Brooklyn's Progress
July 2003

During its 3rd Annual Building Brooklyn Awards ceremony, the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce recognized 11 recent construction projects for making a significant investment in the borough – more than $360 million – and enhancing Brooklyn’s economy and quality of life.

“Tonight we are showing our gratitude to the individuals and organizations who have made significant contributions to make Brooklyn and the City of New York a better place to live and work,” Kenneth Adams, President of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce, said.  “This year’s 11 winning projects span a wide spectrum of recent design and construction initiatives in neighborhoods across Brooklyn – from housing to industry to education.” 

In addition to the announcement of the building awards, the event featured remarks from Andrew M. Alper, President of the New York City Economic Development Corporation (EDC).  As the head of the city’s primary vehicle for economic development, Mr. Alper talked about the EDC’s efforts to stimulate growth and retain and increase jobs in Brooklyn and in New York City.  EDC is spearheading the Downtown Brooklyn Development Plan in conjunction with the Downtown Brooklyn Council.  The plan calls for new office and residential development, creating new and varied retail opportunities and improving the mass transit system in Downtown Brooklyn.  

The event, held on June 19 at the Brooklyn Museum of Art, was catered by Akwaaba Café.

The 11 construction projects honored during the event include:

• The Brooklyn Tabernacle in the Community Facility category – restoration of the abandoned Loew’s Metropolitan Theater into a multi-faceted religious and community center and home for Brooklyn Tabernacle’s five-time Grammy Award winning choir
• Donald F. and Mildred Topp Othmer Residence Hall at Polytechnic University in the Education/Residential category – a distinguished 20-story new structure for 400 students; an important element in the effort to develop a 24/7 vibrant MetroTech community
• The Prospect Park Audubon Center, at the Boat House in the Cultural Facility category – restoration of the historic Prospect Park Boat House, creating the first urban Audubon Center in the nation
• Brooklyn College Library in the Education category – complete renovation combining neo-Georgian architecture with a modern addition to create a state-of-the-art 385,000 square foot library facility
• 37 Greenpoint Avenue in the Industrial category – a manufacturing and design center that brought 24 companies to Greenpoint from canoe making to clothes tailoring, rejuvenating the area with jobs
• Rice in the Neighborhood Retail category – new DUMBO restaurant added a necessary amenity for the hundreds of office workers and residents in this popular new community
• Gilbert Ramirez Park in the Park category – redesign and reconstruction of a one acre neighborhood park in East Williamsburg, spurring development around the park and the surrounding neighborhood
• Kings Plaza Shopping Center in the Regional Retail: Renovation category – a complete overhaul, transforming the 30-year-old center into a modern shopping environment for the new millennium
• Gateway Center in the Regional Retail: New Construction Category – transformed approximately 50 acres of a former landfill into a retail center featuring 640,000 square feet of destination retail, adding 1,700 jobs to the local economy
• The Smith Gray Building in the Residential category – preserved a classic Brooklyn cast-iron loft building and converted it into 40 loft-style apartments
• Gibb Mansion in the Residential/Non-Profit category – restoration of an 1850’s grand mansion in Clinton Hill to create 71 studio apartments for low-income neighborhood residents

An 11-member panel of Brooklyn-based architects, planners, economic development experts and business leaders chose the winning projects.  Building owners, architects and contractors for the winning projects were selected for their vision and commitment to put abandoned buildings to use, enhance shopping options for Brooklynites, restore historic landmark buildings, keep manufacturing in Brooklyn, and to bring other necessary amenities to the borough.

Click here to view the photos of this year's Building Brooklyn Award nominees.