By: Kendal Gordon
Last month’s big story was speed. This month, the picture is getting clearer: the city is moving faster on approvals, while developers keep building at a smaller scale.
I spent a day at TerraCRG’s Only Brooklyn conference hearing from developers, lenders and city officials, and their takeaways line up with the news below. Here’s what it means for owners in Northwest Brooklyn.
Notes from the Room: Only Brooklyn
Deputy Mayor for Housing and Planning Leila Bozorg laid out the city’s plan to speed up housing on public land. Her office oversees LIFT, which reviews city-owned and underused land for affordable housing, with a goal of at least 25,000 new homes over ten years.
In July, the city launched the LIFT Tracker, a public map of more than 100 city-owned properties that could hold over 50,000 affordable homes. LIFT works alongside the SPEED Task Force and the Neighborhood Builders Fast Track program, which aim to shorten pre-development and review timelines. Bozorg said the goal is to cut up to two years off the process.
- 50,000+ homes on the LIFT Tracker
- Up to 2 years in targeted time savings
A few other themes came up repeatedly:
- Demand isn’t the issue. In Gowanus, Nevins Landing, developed by Charney Companies and Tavros, was reportedly a quarter leased two weeks after launching.
- Boutique condos fit brownstone Brooklyn. Developers described condo projects under 100 units, with flexible layouts, as the format that works in Park Slope and nearby neighborhoods.
- Capital is selective. Lenders said multifamily financing is harder to secure, with insurance costs roughly doubling in three years. Projects with an affordable component are finding capital more easily.
Kendal’s Take: The city’s land will mostly go to affordable housing developers, so privately owned sites remain what market-rate builders compete for. Faster reviews help everyone, and well-located sites with a clear zoning story are the ones attracting buyers right now.
ELURP Rules Are Final: What Changed
Last month, we shared a checklist for the city’s new 90-day rezoning process. The City Planning Commission has now adopted the final rules, and the three tests hold: your site must already be zoned R6 or higher, the rezoning can add no more than 30% residential floor area, and if commercial or industrial uses aren’t allowed today, any new commercial or industrial space is capped at 2 FAR.
The final rules add a few details worth knowing:
- An area can’t use ELURP if any part of it went through ELURP in the prior 10 years.
- Rezonings that require a full environmental impact statement aren’t eligible.
- Application fees match the existing ULURP schedule.
Kendal’s Take: The 10-year rule means each area effectively gets one ELURP rezoning per decade, so it’s worth getting the scope right the first time. If your site is R6 or higher, I can model what a 30% increase in floor area would add.
Fulton Street’s Next Chapter
At Only Brooklyn, United American Land unveiled plans for BKX, a five-story, 440,000 SF entertainment complex at the former Macy’s building, 422 Fulton Street. It’s designed by the architect behind the Sphere in Las Vegas. Panelists described Fulton Street as being in a pre-development phase, with BKX positioned as a family entertainment anchor rather than traditional retail.
A few blocks away, the 240 Nassau Street rezoning went before the Borough President on October 14. It proposes 1,502 apartments (302 affordable), a new public school and public open space.
- 440,000 SF at BKX, 422 Fulton Street
- 1,502 apartments proposed at 240 Nassau Street
Kendal’s Take: A destination anchor plus thousands of new residents is a strong recipe for rising land values. Owners near Fulton Street have the most leverage during this pre-development stage, before the new projects are built.
Why 99 Units Keeps Winning
Developers are still steering clear of 485-x projects with 100 or more units. Of 312 registrations through April, only three topped 100 units, and the median was 24. Panelists at Only Brooklyn called the workaround inefficient: building three 99-unit buildings instead of one larger one adds cost, and higher wage requirements remain the main obstacle.
- 3 of 312 485-x projects over 100 units
- 24 median units per project
Kendal’s Take: Until 485-x is reformed, buyers will keep pricing sites around what fits under 100 units. A lot that comfortably fits 40 to 99 units is still the sweet spot, and larger sites are often valued as if they’ll be split into multiple smaller buildings.
Construction Updates
Breaking Ground: 108 Fifth Avenue, Park Slope
A six-story mixed-use residential building at the corner of Fifth Avenue and Baltic Street, developed under ONE BALTIC LLC, with an undisclosed number of condos. The 2,333 SF property last sold for $3.391 million in December 2025.
Under Construction: 175 Third Street, Gowanus
Earthwork has begun on a 27-story mixed-use tower in the Gowanus Wharf development, designed by Bjarke Ingels Group and dencityworks and developed by Charney Companies and Tavros. More than 1,000 units, 250 of them affordable, plus a 28,000 SF public waterfront esplanade by Field Operations. A groundbreaking ceremony was held recently.
Permits Filed: 238 22nd Street, South Slope
Permits filed for an eight-story, 85-foot mixed-use building with 27,152 SF of residential space and 39 residences, most likely rentals based on the 696 SF average unit size. Andrew Moutzouroulias of 242 Greenwood Terrace LLC is listed as the owner.
Development Site Sales
- 441 Prospect Avenue, South Slope (Oct 2026): $55.0M, ~$251/BSF. Goose Property Management (Prospect Ave Holdings LLC) bought from Arrow Linen Supply Co Inc. Goose filed plans in July for four ten-story, 99-unit buildings at 447, 449, 469 and 467 Rear Prospect Avenue.
- 226 Underhill Avenue, Prospect Heights (Oct 2026): $2.475M, $268/BSF. Development opportunity on a 1,535 SF lot with approximately 9,241 buildable SF. Approved architectural plans for a 6-story, 6-unit condo development with approximately 7,500 net sellable SF.
- 395 Manhattan Avenue, Williamsburg (Oct 2026): $2.4M, $526/BSF. Blue Sky Builders bought the six-unit residential walkup for ground-up development. The property has 3,750 SF of built space and 806 SF of additional air rights, for 4,556 buildable SF total.
Source: public reports. Price per BSF based on reported buildable area. Transactions not brokered by Landair.
Wondering what ELURP or a 99-unit plan could mean for your site? Submit your site and I’ll run the numbers.
Kendal Gordon
Senior Associate, Landair Advisors
Kendal Gordon is a Senior Associate at Landair Advisors, specializing in the sale of development sites and land throughout Northwest Brooklyn.
Prior to joining Landair, Kendal worked at BKREA, where she focused on New York City development sites, air rights, and owner-user properties. Her experience at BKREA further developed her interest in investment sales and her passion for New York City commercial real estate.
Kendal earned a B.S. in Business Administration with a concentration in Entrepreneurship from Marist University. Her passion for commercial real estate comes from the opportunity to build relationships, learn the market, and work closely with owners and developers.
Cell: (201) 315-4477 | Office: (646) 559-4700 | kg@landairnyc.com
Landair Advisors | 221 W 37th Street, New York, NY 10018 | (646) 559-4700
Information is from public reports and the TerraCRG Only Brooklyn conference and is believed reliable but not guaranteed. Transactions not brokered by Landair.
