The selling of 670 Pacific Street: neighbors downplayed; rent levels not far off "affordable"

664 Pacific, from Dean Street (arrow added);
670 Pacific would be behind this view

Some interesting things should be noted about 670 Pacific Street, the new 8-story, 86-unit luxury rental building sandwiched between the Newswalk condo building and the yet-to-be-built 664 Pacific (aka B15 site) on Pacific between Sixth and Carlton avenues:

• the building's renderings  portray it as the tallest residential building around, rather than dwarfed by Newswalk and (under-construction Pacific Park towers
• the market-rate rents are not so far off the affordable rents for the most expensive subsidized units in the first Pacific Park building
• it's using pre-rusted metal for an exterior features, which suggests the arena's style has some influence

The renderings

The renderings below of 670 Pacific  show only the smallest section of Newswalk, to the left (east) and a now-demolished grey industrial building to the right (west).

Today, there's a hole in the ground, a four-year construction process, and a planned 27-story apartment tower with a middle-school (above right). More importantly, there are two much larger buildings on Dean Street, as shown in the photos in the next section.

Some photos

Here are some photos I shot last weekend.

Looking east toward Newswalk (and 535 Carlton and 550 Vanderbilt in the background)

Looking south from Atlantic Avenue, with 38 Sixth Avenue under construction and 461 Dean Street finished

Looking east toward Newswalk, with an empty lot awaiting 664 Pacific

Looking north from Dean Street and Sixth Avenue, with an empty lot awaiting 664 Pacific

Looking west toward 38 Sixth and Barclays Center

From the blurb

According to CitiHabitats:

Just a stone’s throw away from the crossroads of Brooklyn at Atlantic and Flatbush Avenues, the new Kutnicki Bernstein designed 670 Pacific Street is an 86-unit development located at the epicenter of today's most talked about entertainment and cultural destinations in NYC. The development’s concrete façade is a modern addition to the Prospect Heights / Downtown Brooklyn cityscape, which prides itself on being a creative blend of historic townhouses and progressive construction. Slip inside and let the lobby wrap you in chic urban sophistication. Here, warm natural tones create a sense of home while textured surfaces invite subtle, unexpected visual excitement.
Once inside 670 Pacific Street touch, see, and feel all the ways the interior design echoes the building’s exterior identity. Enter an apartment and treat yourself to designer appointments from Durkan Design: Corus Quartz polished countertops, high gloss charcoal grey and white cabinetry, high end appliances, four-inch white oak plank floors, deep soaking bathtubs and stunning freestanding showers. Select units offer a private balcony or terrace.
670 Pacific Street offers a varied mix of amenities for residents to enjoy including a lively tenants’ lounge with screening area, state of the art fitness center and an attended lobby. The building’s soon-to-be-iconic landscaped roof deck boasts BBQ and outdoor dining and sunning areas, a Bocce ball court and a circular running track to squeeze in a few laps at the start of your day. Other perks include in unit washer and dryer hookups, onsite parking and storage units.
Head outside and just around the corner for a cup of artisanal coffee, craft beer, or homemade soul food from the diverse local purveyors. Nearby Barclays Center brings the professional athletic world right to your doorstep as the home of the Brooklyn Nets and New York Islanders. Manhattan lays at your fingertips with one swipe of a Metro card and you’re on a B, D, Q, N, R, 2, 3, 4, or 5 subway lines (and even the LIRR).

The cost

The listings indicate a net effective rent, as noted on StreetEasy, with an incentive for one month free.


The two-bedroom unit was listed at $4200, then was lowered 5% to $3999.

Compared to the affordable units at 461 Dean, well, they're not far off:

• An affordable studio goes as high as $1,996 at 461 Dean, but the market rent at 670 Pacific is $2,399, a 20.2% increase or, put differently, a 16.8% discount from market
• An affordable one-bedroom goes as high as $2,504 at 461 Dean, but the market rent at 670 Pacific is as low as $2,999, a 19.8% increase or, put differently, a 16.5% discount from market. (One bedrooms do go up to $3,461)
• An affordable two-bedroom as high as $3,012 at 461 Dean, but the market rent at 670 Pacific is $3,999, a 32.8% increase or, put differently, a 24.7% discount from market.

On the other hand, the 461 Dean units offer rent stabilization, so the certainty of lease renewal, and limited increases, plus--based on my eyeball of the one 670 Pacific unit with floor plans--larger units.

Then again, that building is a wee bit of an experiment, given the delays in modular construction. See 461 Dean rents below.

That rusty metal

As shown in the photo at right, they're using pre-rusted metal for the building's exterior signage.

That's a bit of a trend, as Brownstoner noted last October, tracking the use of Corten (or otherwise pre-rusted) steel in residential buildings around Brooklyn.