s Trattoria [7902 Third Ave. at 79th Street, (718) 439–6993]

The Italian population in Bay Ridge has shrunk significantly since the days Tony Manero (of “Saturday Night Fever” fame) strutted the streets in 1977, but its legacy remains in numerous top-notch Italian

Art Room Art Room founder Leigh Holliday Brannan opened her kids’ art school in 2010 to give area youth a safe space to be creative and learn about the finer points of the visual arts. The classes are routinely packed, and some parents have enrolled their kids because of a lack of quality arts programs in their public schools.

The school recently held its first large art show since 2013, showcasing the work of more than 100 students — something Brannan said she hopes to repeat in the future.

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35

Dumbo 2.0

The next phase for the boroughâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s high-tech nabe

BY Lauren Gill

36

2016 Brooklyn Tomorrow

Empire Stores

Empire Stores

B

Dumbo

rooklyn’s tech capital is getting an upgrade!

Dumbo is already one of the borough’s most desirable places to live, work, and play, thanks to its stunning views of the East River, thriving creative culture, historic buildings, and proximity to Brooklyn Bridge Park.

Now a swathe of new developments is set to take the neighborhood to the next level with high-end offices, world-class arts venues, and nightlife destinations, according to local business leaders.

“Dumbo is going to be an amplified version of itself,” said Alexandria Sica, who is the president of local business booster group the Dumbo Business Improvement District.

Workers are currently wrapping up construction on Dumbo Heights and Empire Stores — two massive new office and retail complexes that will breathe new life into old factories and attract anew breed of cutting edge companies, foodies, and shoppers to the neighborhood.

2.0

from heavy industry to tech industry

Here is what Dumbo looked like in the 1980s. This view of Washington Street is now one of the most-photographed places in Brooklyn — sans the since-removed clock.

38

These projects are just the latest chapter in the neighborhood’s long history of reinvention and ingenuity.

The nabe — known at various points as Rapailie, Olympia, and part of Fulton Landing — started out as a residential area, but became Brooklyn’s manufacturing powerhouse during the industrial revolution, 2016 Brooklyn Tomorrow

Kushner Companies

The renovated Empire Stores (at left above, and on pages 36 and 37) will marry the Civil War-era warehouses’ brick exterior with a modern interior. The revamped Empire Stores is set to turn the Dumbo waterfront into a shopping and eating destination.

(Left) Developer Kushner Companies is revamping the old Jehovah’s Witnesses printing factories as a modern office, retail, and restaurant complex. The buildings’ famed skywalks — which allowed workers to go from building to building when Dumbo’s streets were riddled with crime — will remain.

home to factories turning the raw products being shipped into New York Harbor into shoes, soap, and Brillo pads, as well as the innovators behind the first cardboard box and pre-roasted packaged coffee.

After the Depression, much of the area fell into disrepair as factories went bust or moved elsewhere. But one unusual manBrooklyn Tomorrow 2016

ufacturer remained — religious group the Jehovah’s Witnesses, which had established its headquarters in Brooklyn Heights around the turn of the century, began turning those old factories into massive printing plants for its evangelical publications.

The Witnesses remained the neighbor-

hood’s main inhabitants until the late 1970s, when struggling artists began moving in for the cheap rent and abundant studio space and gave it the moniker Dumbo — an acronym of Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass — reportedly to make it undesirable to real estate tycoons.

They weren’t deterred, though — the area soon caught the eye of developer David Walentas of Two Trees, who began buying the old warehouses to renovate into hip, high-end offices, condominiums, and stores.

Walentas, together with his son Jed, also recognized the value of Dumbo’s nascent artistic scene, and offered cheap and free rent for some studios, galleries, and 39

Dumbo

2.0

Associated Press / Seth Wenig

theaters to keep it alive — which, in turn, attracted well-to-do residents and cool startups.

In 2016, Dumbo’s cobblestoned streets are still home to many artists, as well as some of Brooklyn’s wealthiest people and hottest tech companies including online craft market giant Etsy and digital agency Huge — all inside revamped warehouses still bearing painted signs from the industrial giants of yesteryear.

A mass exodus But change is once again afoot. During the past decade, the Witnesses have been selling off all its Brooklyn properties as it prepare to relocate upstate, creating unprecedented opportunities for new developments in the area.

In 2013, developer Kushner Companies — owned by Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner — bought five former Witness buildings in the area bound by Adams, High, and Jay streets for $373 million, which it is now transforming into a massive office and retail complex dubbed Dumbo Heights.

Co-working office powerhouse WeWork has already moved in, and Etsy will soon relocate its offices there too, alongside a host of retail outlets, eateries, and bars to cater to the new companies, which will move in gradually over the next couple of years.

One of the incoming vendors says the area’s proximity to public transit was a big draw — as well as the prospect of tapping into the area’s young, creative workforce and cool companies.

“It’s so accessible, the industries that are being formed down there in tech and a lot of entrepreneurship are also inspiring,” said Nick Stone, founder of Australianstyle cafe chain Bluestone Lane, which is opening its first Brooklyn store in the complex. “It’s a great environment.”

Bluestone Lane will join outlets of healthfood chain Dig Inn, sustainable sandwich joint Untamed Sandwiches, and Glaze Teriyaki, alongside fitness chains including Shadowbox, Row House, and Yoga Vida.

Kushner Companies and a team of other developers have also reportedly inked a deal to turn a sixth neighboring Witnesses property into a swanky 600-key hotel in conjunction with Brooklyn-born hotelier Ian Schrager, which is slated to include a screening room, banquet space, a nightclub, and a rooftop restaurant.

The Jehovah’s Witnesses do not like do40

The parking lot could soon be home to more than 1,000 new Dumbo residents.

