Planned Building at 30 Henry Will Have a Waterfall

By on December 1, 2011 9:46 am in Development, Landmark Preservation, Real Estate

The Brooklyn Eagle reports today on plans by the Fortis Group for the paper’s former headquarters at 30 Henry Street. In its original piece about a proposed condo on there, the paper reported that the new building would be 65 feet high, 15 feet over what is allowed in our landmark district. However, the BHA’s Judy Stanton, who has seen the plans, told BHB last weekthat the proposal was a 50 foot structure. The Eagle’s report today includes a similar statement from Stanton. The proposal was approved by CB2’s Land Use Committee on 11/16 and will be presented to the full board on 12/14.

But what new info did we learn from today’s report? THERE’LL BE A WATERFALL.

Brooklyn Eagle: According to Perris, BKSK architect Stephen Burns made the presentation to the Land Use Committee. Citing the committee minutes, he said there will be accessible underground parking with the parking entrance slightly sloping down.

The layout of the building will consist of floors two to four with one layout — some units containing 10-inch balconies for flower boxes and casement windows — and a separate layout for the top floor penthouse.

Burns also told committee members that the entranceway into the building will be through a covered passageway that leads directly to a courtyard. The courtyard will have a waterfall that is visible from the entrance, according to the Land Use Committee minutes.

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  • nabeguy

    Wow, a waterfall. That should make the rats that come out of the 20 Henry Street site very happy.

  • Robert Perris

    The timeframe for responding to Landmarks Preservation Commission applications is generally too short to allow applications to be referred to Community Board 2. On Monday, the community board’s Executive Committee reviewed the Land Use Committee’s recommendation (9-3-0), ratifying it by a vote of six in favor, two opposed, no abstentions (6-2-0).

    Who can name that tune?
    “Waterfall
    Nothing can harm me at all
    My worries seem so very small
    With my waterfall”

  • stuart

    The developer’s name is “Fortis Manor”.
    The 50-foot height limit precludes any sort of proper architectural statement on that prominent corner site. Therefore the new building will be just a blah background thing like the dumpy tenements next door.
    It really ought to be the same height as the Mason Mints building across the street. The pairing would have made a nice gateway to the district.

  • Cranberry Beret

    High is not always best. There used to be a lovely and distinctive frame building on that corner. That’s not that coming back but 50 feet high is plenty tall to do something interesting if the architect is allowed to use his imagination instead of maximizing (or exceeding) the allowable floor area.

  • David on Middagh

    Parthenon, 45′ high.

  • nabeguy

    Per CB, for your edification:

    http://tinyurl.com/7uz4e7w