The top 10 biggest real estate projects coming to NYC

The largest April project was a 609-unit development in Fort Greene from Rockrose

Clockwise from top left: 180 Ashland Place. 180 East 125th Street, 35 Commercial Street and 2440 Fulton Street (Credit: Google Maps)
Clockwise from top left: 180 Ashland Place. 180 East 125th Street, 35 Commercial Street and 2440 Fulton Street (Credit: Google Maps)

The coronavirus pandemic did not stop companies from filing plans for major construction projects last month.

The top 10 largest projects in April totaled more square feet than any other month of the year: about 2.6 million. That compared to 1.9 million square feet in March, 1.7 million square feet in February and 1.3 million square feet in January.

Overall, the list for April was split between five projects in Manhattan, three projects in Brooklyn, one project in The Bronx and one project in Queens. No Staten Island projects made the cut last month.

The full list of April’s top 10 biggest real estate projects is as follows:

1. 180 Ashland Place, Brooklyn
This is the site of Rockrose Development’s first large-scale project in Brooklyn, which will span about 418,000 square feet and stand 47 stories tall with 609 apartments and ground floor retail. Rockrose filed its plans just a few days after closing on the Fort Greene site — also known as 98 Dekalb Avenue — for $81 million from the Kotler family in an all-cash deal.

2. 180 East 125th Street, Manhattan
Gary Barnett’s Extell Development filed plans for a low-rise office building spanning about 354,000 square feet on its East Harlem development site. The project will stand nine stories and 120 feet tall with ground floor retail and about 41,000 square feet of community space. Extell spent $70 million on the block-long assemblage, which is known as the Harlem Pathmark site. Sale of the Pathmark supermarket there sparked controversy, with some local residents saying they felt betrayed by seller Abyssinian Development Corporation for sacrificing their local grocery store.

3. 2440 Fulton Street, Brooklyn
The Leser Group filed plans for a roughly 325,000-square-foot commercial building in Ocean Hill. It will stand six stories and 100 feet tall. Abraham Leser acquired the development site in 2015 for $33 million.

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4. 35 Commercial Street, Brooklyn
Park Tower Group is planning this roughly 344,000-square-foot residential building in Greenpoint. It will stand 22 stories and 213 feet tall with 374 residential units, and it will include a small amount of commercial space on the ground floor as well.

5. 53-16 Northern Boulevard, Queens
The New York City School Construction Authority is planning to build a new 308,000-square-foot school in Woodside. It will stand six stories and 86 feet tall.

6. 611 West 169th Street, Manhattan
Royal Charter Properties filed plans for this 193,000-square-foot mixed-use property in Washington Heights. It will be split between about 111,000 square feet of residential space, 74,000 square feet of community space and 9,000 square feet of commercial space, and it will stand 13 stories and 135 feet tall with 132 residential units and 62 parking spots. Retail will be part of the project, and the community facility will be for a nonprofit organization with sleeping accommodations, according to the filing.

7. 40 West 137th Street, Manhattan
The city’s Department of Health filed plans for its new public health lab by the Harlem Hospital Center. It will span about 188,000 square feet and stand 10 stories tall. The city’s current lab is located at 455 First Avenue in Kips Bay, and the new location aims to give the department more flexibility for its equipment and let employees work more easily during crises.

8. 72 East 120th Street, Manhattan
BFC Partners is planning a roughly 185,000-square-foot mixed-use project in Harlem, split between about 181,000 square feet of residential space and 4,000 square feet of commercial space. The project will stand 20 stories and 216 feet tall, and it will include 110 parking spots and 218 residential units, at least some of which will be for low-income residents.

9. 1016 Fox Street, The Bronx
Developer Peter Fine filed plans for a roughly 184,000-square-foot mixed-use project in The Bronx’s Longwood neighborhood. The project will be split between about 100,000 square feet of community space, 61,000 square feet of residential space and 23,000 square feet of commercial space. It will stand 15 stories and 148 feet tall with 278 residential units, at least some of which will be for low-income residents.

10. 77 East 118th Street, Manhattan
April’s list closes out with another BFC Partners project in Harlem spanning about 172,000 square feet, split between 169,000 square feet of residential space and 3,000 square feet of commercial space. The project will stand 20 stories and 216 feet tall, and it will include 202 residential units and 93 parking spots. At least some housing units in this project will be for low-income tenants as well.