The Pencil Factory

Greenpoint, Brooklyn

In 2004, as Brooklyn was being rezoned by new Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s administration, Ricardo saw the opportunity to acquire The Pencil Factory, a multi-acre site along the Williamsburg-Greenpoint waterfront. He created a partnership which obtained the exclusive rights to acquire the site, rezoning the property in 2009 from industrial to high-density residential to allow for the proposed project. The site was acquired for $83 million in December 2010, based on a proposal to build a new 1,050,000 SF “80/20” residential and retail complex along with inclusionary housing and a new waterfront park and pier area. Additionally, Claridge obtained and negotiated designation to become the main stop for the water taxi on India Street heading to 34th Street in midtown Manhattan, and built a new 450-foot concrete pier along India Street to make way for waterway connection.