Developer Seeks to Build 1,500 Homes on Brooklyn Waterfront

A developer is seeking approval to build a massive mixed-use development along the waterfront in Brooklyn’s Gravesend neighborhood.

Robert Konig, through the entity Westshore Views LLC, filed a rezoning application this week with the New York City Department of City Planning to build a 1.6 million-square-foot project on the 737,117-square-foot development site at 4302 Westshore Avenue, which is currently being used for car storage.

The project, which requires zoning approval from the city, would include 24 townhouses and 1,457 residential units across two high-rise buildings — approximately 437 of which would be affordable, the filing said.

The development would also comprise 10,448 square feet of retail space, and 80,034 square feet of community facility space, approximately 75,000 square feet of which would be used for a 528-seat school. Plans also call for 143,190 square feet of public open space, including a 74,930-square-foot public waterfront area, according to the filing. Konig also wants to build a 994-car parking lot and a 48-slip marina for residents.

If the city’s School Construction Authority does not approve the site for a public school, Konig plans to use the space for a private school or residential uses, the filing said.

“Overall, the applicant intends for the proposed project to be based on resiliency features that safely allow the siting of a residential community on the underutilized development site,” Konig wrote in his application.

Konig, who has owned the Gravesend land through a separate entity since 2012, could not be reached for further comment.

The developer’s proposed zoning changes as part of the project include closing and reducing a portion of Bay 44th Street, reducing the width of Westshore Avenue, and renaming Westshore Avenue as a continuation of Bay 43rd Street, according to the filing.

The parcels of land involved in the development are close to Calvert Vaux Park, the Verrazano Sports Complex and the Block Institute of Brooklyn, a nonprofit dedicated to improving quality of life for those with disabilities. The site is also surrounded by manufacturing facilities.

If approved, Konig’s project would be one of the largest developments planned for Brooklyn, following BFC Partners’ three-building project in Coney Island comprising 1,242 homes.

Isabelle Durso can be reached at idurso@commercialobserver.com.