The Long-Stalled 'Styrofoam' House On DeGraw Street May Get Completed After All

The 337 DeGraw Street site in 2010

The residential project at 337 DeGraw Street has been stalled for quite a few years now and many in Carroll Gardens have wondered when it would be completed. Nicknamed the 'styrofoam' building because of the Insulating Concrete Forms used in its construction,  construction halted at the site years ago.

A one-story garage once stood on this spot, but it was demolished to make way for a 40 feet high, 4 story, 4 unit townhouse.  Permits were first approved by the NYC Department of Buildings in 2009.
However, construction fences were  only erected in 2011 and when the actual construction actually began, it moved forward slowly. Along the way, the site collected several stop-work orders and violations.  Construction stopped altogether a few years ago.

Now, it would appear that the residential building will be completed after all. Just recently, a brand new rendering has been attached to the construction fence.  A quick check on the DoB website shows that the violations have been resolved and the latest full stop work order , issued in 2014, was lifted at the beginning of August 2015.

The original 2009 construction permits have also been re-issued this past month. The application shows the same owner as before, but the contractor is now Leeco Construction Corporation of Brooklyn.

According to Wikipedia, the insulating Concrete Forms used for this construction is "a system of formwork for reinforced concrete usually made with a rigid thermal insulation that stays in place as a permanent interior and exterior substrate for walls, floors, and roofs."
This construction system has not been widely used in Carroll Gardens or Brooklyn.

Interestingly, the original house at #337 DeGraw was once the home of John Dwyer "a rough, well known to police" who murdered someone with a billiard cue in a bar on Atlantic Avenue in 1880. Read more about it in this 1880's article from the New York Times Archive.

Read entire article here
What do you think about the new building?  Glad to see construction move forward?

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Checking In On The Long Stalled Construction Site At 337 DeGraw Street

The 337 DeGraw Street site in 2010

The construction site in 2011

The construction site as it looks today.

No residential block in Carroll Gardens seems to be undergoing as much change as DeGraw Street between between Court Street and Smith Street.  Recently, PMFA checked the progress of some of the projects currently underway or just completed.  First, there is the brick townhouse going up at #350, which has been plagued by violations and stop work orders. Then there is the completed modern dark brick townhouse at # 325. Just last week, we wrote about #331, a rather contextual alteration from a two-family to a three-family home.

The most unusual construction project on this block by far is the 'styrofoam house' at #337.  Once the site of a one-story garage, permits for a new 4 story, 4 unit building were first approved by the NYC Department of Buildings in 2009.  It was only in 2011 that construction fences were erected  and construction began.
Progress on the new building has stopped for quite a while now. A full stop work order was issued by DoB in February 2014 and the Borough Commissioner revoked the application "due to contractor withdrawal."  At the time, it was noted that only 35% of the work had been completed.  
Since then,  a partial permit was re-issued in October 2014.

The original architectural firm, Darrin Krumpus of Boro Architects, is still listed on the permit.

The 'styrofoam' blocks that were used to build the structure are actually Insulating Concrete Forms, which, according to Wikipedia is "a system of formwork for reinforced concrete usually made with a rigid thermal insulation that stays in place as a permanent interior and exterior substrate for walls, floors, and roofs."
This construction system is not widely seen here in Carroll Gardens.

It may yet be a while before this new building is completed.


Interestingly, the original house at #337 DeGraw was once the home of John Dwyer "a rough, well known to police" who murdered someone with a billiard cue in a bar on Atlantic Avenue in 1880. Read more about it in this 1880's article from the New York Times Archive.

Read entire article here






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New 4-Story Building For Corner Of Smith And DeGraw

A new 4 story, 4 unit building is planned for the corner of Smith and DeGraw Streets. The architect for the new construction at 337 DeGraw Street is Darris Krumpus of Borough Architects and the contractor is Jepol Construction of Woodside.

The building will be 60 feet wide and will have 4 units. No mention of a commercial space at ground level.

An old garage that once stood on one part of the lot at 337 DeGraw has been taken down a while ago and in June 2010, the side lot windows of the house next door were cinder-blocked off.

As the heavy construction equipment and new fence would indicate, construction will soon start in ernest.

A quick glance at Borough Architects' web site would indicate that the new building will most probably sport lots of glass.

Thanks to the 2010 Carroll Gardens Contextual re-zoning, there is a 50 foot height limit on the new construction.

Related Reading:

Once A Garage, Now New Building Coming To #337 DeGraw Street

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Once A Garage, Now New Building Coming To #337 DeGraw Street

A new building is in the works for # 337 DeGraw Street, near the corner of Smith Street. A few months back, the two-car garage at that location was demolished in advance of the construction.

From what I can interpret from the Department of Buildings permit, a 50' high, four story/ four apartment house will be built on the site.
The architect for this project is Darrin Krumpus of Boro Architects and construction will be done by N's Construction, Inc.
The side lot windows of the residence next door at # 335 have already been cinder-blocked.

A quick look at Architecht Krumpus' web site would suggest that the new building will most probably be one of these non-contextual glass boxes.
At least we can hope that the lot will lose its curb cut.
No work yet on the neighboring corner lot on Smith Street.

Interestingly, the original house at #337 DeGraw was once the home of John Dwyer "a rough, well known to police" who murdered someone with a billiard cue in a bar on Atlantic Avenue in 1880. Read more about it in this 1880's article from the New York Times Archive.

From The New York Times,

October 5, 1880

Read entire article here

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