Newmark Knight Frank Residential Construction completes $175m conversion

Newmark Knight Frank Residential Construction Services has completed work on the $175 million conversion of the former warehouse at 360 Furman St. to luxury condominiums, now called One Brooklyn Bridge Park. The project, which took two and a half years to build, has turned the 1.1 million s/f building into 438 apartments ranging from 588 s/f studios up to units of nearly 10,000 s/f. "I'm told that this is the largest conversion from commercial to residential ever in Brooklyn," said Michael Siciliani, president of the New York-based Newmark Knight Frank Residential Construction Services. "The project involved an extensive structural reconfiguration of the property and created unique high-end luxury apartments with spectacular skyline views. Many units have terraces, cabanas and fireplaces." Part of the structural reconfiguration involved adding some height to the building. "It was originally a 12-story building and we added two floors," Siciliani said. "Also, the original staircase locations were at the corners of the H-shaped building. We removed the reinforced concrete stairs, relocated them to the interior and recaptured all the corner floor area with floor-to-ceiling glass walls." Built in 1929, 360 Furman St. had served as a distribution center for the Jehovah's Witnesses. Developer RAL Companies and Affiliates acquired the property in 2004 from that group for $205 million. "We have collaborated with this developer successfully at such other high-end luxury properties as 270 Broadway, 420 West 25th St. and 1474 Third Ave. in Manhattan," Siciliani said. The 438 units offer a combination of loft apartments, townhouses and penthouses, many of which feature the building's original columns. One Brooklyn Bridge Park also offers 70,000 s/f of onsite retail space, a residents-only recreational facility, 7,000 s/f of landscaped gardens, an indoor virtual golf driving range, and an on-site valet and concierge. There are even 132 reserved parking spaces for sale within the 500-car parking facility. One Brooklyn Bridge Park takes its name from the under-construction waterfront park surrounding it in Brooklyn Heights. The 85-acre park stretches 1.3 miles along the borough's East River waterfront, and its initial portion is slated for completion later this year. Richard Ramos, AIA served as project executive for the conversion, and Carlos Huezo was project manager. Both are long-time employees of Newmark Knight Frank Residential Construction. Vincent Cangelosi of Creative Design Associates is the architect.