The area of Williamsburg around Union Avenue east of the BQE has become a huge construction zone over the last year. There are two epicenters of development, between Roebling Street and the BQE (where there are more vacant lots than construction sites at the moment) and between Metropolitan and Grand Street, where there are some big structures rising. The neighborhood include new buildings from Karl Fischer, Kutnicki Bernstein, Michael Muroff and Robert Scarano to name a few. The entrance to the Union Triangle will be presided over by the Gateway to Williamsburg, which is awaiting the start of construction. A small selection are highlighted in the gallery here.
· Burg Craned Again as Hard Steel Rises on Union Avenue [Curbed]
What do 239 N. 9 Street, 261 N. 9 Street and 120 S. 4 Street in Williamsburg have in common? If you guessed Hot Karl Fischer--whose S. 4 Street building is in the rendering above--you have an important part of the answer. But not the only one. New York Shitty notes that the buildings, which will have a couple of hundred units between them, are being developed by one of the co-owners of the Greenpoint Hotel, which is most notable for its, um, sometimes unsavory living conditions. The 239 N. 9 building has had some safety issues and was the site of some anti-gentrification graffiti we caught last week. The S. 4 Street building, which is at the corner of Bedford Avenue and has another Greenpoint Hotel-related building, the Rocket Factory as its neighbor, just started up again after being an abandoned site for more than a year. To round out the picture, the same developer is planning a hotel--though whether it's a boutique or something else is unknown--next to another nabe favorite, Studio B. No word on whether Hot Karl is doing the renovations on that one.
· Searching for 80 Clay Street [New York Shitty]
· More Fun with Max [New York Shitty]
So much Hot Karl. Williamsburg's latest Karl Fischer building to get a name is the one coming up at 101 N. 5 Street at N. 5. It's going to be NV and is using with a Roman Numeral theme so it's a play on N. 5 Street. (It's offically 154 Berry, but CLIV maybe wasn't so nice?) The website is just a welcome screen right now, but it says, for instance that HK's NV is IX blocks to McCarren Park and has XL units. To which one might add that it's also IX blocks to the III HK's of KFR.
· NV 101 N 5 [nv101n5.com]
· Construction Watch: Hot Karl Happening on Berry [Curbed]
"There’s absolutely no doubt that Karl Fischer’s work is smoking hot. His creations have been growing by the day in Montreal and New York City, with many other projects to come ... The reason we are mentioning him here, apart from the fact that he is a great architect, is because he is also a Montrealer; graduated from McGill University. The same McGill in downtown Montreal. In fact, he runs his business in Canada out of a location in Old Montreal." [Montreal Real Estate Blog]
We stopped to check on the Luminous Condo Corner and the progress on the Finger of Humboldt Street, the yet unnamed Hot Karl Fischer tower east of the BQE that is around the corner from the Dark Prince Luminous, which is Robert Scarano's Finger of Richardson (as always, it's important to Know Thy Fingers). While a neighbor of Luminous is still on sale as a development site, there's another building that is rising quickly in what had been a pit next to Luminous. It would appear that some of the views from the dark gray Scarano building might loose some luminosity.
The Karl Fischer and Gene Kaufman Williamsburg buildings known as Nforth and The Rialto, respectively, are getting ready for their debuts. Nforth is hitting the market with studios starting at $375,000, one BRs at $525,000 and 2BRs at $750K. Rialto on the other hand, is being billed as "a carriage house conversion" with 31 "architectural apartments." We last saw it in this cool shot, in which the interior shots in the photo gallery can be seen through the windows. Both hit the track on Sunday.
