From left: the Brooklyn waterfront and Jeffrey Levine, chairman of Douglaston Development

The entire waterfront of Brooklyn is ripe for new residential development, Crain’s reported. Massive developments are rising, from more predictable spots, such as Williamsburg, down to less likely spots such as Sunset Park, along the east river and ocean, the magazine said.

“Rents and the economy in general have come roaring back since the depths of the Great Recession,” Jeffrey Levine, chairman of Douglaston Development, told Crain’s. Douglaston is building a $300 million, 509-unit rental tower in Williamsburg, at North 4th Street and Kent, near the Edge. [more]

Douglaston Development Chairman Jeffrey Levine and the Cameo (credit: PropertyShark)

Douglaston Development is facing a $62 million foreclosure suit from CW Capital after allegedly defaulting on loan payments for the Cameo, a luxury rental building at 311 West 50th Street in Manhattan.

In a suit filed Feb. 29 in New York state Supreme Court, CW Capital alleges that Douglaston, led by chairman Jeff Levine, failed to make its monthly installments on $47 million in loans starting in August 2011, and has made no payments through last month. [more]

Douglaston Development Chairman Jeffrey Levine and a rendering of 3 Northside Piers

There’s a shortage of family-size apartments in Brooklyn, and developers are first catching on now, the Wall Street Journal reported.

“When we started developing, Williamsburg was pretty much recognized as a creative community — artists, musicians, galleries, cafes, vintage clothing,” said Douglaston Development Chairman Jeffrey Levine. “As time passed, years turned hipsters into parents.” [more]

From left: Douglaston Development Chairman Jeffrey Levine (top), Patricia Dunphy, senior vice president of Rockrose Development (bottom left), the Riverpark farm, the DeKalb Market and the Brooklyn Flea

With more than 600 stalled construction sites currently blighting the city thanks to the recession, developers have begun renting out their vacant lots, sometimes free of charge, to ventures that can lure foot traffic to the area. According to the New York Times, the developers hope the increased traffic will improve the neighborhood — and sales and leasing figures — in advance of their projects breaking ground.

For example, Alexandria Real Estate Equities has fostered a farm on the stalled site of the second Alexandria Center for Life Science tower. Chef Tom Colicchio’s adjacent restaurant Riverpark uses produce from the farm, a set-up that has attracted interest to what would otherwise be a construction fence. [more]

From the October issue:
[more]

Edge developer Douglaston Development has taken the lead on building a nearby site at 3 Northside Piers in Williamsburg and plans to break ground on a $300 million project in March, the Wall Street Journal reported. Douglaston, led by CEO Jeffrey Levine, intends to build a 40-story rental tower where rents range from $55 to $60 per square-foot.

The tower was originally supposed to be part of a three-building complex developed by Toll Brothers, L&M Development Partners and RD Management, but after sales were slow — even after price cuts — in the first two Northside Piers buildings, Toll Brothers backed out of the project. L&M and RD will help on Douglaston’s version of the tower. [more]

Scott Rechler, Jeffrey Levine, Hal Fetner and Kenneth Horn, the heads of
RXR Realty, Douglaston Development, Durst Fetner Residential and
Alchemy Properties, respectively, were just some of the top-flight real estate executives that attended Michael Stoler’s “Stoler State of the Market” conference yesterday, at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York (see photos above). Stoler asked direct, probing questions covering the availability of debt and equity, financing, expectations for 2012 and residential market from the private equity perspective. Those four topics were discussed by 32 panelists in front of an audience of more than 200 people.

Many panelists were optimistic looking forward. AKA Hotels & Korman Communities co-President Larry Korman said he expected a big year in 2012 as money comes off the sideline and returns to the investment game. – Marc Becker [more]

From left: Douglaston’s Jeffrey Levine, the Edge and Frolic! logo

Frolic!, a rock ‘n’ roll-inspired play space and enrichment center for children, has signed a 10-year lease for 5,000 square feet of retail space at Brooklyn development the Edge, Douglaston Development announced today. The terms of the lease were not immediately available.

“As Williamsburg mothers and homeowners, we’ve seen first hand the growing need for a spacious and enjoyable destination for the entire family” said Frolic! co-founder Carey Balogh, “and the Edge was an obvious choice for us.”

The space, in the 565-unit condominium at 34 North 7th Street and being marketed by Robert Greenstone, chairman and CEO of Greenstone Realty (see: correction appended), will feature an open 1,500-square-foot indoor playground and over 1,000 square feet of classroom space. – Katherine Clarke [more]

From left: Stonehenge Partners COO Andrew Hoffman, Jeffrey Levine, principal of Douglaston Development, Michael Gubbins, vice president at the Albanese Organization and Joseph Sbiroli, principal of Ventura Land

After a major evacuation, extensive preparations and a two-day mass transit shutdown, New
Yorkers have emerged after Hurricane Irene to find their city mostly unscathed.

“It was a remarkable non-event,” said Andrew Hoffman, COO of Stonehenge Partners.

Stonehenge, which manages approximately 2,500 apartments in 20 buildings, avoided the
evacuation orders with buildings like Midtown’s Ritz Plaza and 10 Downing.

Hoffman said they geared up for the storm by supplying each building with plywood, water
pumps, water vacuums, flashlights, batteries and thousands of glow sticks. [more]

From left: Jeffrey Gural of Newmark Knight Frank, Jeffrey Levine of Douglaston Development, David Weprin, Joe Sitt of Thor Equities and Frank Sciame, Jr. of F.J. Sciame Construction

Today, state Assemblyman David Weprin will get the nod from the
Democratic Party to run for Anthony Weiner’s old seat in Congress, which
he is expected to win.

And even though that seat, New York’s 9th, probably won’t be around for
long — population changes will likely force the state to phase it out in 2012
– some real estate executives are happy to have somebody they have close
ties to representing them in Washington, even for the short-term.

“He’s a good guy, and I don’t think the real estate industry has anything to
worry about,” said Jeffrey Gural, chairman of Newmark Knight Frank, who
contributed $2,000 to Weprin in 2010 for his assembly race, according to
campaign finance records. [more]