17-Story Residential Building Planned For Former Brooklyn Church Site

BROOKLYN, NY — A former religious residence in Brooklyn could be transformed into a 17-story mixed-use building, bringing more housing units to the neighborhood, developers announced this week.

Developer David Grunfeld, operating through GW Infinity LLC, has filed permits with the Department of Buildings to replace the two-story structure at 277 North Eighth Street with a 17-story mixed-use building.

If approved, the project would include 99 residential units, 2,713 square feet of commercial space, and 66,718 square feet for community facilities, according to the filing.

The existing Carmel Residence, linked to the neighboring Shrine Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel at 275 N. 8th Street, is still owned by the church. It’s unclear whether the parish would occupy any part of the new building, or if Grunfeld is coordinating with the church on the conversion.

Grunfeld filed plans in June to demolish the currently vacant structure between Meeker Avenue and Havemeyer Street, records show, with the news first reported by Crain’s New York Business.

Mount Carmel Church, founded by Italian immigrants in 1887, was originally located at the corner of North Eighth Street and Union Avenue, according to the New York City Chapter of The American Guild of Organists.

Named after the Roman Catholic order of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, or the Carmelites, the parish was established to serve Williamsburg’s growing Italian community during the wave of immigration in the late 19th century.

Over the years, it has become a longstanding fixture in the neighborhood.