Three Takeaways from LCOR, Cirrus MOU for Pacific Park
The MOU has landed.
Empire State Development, LCOR and Cirrus Real Estate Partners on Friday released the memorandum of understanding for their long-delayed buildout of Pacific Park, the next six-site phase of a megadevelopment slated to deck over the Atlantic Terminal railyard in Brooklyn.
The deal struck between the developers’ joint venture and the state last month, which is still nonbinding, outlines how the next phase of the beleaguered project plans to proceed. The project’s two-decade track record of foreclosures, missed deadlines and opaque processes raised concerns from community groups and lawmakers calling for the developers to share the MOU publicly, with EDC heeding the call after two weeks by publishing the document on its website.
Greatest hits include long-awaited moves like constructing the $350 million platform over the railyard, along with new details regarding deadlines for the project to reach key milestones or pay extension fees ranging from $500,000 to $1 million. Here are three key takeaways from the MOU.
Bigger footprint
The project’s overall size across its first- and second-phase buildings increased to 9.6 million square feet and 8,800 units, up from its previous target of 8 million and 6,430 units. This means building heights across the megadevelopment will increase under the terms of the MOU, including a marked increase from 250 to 799 feet tall for one “solid ground site” that could potentially contain a hotel, located at the intersection of Flatbush and Fourth Avenues, across from the Barclays Center.
The average height across the buildings slated for construction over the railyard is also set to increase, assuming the state can secure another $175 million beyond the already appropriated amount to fund the platform itself. The platform’s tallest building under the proposal would be 684 feet, while its shortest on the same block would come in at 452 feet under the MOU proposal.
If Site 5 does utilize the hotel option, the six new buildings will offer 5,420 residential units overall, down from the 5,600 total without the hotel. Under the no-hotel option, some 4,600 units would be rentals, with 1,242 set aside as affordable units and 1000 condos, the MOU shows in an example housing program table.
Solid ground construction
Doubling the height for the Site 5 building is paired with the conversion of one proposed building originally slated for the platform into eight acres of dedicated open space. In a previous presentation on the second phase proposal, ESD framed the move to solid ground as a way to avoid long spans at merging tracks undergirding the platform.
The solid ground sites will receive priority in the construction process to accelerate the delivery of the residential units and income-restricted housing, while allowing for technical constraints on the platform locations and the complex track configurations below, the MOU notes.
New deadlines, or penalties
The MOU sets out a few milestones for the new phase of the project, targeting the end of 2032 as a deadline for the completion of its first platform over the railyard, with a one-year extension available if developers make a $500,000 contribution to the affordable housing trust fund and ESD; a second yearlong extension is also available in exchange for a $1 million contribution. Further extensions may be available at ESD’s discretion, the MOU says, echoing Gov. Kathy Hochul’s choice to waive collection of $5.25 million in fines former developer Greenland USA owed for missing deadlines on affordable housing delivery.
The solid-ground Site 5 building and all three buildings proposed for construction on the first platform segment known as Block 1120 are aiming for completion by the end of 2037, with the same potential extension options. The remaining structures planned for the next platform segment, Block 1121, aim for completion by the end of 2040 if a funding agreement has been executed for that parcel, or by 2042 regardless of whether that funding has been secured.
What we’re thinking about: Does this iteration of the Pacific Park (fka Atlantic Yards) project have a better chance to proceed smoothly and without more delays? Or will decking over the rail yard pose more hurdles that could stall the project further? Let me know your guess at ben.miller@therealdeal.com.
A thing we’ve learned: You can’t always get what you want. But in New York City, if you wait long enough, you usually can. As apps like Too Good To Go have worked to eliminate food waste by selling a restaurant’s day-end leftovers at reduced prices, Japanese grocery stores have started selling sushi for half off after 8 p.m., and New Yorkers are willing to wait. Some have started lining up as early as 7:40 p.m. to get their pick of the litter at their local Japanese grocer.
— Spencer Davis
Elsewhere…
— New York City officials admitted that they mistakenly sent letters to almost 2,000 homeowners threatening them with Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s pied-à-terre tax, The City Reporter writes. Of the roughly 17,000 homeowners who received the letters, over 4,000 have already contested the designation of their properties as second homes worth more than $5 million.
— Luigi Mangione pleaded guilty Friday to killing United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson in New York City in 2024, the New York Times reports. Federal prosecutors said they would seek the maximum sentence of life in prison when Mangione is sentenced in December.
— New York City Public Schools will place liaisons in all of its school buildings to address students playing hooky, K-12 Dive reports. The change settles a class action lawsuit filed in October 2024 by four students with disabilities who said the school district had no system in place to prevent students from avoiding school. The practice disproportionately affects students with social or emotional disabilities and has skyrocketed since the COVID-19 pandemic.
— Spencer Davis
Closing time
Residential: The most expensive residential sale recorded Friday was $6.4 million for a 2,631-square-foot condominium at 30 Park Place in Tribeca. Michael and Kimberly Reed with Brown Harris Stevens had the listing. The unit previously sold for $8 million in December 2018.
Commercial: The top commercial transaction recorded today was $8.4 million for Bowery Grand Hotel at 143 Bowery in the Lower East Side. The 30-key hotel is 12,140 square feet.
New to the Market: The highest price for a residential property hitting the market was $30 million for a 6,320-square-foot, sponsor-unit at 555 West 22nd Street in Chelsea. Corcoran Sunshine has the listing.