· Williamsburg's Rialto is Slightly Ready [Curbed]
· Checking In: Driggs Ave. Karl Fischer is 'Nforth' [Curbed]
Prolific architect Karl Fischer's reworking of/addition to the old Pennsylvania Railroad Power Station designed by McKim, Mead & White in 1909 near the Long Island City waterfront has always been a sensitive topic, but blogger Restless is not tiptoeing around the issue:
I hated the Powerhouse the second I noticed the sun bouncing off its plastic Coppertone top, long before I knew it was one of Karl's. In fact I thought it might be a Donald Trump enterprise, because of the tacky casino faux-class of its round castle towers and metallic color. As I said in the comments," If I worked at the U.N., right across the river, I would sue for degradation of view."
The demolition of 52-54 West 13th began earlier this week to make room for a controversial Karl Fischer hotel and the work is nearly complete. As the front two buildings have fallen fast, two pieces of history have been revealed. Hidden in the back, you can now see clearly the circa-1790s Federal building that could only be accessed by walking through the first building. Its address is the indelicate 52-54 Rear. Neighbors tried to get the structure landmarked with no luck. It, too, is being gutted and demolished at this moment.
WILLIAMSBURG—Spring has come to the Garden of Karl behind 20 Bayard. Well, sort of. The planting in the garden is done, unlike the look we had back in January, but curiously, there were no flowers, at least, not as of a couple of days ago when the photo was taken. A reader emails of the Karl Fischer-designed building's backside: "Maybe they're waiting for people to move in or maybe they just wanted green, but it's weird to see a garden in Spring without flowers." [CurbedWire Inbox]
BROOKLYN—A class action lawsuit was filed today against Brown Harris Stevens for discriminating against families with children looking to rent apartments. Per a press release detailing the suit and the allegations: "In 2007, the Fair Housing Justice Center (FHJC) conducted a testing investigation in response to a complaint made by the named plaintiffs in the lawsuit. The lawsuit alleges that in 2006 and 2007, BHS real estate agents refused to show apartments for rent or to negotiate with Jamie Katz and his wife, Lisa Nocera, because they were expecting and then had a child." The apartments were in Brooklyn Heights and Park Slope.
VILLAGE—Speaking of Karl Fischer, demolition work has started on the site of a Fischer hotel on W. 13th Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. As previously noted, the hotel will rise at 52-54 West 13th Street. It's located across the street from a New School building on a site that was occupied by Taste of Tokyo and La Dolce Vita. Projected completion is 2009. Why should Brooklyn have all the fun? [CurbedWire Inbox]
EVERYWHERE—Sometimes half the fun of writing city government is seeing what kind of form e-mail comes back. Are reader writes: "I wrote the Mayor a letter (an email) via the NYC.gov website regarding my concerns about the housing projects. I expressed my opinion about the obvious drain on resources, and the less than stellar results of this program...I asked whether they have ever considered selling off some, or turning them into co-ops, or something similar. I received a letter a few weeks later indicating that the city is pursuing a number of options regarding housing projects, and that there are some test developments converting to ownership. Go to the website and send an email to the Mayor detailing the same sorts of questions regarding the housing projects. In a few weeks, you will receive the same, or similar, letter, with a list of the housing projects that are now in transition." [CurbedWire Inbox]
It is impossible to get too much Hot Karl, especially if it's the look and feel of the Karl Fischer homestead itself. This month's Real Deal goes inside the Fischer domain for a look around his FiDi apartment in "a small condominium complex on a quiet side street" near South Street Seaport. The man who is rebuilding Williamsburg lives behind "an anonymous glass door that opens onto a corridor leading to a courtyard with a Japanese-style rock garden with a stream of water running through it." He is a man of simple elegance, as "there is nothing about the décor of his seventh-floor penthouse residence that would earn it a photo spread in Architectural Digest." Oh, and Karl shops at Crate & Barrel and drives "a standard Volkswagen."