The big lot

BY Lauren Gill

O

f all the Dumbo properties the Jehovah’s Witnesses are selling off to developers, none may have a bigger impact on the future of the nabe than an empty parking lot at the corner of Jay and Front streets.

That’s because the city-block–sized lot is one of the last undeveloped parcels of land in the area and it is zoned for residential use — unlike the church’s old offices and factories — which means the buyer will have the rare opportunity to build a huge complex of housing highrises in the borough’s priciest neighborhood, according to a spokesman for the religious group.

“It’s probably the last opportunity like this in the Dumbo area in my lifetime,” said Richard Devine of Watchtower Real Estate.

The Witnesses convinced the city to

ing business with people outside the organization, which led to a dearth of retail and restaurant options in and around its buildings, so Sica says she is excited for new venues that will give residents and visitors more to do when the sun goes down.

“Dumbo has always been in need of more dining and drinking options, and this is going to be epic and take us to the next level,” she said.

Park life Another area set to revolutionize the neighborhood is Brooklyn Bridge Park,

rezone the land in 2004 in order to build residents for its members, but never actually went through with the plan.

Now someone else will.

The property, adjacent to the York Street F station, is the size of two-anda-half football fields. It could fit 1,000 new units of housing — and even more people — which would mean a dramatic change to the neighborhood’s roughly 4,000-person population.

And because all of this can be built “as of right” — that is, with no extra permission needed from the city — any buyer wouldn’t have to go through a community consultation process or include any below-market housing, unless it wants tax breaks or to build even more units than is currently allowed.

As of printing, the Witnesses have not announced a buyer, though a 2015 New York Post article claimed that a consortium of developers led by Kushner Companies has a handshake agreement to purchase the land for $700 million — roughly twice what Kushner paid for five of the church’s office buildings.

the sprawling waterfront space that stretches from the Manhattan Bridge through Brooklyn Heights and has been in the works since 2008.

The Dumbo end of the park encompasses seven warehouses on Water Street between Old Dock and Main streets known as Empire Stores, a stronghold of the nabe’s industrial days — where “coffee king” John Arbuckle changed the way Americans drank coffee with his famed Ariosa brand — that is set to become a center of business and innovation once again when it opens in fall 2016.

2016 Brooklyn Tomorrow

Photo by Stefano Giovannini

Photo by Paul Martinka Photo by Stefano Giovannini Photo by Louise Wateridge

Photo by Stefano Giovannini

(Clockwise from above) Brooklyn Bridge Park’s new rockclimbing wall under is already a hit with families.

The landmarked Tobacco Warehouse is now home to performing arts venue St. Ann’s Warehouse. Bluestone Lane founder Nick Stone is opening a cafe inside the Dumbo Heights complex.

Vendor Kate Flaherty shows off her wares at Brooklyn Flea, which recently opened a bazaar under the Manhattan Bridge. Even Dumbo’s public art is welcoming.

The structure was empty and decaying for 68 years until Midtown Equities penned a 96-year lease on it in 2013, and now the developer is in the midst of a $150-million renovation that will fill the brick buildings with office, retail, restaurant, and cultural spaces that a park spokeswoman says will be a win for the new tenants and park-goers alike.

“After sitting vacant and impenetrable for decades, it’s very exciting that these historic warehouses have been adaptively reused,” said Belinda Cape, spokeswoman for Brooklyn Bridge Park. “Empire Stores is really going to invigorate this part of Brooklyn Bridge Park and Dumbo.”

Some big-names have already signed on — locally based furniture retailer West Elm will take over a third of the property with its new company headquarters, and Los Angeles advertising firm 72 and Sunny is setting up an office there.

For visitors, Empire Stores will host a satellite museum of the Brooklyn Historical Society, outposts of beloved area eatery Brooklyn Tomorrow 2016

Vinegar Hill House and upscale London eatery Pizza East, a rooftop beer garden, and a storefront for trendy Detroit watchmaker Shinola.

The project is the neighbor of another recently renovated Civil War-era depot in the park — the Tobacco Warehouse between New Dock and Old Dock streets, which is now home to avant-garde performing arts center St. Ann’s Warehouse.

The theater — a Dumbo institution since 2001 — spent two years and $30 million filling the shell of the landmarked factory with seats and a stage, and opened the new digs late last year. It has already hosted performances from acclaimed actors including Gillian Anderson and Mark Rylance.

Other recent additions to the park include an environmental educational center on Plymouth Street, where kids can learn about local marine life, and an outdoor rock-climbing wall under the Manhattan Bridge. Later this year, the Brooklyn Children’s Museum will open an outpost next door at John and Adams streets, at the

base of in-park condo building 1 John St.

Dark side of the boom Dumbo’s boom isn’t without its downsides — many smaller stores and arts venues have closed due to rising rents in recent years.

In a sign of the times, popular performance venue Galapagos Art Space — one beneficiary of Two Trees’ discounted rent program — decamped for even cheaper digs in Detroit in 2014 after eight years as a hub of burlesque and aerial arts.

But for one longtime business owner, the changes have been overwhelmingly positive.

“When I was first there, there were no people and no sidewalks, it was very desolate,” said Gleason’s Gym owner Bruce Silverglade, who moved the famed boxing studio to the neighborhood 31 years ago.

“Now it’s a thriving metropolis and I’m still awed with the number of people who are there. It’s a total transformation and all for the better.”

41

Vision of Tomorrow

Moving on

Illustration by Sylvan Migdal

How will Brooklynites be getting around in 100 years?

Cartoonist Sylvan Migdal has some suggestions.

42

2016 Brooklyn Tomorrow

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