The Brooklyn Nets may be one step closer to severing their New Jersey ties and becoming a fully Brooklyn team. In the process, they could also be contributing to the ongoing revitalization of Sunset Park’s waterfront.
Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov reportedly signed a tentative deal with Industry City’s real estate firm Jamestown Properties to build a state-of-the-art training facility in Sunset Park, on the top floor of 148 39th Street—an eight-floor building within the 16-building manufacturing complex previously known as Bush Terminal that is gradually becoming a hub for creative and light industrial businesses.
The Nets have declined to comment or confirm the report, but according to The New York Times¸ while the deal has yet to be finalized, if it is approved, the training facility will also house operations offices and will be completed by Fall of 2015. Until then, the basketball team would continue to train in their Rutherford, New Jersey facilities.
Shane Kavanagh, a representative from The Marino Organization, which represents Jamestown Properties, confirmed that the New York Times report is accurate.
According to fan blog NetsDaily.com, which reported on the rumored deal this past October, the cost of the project will be between $45 million and $50 million—which will also cover the cost of raising the roof by 15 to 20 feet.
Development and revitalization of Sunset Park’s waterfront is steadily bearing fruit.
“We have a lot of investments coming on the waterfront,” noted Jeremy Laufer, district manager of Brooklyn’s Community Board 7, the local volunteer-led neighborhood government that covers Sunset Park, Greenwood Heights and Windsor Terrace.
“[There is] Jamestown Properties [continuing to develop the creative hub of] Industry City, as well as the approval of LibertyView Plaza—formerly known as Federal Building #2—for a larger commercial space and Phase One of their space opening in April,” Laufer said. “We hope to leverage these changes [to create more benefit for the community].”
Just this December, the Sunset Park Material Recovery Facility—a state-of-the-art $110 million recycling facility on the 30th Street Pier that will eventually process all of the city’s curbside metal, glass and plastic recyclables—began operations. The space will also feature a Recycling Education Center for students and visitors.
The Brooklyn Waterfront Greenway is also set to incorporate the Sunset Park waterfront into its eco-friendly and community-friendly 14-mile landscaped bike lane.
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