Living in a construction zone does lead to some questions here and there. This one comes from a spot in Williamsburg on which we've focused from time to time. According to the reader, the scene isn't pretty:
I live on Ainslie and Union in Brooklyn and the construction around my building is ever-present. Having called the city of NY on several occasions about after hours construction, in hopes of getting some relief from the constant drilling, hammering, digging, etc., I have become increasingly frustrated with the virtual impossibility of a resident having any sort of control over the quality of one's home life when this hyper-urban renewal is taking place. Making a complaint, being given a reference number and being told that the EPA and/or dept. of buildings will investigate the issue within 5-7 days is very disheartening. Do you have any advice or information about what can be done by residents who are tired of having their lives disrupted on a constant, seven days a week basis?
For the record, the worker in the photo was part of a crew pounding away at Ainslie and Union around 11AM on Sunday. Considered opinions, advice, commiserations, rants, etc., in the Comments section, please.
· Ask Curbed Archive [Curbed]
The finger-scorching new issue of Vu., New York magazine's occasional real estate supplement, is filled with goodies, including photos of Bond Street developer Adam Gordon's redonk Jane Street townhouse and an examination of fake sexy people in apartment renderings. But our favorite piece is the one where four architects get the chance to come up with something crazy for 417-423 Canal Street, the recently demolished lot at Varick that will have a sculpture garden for a couple years until Hudson Square overlord Trinity Real Estate builds a hotel or office building on the site. A full downtown block! No client! No zoning! No rules! Just check out the thing FLAnk submitted (above)—insane! But either out of generosity or unintentional humor, New York decided to invite along Williamsburg defacer Karl Fischer to the party. Would Hot Karl come up with something to wow us, something that would change our perception of his designs?
Well, the interesting thing about the impending closure of the parking lot on Bedford Ave. and N. 12 Street in Williamsburg was going to be that it will be the site of a new eight-story building with 180 units from the King of Williamsburg, Hot Karl Fischer. Now that that's out of the way, the disappearance of the lot has provoked a Zip Car Crisis. In the last 45 minutes this email from a desperate Zip Car has landed in the inbox several times:
The tsunami wave of development in Williamsburg has claimed its latest victim—Zipcar's beloved Williamsburg lot at North 12th and Bedford. We have just been notified that the lot will be closed April 15th and will metamorphize into yet another luxury condo.
Despite some very loud last-minute opposition to a rezoning of 13 blocks of Williamsburg's Grand Street, the downzone was passed by the City Council yesterday. The measure covers Grand Street from Marcy Avenue (next to the BQE) to Berry Street and limits most new buildings to four-six stories. One of the things that helped speed action on the measure were planned 10 and 15-story Karl Fischer buildings at the corner of Grand Street and Driggs Avenue. Fast work has been going on at one of the sites with demolitions, excavation and a foundation being poured all at the same time, in the hope of slipping in under the old zoning, particularly if opponents had held up the downzoning. There were reports of one or two developers going door to door to rally opposition to the rezoning. Up to 20 possible planned projects might have to be redesigned to meet the new height restrictions. The rezoning also eliminates what opponents call a "much-abused" community facilities provision that allowed construction of bigger buildings in return for what they say was non-community space.
· Grand Street Rezoning Approved [WGPA]
· Building 'Cap' in W'Burg [NYP]
· Opponents: Downzone to Put Burg on 'Teetering Edge of Doom' [Curbed]
The Karl Fischer that we've been watching rise at N. 4 Street and Driggs in the Burg is moving into the marketplace as Nforth, with the slogan "Go Forth." It now has a banner proclaiming it so, although the Nforth website is still only a placeholder and there's no info about it yet. What we do know is the Hot Karl on Driggs has 37 units and will have another Fischer as its immediate neighbor, plus another building going up behind it for fun.
