135 Kent Avenue in Williamsburg feels like a last-of-its-kind building. Protected under New York City’s Loft Law, it has attracted tenants who have stayed for years, some of whom have been there since the residential space opened in 2003. However, tenants say their building’s quality of life has deteriorated since Brooklyn-based real estate firm Double U Development purchased the site in 2021. In interviews with Greenpointers, they characterize their ownership of 135 Kent Avenue as…
Tenants at 135 Kent Avenue Say Building’s Ownership Has Been Negligent
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My landlord did the same exact thing a few years ago when he “renovated” a raw sixth unit in our 6 unit building in Greenpoint. Clouds of white dust all over the place, construction materials on every landing, the noise levels through the roof cuz his workers were a sloppy mess, and the job most definitely wasn’t done to code … every day for six months we went through this. Now we deal with scaffolding up at the building six months of every year because the exterior is being “redone.” I suspect lots of tenants in the Greenpoint/Williamsburg area in older buildings are going to be subject to this more and more often as landlords eye a quick, lucrative sale of classic older buildings to international developers wanting to plant high rises everywhere – here in N. Greenpoint you pay $5200/month for a tiny white box in a “luxury” building, like living in a luxury hotel. The original character of these neighborhoods is disappearing very, very quickly and it’s heartbreaking.