Jay Group divides Downtown Brooklyn project into 90-unit buildings, avoiding wage floor

Developer seeks to build 27-story, 90-unit building

Jay Group Tips Hand on Downtown Brooklyn Project
FA Architects & Engineers' Ashraf Altahat and 104-106 Fleet Place (Google Maps, FA Architects & Engineers)

The Jay Group filed plans for 450 units in Downtown Brooklyn, spread among five buildings, in an apparent nod to the unusual terms of the state’s multifamily tax break.

The Bedford-Stuyvesant-based developer filed plans for five 90-unit buildings, each 27 stories. The development will span several lots, including 104-106 Fleet Place, 159 and 165 Willoughby Street and 287 Flatbush Avenue Extension. It was first reported by PincusCo.

By keeping each building under 100 apartments, Jay Group, led by Jacob Kohn, seems to be avoiding the wage requirements for construction workers required by the state’s 485x tax benefit for multifamily projects at or above that threshold.

After 485x passed in the spring, the joke in industry circles was that decades from now, people will look back decades from now and wonder why the city has so many 99-unit buildings. Jay Group’s project may be the first example of that.

It’s unclear from the permits, filed by FA Architects & Engineers, whether the project will include rentals or condos, though prominent recent projects for Jay Group have been the former. The plans also call for commercial space.

Critically, the land is situated within the Special Downtown Brooklyn District, where developers could capitalize tax incentives for large mixed-use projects with affordable housing components.

Jay Group could not be reached for comment.

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The developer acquired several sites across from Brodsky Development’s City Point complex earlier this month, buying them from Pearl Realty for $62.5 million. Jay Group also spent $12.5 million on air rights from 147 Pearl Street; the transaction was financed by a $50 million acquisition loan from G4 Capital Partners.

The developer quickly filed plans to raze a one-story car wash and oil change facility at 275 Flatbush Avenue Extension, a 10,000-square-foot site next to the Fleet Place parcel, a parking lot.

The 90-unit buildings will rise across from City Point, Brodsky’s massive project that includes DeKalb Market Hall, Trader Joe’s, Target and the 68-story Brooklyn Point tower, which has 458 luxury condos.

The Jay Group and its partner scored a $92 million construction loan last year from Bank Hapoalim to build a multifamily property at 401 West 207th Street in Inwood. The Jay Group filed permits the year prior for a 17-story building with 270 rental units and 20,000 square feet of commercial space.

The Jay Group also acquired 101 Fleet Place from the Leser Group in 2021 for $40 million in another multifamily play.

This article has been revised to include information about the entirety of Jay Group’s project.

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