· Nforth [nforth.com]
· Burg Gets Meat in Fischer-Kaufman Sandwich [Curbed]
· The Fischer in the Burg #2: Dark Red & Squat on North 4th [Curbed]
The downzoning of Grand Street and some surround blocks in Williamsburg has moved with lightning speed, mostly in response to two planned Karl Fischer towers. This past weekend, however, some local property owners starting sending out email blasts bout their opposition to the rezoning--primarily that limiting buildings to 4-6 stories will hurt them. The mini-revolt makes this morning's Post, which puts the cost of the rezoning at $120 million. Meanwhile, an email from a new group called the Grand Home and Business Owner's Organization says it will "cost" $400 million, actually.They say the developer of the "Karl Fischer Monster Tower" is "prepared to immediately sign-off on an agreement" limiting the building to six stories without a downzoning. Interestingly, simultaneous demolition, excavation and construction are going on on the Fischer site, indicating that the developer could be involved in a serious game of Beat the Downzone. (Another email says the rezoning "will once again put Williamsburg on the teetering edge" of "neglect, rampant crime, and out and out lawlessness.") A City Council vote on the downzoning, which covers more than 250 properties, could come as early as this week. Stay tuned as to whether the Hot Karl at Grand and Driggs will go to 15 stories or be cut in half or whether doom occurs.
· W'burg Groaning Over Rezoning [NYP]
· Karl Fischer Playing Beat the Downzone on Grand Street? [Curbed]
· Will Burg's Grand Street Rezoning Chop Karl Fischer Towers? [Curbed]
When last we took at look at The Heritage at Park Slope, it was coming along, but still in a fence and scaffold construction phase. That's all in the past now as the Karl Fischer building on Second Street in the Slope is closer to the finish line. Nine of the 14 listings for apartment going up $1M are shown as being in contract. As Karl Fischer buildings go, The Heritage is sort of middle of the road, neither totally bland as some nor as different as others.
· Park Slope's Heritage Shows Its Fischer to the Nabe [Curbed]
· The Heritage at Park Slope [theheritageatparkslope.com]
Last week, after the City Planning Commission voted for a downzoning of Grand Street in Williamsburg that would give a 15-story Karl Fischer "Monster Tower" a serious shave, the ubiquitous architect was quoted in the Brooklyn Paper as saying that the building would be "substantially redesigned" as a result. The implication was that the building couldn't slide in under the old zoning. A tipster emailed to say that maybe it still can because while the old building on the site recently barely disappeared, work is progressing at a lightening pace. In fact, demolition, excavation and foundation work are all going on at the same time. It's significant because if a foundation is completed before the new zoning takes effect then the building can go to 15 stories under the old zoning. Will Hot Karl beat the downzone? Stay tuned.
· Grand Street Rezoning Moving, Karl Fischer Shrinking [Curbed]
· Will Burg's Grand Street Rezoning Chop Karl Fischer Towers? [Curbed]
It looks like that 15-story Karl Fischer building that would go at the corner of Driggs and Grand in the Burg will end up suffering major shrinkage due to the speed at which a city downzone is moving. The downzoning--which covers a 13-block area between Berry Street and the BQE and Metropolitan Avenue and South First Street--passed the City Planning Commission this week and could go the City Council by May. It will limit building height to 50-70 feet. Fischer told the Brooklyn Paper that his 15-story Driggs & Grand Karl may get a lot less hot and will be "sustantially redesigned" as a result of the downzone. No word on the ten-story Fischer across the street, but it would also be due for a serious buzz cut.
· Grand idea, too late [Brooklyn Paper]
· Will Burg's Grand Street Rezoning Chop Karl Fischer Towers? [Curbed]
· Gandar's Getting Goosed by Big Karl Fischer [Curbed]
The steel framework for the Karl Fischer on the long string of construction site also known as Union Avenue in Williamsburg has been going up pretty quickly. And, now that it's mostly in place, it's clear that Hot Karl's 405 Union Avenue is a pretty sizable building, covering about a half block. It stands near a lot of other things that are going up, including the so-called Gateway to Williamsburg, aka the building that will rise behind Kellogg's Diner at Union and Metropolitan. In the meantime, here's looking at that Hot Karl Steel.
