Jul 12, 2016 3 min read Central Brooklyn

Development Roundup: 3 Apartment Buildings And 1 School Rising In Ditmas Park

510 Coney Island Avenue, rendering by Purcell Architects (Courtesy of YIMBY) — PS/IS 338 at 510 Coney Island Avenue, rendering by Purcell Architects (Courtesy of Dept. of Education)

At least 130 new apartments are moving in to Ditmas Park and Kensington, along with 757 seats in the new district 22 school, PS/IS 338 — and lately we’ve been craning our necks to gaze up at all the construction. Instead, here’s a quick roundup of what we’ve spotted, both from a birds-eye view and a hyper-local angle.

#1. 510 Coney Island Avenue. The five-story, 757-seat PS/IS 338 school is rising fast at 510 Coney Island Avenue, between Turner Place and Hinckley Place. According to the NYC School Construction Authority, the school will include two pre-K, three kindergarten, and 29 standard classrooms — in addition to a cafeteria and kitchen; a library; a gymnasium; a “gymatorium,” or a gym and auditorium space combined; outdoor recreation space; a medical suite; and a community room. Some district 22 parents are pleased, while others launched a petition last month to limit the enrollment to middle school only.

Community leaders shoveled the first mound of dirt on this site in 2015, and construction is expected to finish by September 2017. Here’s what it looks like now:

#2. 531 Coney Island Avenue. Progress is being made at the six-story apartment building directly across from the new school, 531 Coney Island Avenue at the corner of Hinckley Place, in the space that neighbors once called “the pit of despair”. According to YIMBY, construction on this building began in 2007 but was stalled in 2011, likely due to the recession. The building will hold 58 apartments with nearly 40,000 total square feet, as well as about 4,000 square feet of retail space on the ground floor. There are also plans for 29 parking spots, a roof deck, bike storage, and laundry. Here’s what it looks like now:

#3. 631 East 18th Street. Another six-story apartment building is underway at 631 East 18th Street between Newkirk and Foster Avenues, to hold 35 apartments spread across almost 24,000 square feet, according to Yimby. This new building replaces a lone victorian home that stood on the corner until 2015. The lot was rezoned to R7A in 2009, which allows for seven or eight story apartment buildings — in stark contrast to the surrounding Ditmas Park Historic District, which preserves six blocks within Dorchester Avenue, Ocean Avenue, Newkirk Avenue and East 16th Street. According to DOB records, the building is owned by 631 E 18th Street, LLC, which bought the property in 2015 for $3 million. Here’s what it looks like now:

4. We spotted a large crane pouring concrete to top off a new, eight-story apartment building at 323 East 19th Street, between Cortelyou and Dorchester Roads, where two single family homes once nestled.

323 East 19th street (Screenshot via Google Maps)

The new 38-unit rental building is slated to include more than 26,000 square feet of residential space, reported Yimby.

According to DOB permits, the site’s architect is Charles Mallea’s Manhattan-based M Architecture and the developer is Borough Park-based Barry Farkas, of Ditmas Park Lofts LLC.

Here’s what it looks like now:

What do you think about these developments in Ditmas Park and Kensington, where low density zoning is increasingly being replaced with multi-story apartment complexes? What will these new apartments, and new school, mean for the neighborhood? Leave your comments below.