Proposed DoBro tower would block neighbors’ windows and alter a landmark rowProposed DoBro tower would alter a landmark row | Brownstoner

A developer who bought the landmark downtown Brooklyn row known as the Duffield Street Houses is proposing to build a 30-story glass tower in their tiny backyard that would swallow up the back half of the houses and the windows of the apartments in the converted BellTel Lofts on the other side of the block.

The proposal for 188 Duffield Street will go to a public hearing at the Landmarks Preservation Commission on Tuesday, October 21. In May, Community Board 2 voted against the plan. Eagle was the first report. A rendering of the design that YIMBY published in June shows a glass and beige brick tower with symmetrical window openings and a stepped facade.

The developer, Watermark Capital, is proposing to combine the interiors of 19th-century buildings and demolish their rear facades, according to the LPC and the nonprofit Historic Districts Council. During the CB2 meeting, HDC “strongly expressed our concern to CB2 and local elected officials that this precedent would suggest that any historic structure is only as meaningful as its facade, making it fair game to serve as window dressing for a tower.” the group said in an update about New York City landmarks that are at risk.

A resident of the BellTel Lofts had previously told Brownstoner that they were concerned that a tower at 188 Duffield Street would likely block the windows of the rear units.

A permit application for a new mixed-use building, submitted to the Ministry of Buildings in 2024, said the tower will have 115 apartments and cover 50 percent of the area. It will be set back 37 feet — about the depth of some of the heritage homes — and stand 300 feet high, with a footprint of 9,854 square feet, as Brownstoner reported at the time.

The new building includes a healthcare facility in the basement and on the first and second floors, but no parking facilities. The building’s square footage will total 102,224.7 square feet, with 546.8 square feet of commercial space, 3,658.2 of common space and 98,019.7 square feet of residential space. (Elsewhere, the permit application says the total square footage will be 136,842.)

The site was previously owned by Forest City Ratner, which moved the early 1800s homes from their original locations nearby and promised to preserve them as part of a deal to develop MetroTech.

Related stories

Email tips@brownstoner.com with further comments, questions or tips. Follow Brownstoner further Tweet And Instagramand like us further Facebook.