· Burg Craned Again as Hard Steel Rises on Union Avenue [Curbed]
Chalk up another milestone for the Roebling Oil Field. Paperwork was filed on Thursday to build a Roebling Oil Building II at 475 Driggs, next to the current Warehouse 11. Rumors of the sale of the Driggs property between N. 11. and N. 10 Street have been around, and a major rat extermination campaign was recently launched, but records don't show a sale. Nonetheless, plans have been filed by developer Isaac Schwartz for another building from Karl Fischer, who also designed the Warehouse 11 building perched atop the decontaminated oil field. Roebling II will be five stories tall, offer 53,591 square feet of space and have 54 apartments. There is no word on whether there will be a third Roebling Oil building on the N. 10 Street side, which would create a full Williamsburg block of Hot Karl.
· No Longer Oozing, Roebling Oil Field's Warehouse 11 on Sale [Curbed]
· Roebling Oil Building's Big Day: It's Warehouse 11 [Curbed]
· Drilling for Oil on N. 11 Street in Williamsburg [Curbed]
The last time we checked in on once-quiet Keap Street in the Burg, just to the east of the BQE, we noted that a good part of the street and surroundings would soon be under construction. We return to have a look at the corner of Hope and Keap Streets where two buildings have gone up. And, they're not just any buildings they are genuine Hot Karl Fischers, which does allow for today's daily dose of Karl. Known as 140 and 156 Hope Street the Fischer Twins are six stories tall and have 29 and 42 units respectively. Sadly, some affordable housing across the street was towed by the Sanitation Department. The buildings are part of the absolutely booming Metropolitan-Union-BQE Triangle, which will be anchored by the Gateway to Williamsburg, not to mention another Karl Fischer at Union and Ainsle.
· Williamsburg Loses Another Unit of Affordable Housing [Curbed]
· New Williamsburg Development Site: All of Keap Street [Curbed]
Greenpoint is getting its biggest Hot Karl Fischer project yet. This 12-story building above will rise on India Street near Franklin. We went looking for it after an email with the subject line "Karl Fischer's Next Finger?" and came upon 194 Franklin Street, which is next to the famous (and troubled) Astral. The new Greenpoint Hot Karl will have 17 condos.
Location: 161 East 110th Street, at Lexington Avenue Size: 68 units Prices: $399,000 to $849,900 Architect: Karl Fischer!!!!!!!!!! Developer: Denali Construction Company Lowdown: Ladies and gentlemen, Karl Fischer has come to Harlem! And he's bringing his red brick and "rusticated base" with him! But in truth, this piece of work is minor Fischer, but it represents an interesting look for East Harlem. The Mirada includes a 24-hour concierge, on-site parking, gym and rooftop terrace, and the kitchens are the GE Profile package. Also, air conditioning for those hot Harlem nights. Or should we say, those Hot Karl nights.
The Mirada
161 East 110th Street, East Harlem Concierge, Hot Karl, Not-Quite-Luxury website, CityRealty
The tall building here is the one that was nicknamed the "Carroll Gardens Monstrosity" a long time ago when the rendering of this Karl Fischer structure on the fringe of the neighborhood started circulating. It is particularly striking when seen from the F Train, from which this photo was taken, or from Hamilton Avenue, for instance, when it was still rising. The 11-story building is on Luquer Street, on a block of three-buildings and it is not to be confused with the Carroll Gardens Hell building. The building to its left in the background, by the way, is the stalled 160 Imlay Street development in Red Hook.
· Trick or Treat #5: Carroll Gardens Karl Fischer Grows [Curbed]
· Development Du Jour: 100 Luquer Street [Curbed]
The latest building from Karl Fischer that will grace Berry Street has been coming up fast at N. 5 Street. Officially known as 154 Berry, it will be one of the new residential buildings on what was a pretty deserted industrial block a few years ago. The six-story building will have 40 units and it's only a few block from another Berry Street Hot Karl, Sevenberry.
