An unnamed developer offered late last year to buy a portion of the Whitman Owners Corporation’s property, aka 75 Henry Street, on which the Park Plaza Diner and the commercial spaces on the north side of Pineapple Walk are located. The developer is seeking to build a 40-story luxury residential condominium tower and new retail spaces.
The developer’s offer – more than $75 million – would financially benefit the individual coop shareholders of 75 Henry Street and the Whitman Corporation’s capital reserves. The shareholders will meet on January 11th to discuss the offer prior to the shareholders’ vote on the 15th.
According to a letter sent by the board of the adjacent Cadman Towers (101 Clark Street and 10 Clinton Street) to the 75 Henry Street shareholders, the new tower would block the views of many of Cadman Towers’ residents, overwhelm the neighborhood’s subways, school and other municipal services due to the estimated 400 new units, add 200 or more cars to local streets, and result in the loss of several locally owned businesses that have served the community for many years. Additionally, it also expressed concern that a “yes” vote by Whitman shareholders would open the possibility of further development on the larger plot owned by the Whitman Corp. now occupied by the townhouses and parking lot on Henry Street just north of the existing 75 Henry Street building.
The larger site on which 75 Henry Street sits, which also includes 140 Cadman Plaza West, 101 Clark Street, and 10 Clinton Street, were completed in the early 1970s to provide affordable housing for the neighborhood under the Mitchell Lama Program. The Brooklyn Heights Association states that the sale of the Whitman property would be contrary to the program’s original intention by the addition of a luxury residential tower that would provide no benefits to the larger community.
