The city of New York approved the development of Light Bridges, a 330,000 sq. ft. mixed use condominium/retail complex in Brooklyn’s DUMBO (Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass) neighborhood.
The project is being developed by partners Cara Development and Jeffrey M. Brown Associates in Brooklyn. "Now is the time for the project, even though the economy isn’t the greatest," says Charlie Cara, president of Cara Development. He says the project is about two years away from completion, so he hopes the economy will be more favorable when the building is ready for occupancy.
Cara has been developing projects in the DUMBO neighborhood for 18 years, and was one of the first to convert an industrial building into loft apartments in the fashionable neighborhood shielded by the Manhattan and Brooklyn bridges.
Light Bridges will offer between 135 and 170 luxury condominiums on top of commercial and retail space. New York-based architecture firm ShoP/Sharples Holden Pasquarelli is designing the building and will occupy a 35,000 sq. ft. site on the Brooklyn waterfront.
"I had purchased this property quite a long time ago," Cara says. "Finding the right building to build on it was quite a challenge. I wanted something different."