How much Hot Karl can you handle? We decided to see how many Karl Fischer buildings we could get in one frame and came up with six, although shooting from the vantage point of McCarren Park to get in Karl Fischer Row seriously upped the total. There's actually a seventh Karl site in the photo, but it's not under construction yet, so we didn't include it. There are several other Karl's in the immediate area, including 64 Bayard, which is under construction, and the lovely 525 Union Avenue, that didn't make it into the frame.
The Powerhouse Condo in LIC, with its copper clad Karl Fischer addition and glass tubes, is doing fine. The adjoining building that once made up half of the complex, not so much. In fact, it is gone, except for a couple of steel beams that have thus far withstood the demolition. The original building that is now home to Hot Karl's handiwork was the Pennsylvania Railroad Power Station. It was designed by McKim, Mead & White and built in 1909.
A building that does not come from Hot Karl Fischer is about to go up a stone's throw from Karl Fischer Row. The Not Karl will go on a huge site at the corner of N. 9 Street and Roebling that's been sitting empty for more than a year, after plans for an Enrique Norten building were dropped. Back in October, a reader commented that something different was "coming real soon." Well, revised plans were submitted for a six-story building with 147 units designed by Robert Laudenschlager of Chicago's SLCE Architects, who are behind a boat load of buildings in Manhattan, including this specimen on West Broadway and the work going on next to the Leaning Tower of Broadway. Permits for preliminary work have been issued. Now, back to Hot Karl, who may have lost 33 Roebling to SLCE, but is doing 235 N. 9, right next door. Hot Karl's half of the block will be a five-story building with 91 units. A small army of workers was out on the roof over the weekend doing something that looked like asbestos removal.
· Rumblings & Bumblings Responses: Canal Office Building Speculation, Let's Shvo in Williamsburg? [Curbed]
· New Burg Development & Something in the Air on Roebling [Gowanus Lounge]
Architect Karl Fischer's design for a big and glassy 16-story hotel on a quiet block of 13th Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues has—surprise!—been met with some resistance by neighbors. Apparently, behind 52-54 13th Street is a four-story Federal building that dates back to the 1790s. The Villager reports that the folks who live in the 16-story building right behind it on West 12th Street would like to see the Federal building spared (and save their uptown views in the process), but so far the LPC has remained silent on the matter. The residents may try to buy the property themselves, because the Keystone Group has yet to close on the deal. Also, Keystone filed the hotel plans with the Department of Buildings, but the application hasn't been accepted. Oh, and one more thing: Keystone has not acquired the necessary air rights from the 13th Street Repertory Theater next door, and the owner claims she's not selling. A company should meet certain benchmarks before posting a crazy rendering on its website and sending the neighborhood into a tizzy, no? Actually, wait, then what would we talk about?
· N’bors howl over hotel on hidden historic site [Villager]
· Revealed #2: Hot Karl Has Plans for 13th Street [Curbed]
While the Luminous (aka the Scarano Finger and the Finger of Richardson) is having open houses and slowly getting the final touches, the Hot Karl Finger (aka the Finger of Humboldt or the Hot Finger, if you will) is getting bricked up and moving along nicely. As an important aside, the sneaker collection hanging from the wires at Humboldt and Richardson appears to be growing nicely too.
Here's a panorama of the huge demolition site on N. 9th and N. 10th Street in Williamsburg between Driggs and Roebling. Our photographer around town, Will Femia, has been shooting pics here because he's fascinated by that one holdout building amid the destruction, which is the Sugarland club (and former Capone's). The site will hold a seven-story building with 173 condos from the workshop of...huge drum roll...pretend to be stunned...Hot Karl Fischer. Seriously. The structure in the distance behind the plywood fence is another Fischer. Somebody please wake us up when it's over and a different arch
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Living in a construction zone does lead to some questions here and there. This one comes from a spot in Williamsburg on which we've focused from 
Architect Karl Fischer's design for a 
