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New York Yimby

Williamsburg Wharf’s First Phase Wraps Up Construction in South Williamsburg, Brooklyn

Michael Young | 2025.09.15

Construction is wrapping up on the first phase of Williamsburg Wharf, a 3.75-acre mixed-use development on the South Williamsburg waterfront in Brooklyn. Developed by Naftali Group and Access Industries and designed by Brandon Haw Architecture and Hill West Architects, the two-phase masterplan will yield five 22-story residential towers and nearly 1 million square feet of residential, commercial, and retail space. The entire project will yield a total of 950 condominium and rental units and will include a public esplanade stretching 525 feet along the East River. The mixed-use development is bounded by South 10th Street to the north, Division Avenue to the south, Kent Avenue to the east, and Wallabout Channel to the west.

 

The below photos show Three Williamsburg Wharf that sits at the southernmost end of the complex at 480 Kent Avenue. It features a light tan façade and geometric paneling surrounding a dense grid of floor-to-ceiling windows. A handful of apartment interiors are close to completion and should be finished soon.

 

One and Two Williamsburg Wharf rises across from the motor courtyard at 478 Kent Avenue with an L-shaped configuration. It is clad with a darker envelope using the same materials and features a gold-hued mechanical crown that reflects the sunlight. The hoist on the northern side of the reinforced concrete superstructure was fully disassembled since last winter.

 

All of the units below the amenity level is Two Williamsburg Wharf, while the units above the amenity level is One Williamsburg Wharf.

 

The project’s waterfront esplanade has also opened to the public, allowing pedestrians to navigate from the South Williamsburg ferry terminal to Kent Avenue. The new landscaping provides several additional feet of buffer between the ground level of Williamsburg Wharf and the water and features various trees, shrubbery, grass, and outdoor seating with views of the Manhattan skyline and the Williamsburg Bridge to the north.

 

The below axonometric diagram shows all three structures from phase one. From left to right are 11 Wharf Way spanning 204,514 square feet with 183 rental units, One and Two Williamsburg Wharf touching the edge of the waterfront yielding 236,009 square feet with 89 condominium units and 86 rental units, and Three Williamsburg Wharf with 263,099 square feet with 249 rental units. The total commercial square footage will span 17,525 square feet. Phase two will rise from the open lot on the bottom left corner. This site is currently fenced off and partially excavated.

 

Homes in One Williamsburg Wharf at 480 Kent Avenue come in studio- to three-bedroom layouts, as well as a collection of six upper penthouse units. Apartments have white-oak entry doors with black hardware and a custom entry sconce, private gallery foyers in select residences, and white oak flooring with 7.5-inch-wide planks throughout. Units also feature solid wood interior doors with polished nickel finishes, laundry closets with Bosch washers and dryers, side-by-side Samsung washer and dryers in select residences, fireplaces with direct-vent gas technology with a custom marble mantlepiece, and staircases with roof terrace access in select apartments. SERHANT. New Development is handling sales and marketing.

 

Kitchens will be finished with custom millwork and cabinetry by Tiger and Brandon Haw Architecture, as well as honed Calcutta Gold Quartz slab countertops, backsplashes, and kitchen islands with curved oak bases, rounded corners, and beveled edges. Appliances include Miele oak-paneled refrigerators, freezers, dishwashers, gas ranges with a convection oven, and speed ovens, Miele oak-paneled warming drawers in select residences, Sub-Zero oak-paneled under-counter wine refrigerators (full height in select residences), Uline oak-paneled under-counter wine refrigerators in select residences, Ruvati stainless steel undercount kitchen sinks, InSinkErator garbage disposals, and Kohler faucets with pull-out sprays in a matte black finish.

 

Primary bathrooms get large operable windows in select residences, custom vanities with oak finishes, curved corners, and black matte hardware, custom medicine cabinets with integrated lighting, and custom full-height cabinetry with built-in hampers and shelving with lights in select residences. Additional features include custom honed Calacatta mosaic floor tiling, honed Bianco Dolomite marble-tiled showers with built-in niches, fluted honed Bianco Dolomite wainscoting, radiant floor heating with an adjustable thermostat, and Papillon Stone Forest freestanding soaking tubs in Limestone in selects units.

 

Amenities are designed by Ward + Gray and span over 20,000 square feet, with the majority concentrated across the ninth floor. These include a cinema, a dining room with a chef’s kitchen and pantry that can convert into a conference room, an indoor/outdoor fitness center, yoga studio doubling as a flexible fitness area with a connecting outdoor terrace, private changing rooms and lockers, and a juice bar. Other features include pet grooming stations, a fire pit, and a 60-foot-long outdoor swimming pool that will double as a private ice skating rink in the wintertime using Glice, a synthetic ice technology, surrounded by cabanas and lounge seating. Additional outdoor amenities will include an open lawn, a dog run, a landscaped extension of the Williamsburg waterfront with walkways and cyclist routes, and a pedestrian boulevard connecting Kent Avenue to the waterfront featuring a large-scale sculpture by Lorenzo Quinn.

 

Other amenities include a 24-hour attended lobby, a library, coworking lounges with outdoor spaces, private phone booths, and a wet bar overlooking the East River. There will also be a lounge with a pantry, a game room with a custom pong table and billiards table, a basketball court, bike storage, storage available for purchase, and enclosed subterranean parking spots and electric charging spots available for purchase.

 

Breads Bakery, most popular for their chocolate-flavored babka, recently signed on to become a retail tenant at the property. The below rendering offers a glimpse of the bakery chain’s 4,700-square-foot space on the ground level of 480 Kent Avenue. It is slated to open sometime next year, and will join chef Eyal Shani’s yet-to-be-named restaurant.

 

YIMBY anticipates the remaining construction on the first phase of Williamsburg Wharf will finish before the end of the year, while a start and completion date for phase two, which will consist of two residential towers, has yet to be announced.

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one williamsburg wharf, brooklyn, ny 11249
Naftali GroupAccess
Serhant
sales gallery: 200 Kent Avenue, 4th Floor, Brooklyn, NY 11249