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Last night developer William Stein presented revamped plans for 360 Smith Street, a project that’s played a big role in prompting activists to call for a 50-foot building height in all of Carroll Gardens. Although Stein still intends to build a 70-foot building, he announced that he’d parted ways with architect Robert Scarano and replaced him with Armand Quadrini of KSQ Architects (the Scarano separation was amicable, according to Stein). Stein said he believes the new plans achieve a balance that truly reflects what all of us want. Then came the renderings. The 49-unit condo is now being dubbed The Oliver House (after Stein’s late father), and Quadrini, who was in attendance and explained how they tried to come up with a contextual design, said it’s supposed to look like three buildings put together. As rendered above and on the jump, two of those buildings are brownstone-esque, and the third is tall and glassy, with no setbacks. While there seemed to be general consensus among the 70-some-odd attendees that the new design was loads better than prior attempts (some called the last plans a bit South Beach), many community members dissed the glass section slated for the corner of the building. This piece of glass just looks like sort of medical building, one person remarked. Stein repeatedly said that he wasn’t deaf to the criticisms about the glass section, and Quadrini emphasized that the designs for the building weren’t final. No word on when construction will actually begin.
The New 360 Smith Street: Better, Except For That Glass Tower! [PMFA]
Scarano Booted From Heavy Metal Job [GL]
Scarano Booted from Smith Street ‘Heavy Metal’ Job [Curbed]
Heavy Metal Architect Axed [NY Post]
360 Smith Developer Tries to Appease Carroll Gardens [Brownstoner]
Calls for Reining in Development at Carroll Gardens Meeting [Brownstoner] GMAP
360 Smith: Update and Review of New Plans [Brownstoner]

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What's Your Take? Leave a Comment

  1. I find it incredibly annoying that people pass up perfectly fine other neighborhoods, insist on buying somewhere on the F line, then start whining about their commute and insisting the F line be improved before any other line in Brooklyn when there’s no reason why and the F is not as crowded as other trains. SO SO SO entitled.

    If you want a faster commute, don’t buy on the F! And if you do, just DEAL. It was your choice to buy where you did.

    The 2/3 line is so crowded many times I have had to stand there and wait for one, two, three trains to arrive before being able to squeeze myself on board. It’s awful.

  2. Thank you guest 3:31 for finally pointing out the truth about the F and G capacity utilization. They are in the lower quintile of crowded trains in NYC. Still, the same politicians who shill for downzoning actually want to expand service on the F and G because they are so overcrowded. I’m for expanding the entire mass transit system but that won’t happen without big capital dollars, and lots of future customers. Customers that down-zoning will rob and mortgage recording tax dollars that will be capped by the same downzoning.

    Face it the NIMBYs really don’t need any stinking facts about mass transit, taxes, rents or property values. Just keep the new people out. Oh yeah, screw the factories too, forget about that “context” in this neighborhood.