(To read more on the multifamily market, click here.)
BROOKLYN, NY-"This is my life's work," Stephen S. Jemal, president of SSJ Development tells GlobeSt.com. He is speaking of a series of niche developments along the waterfronts here in communities such as Gerritsen Beach, Mill Basin and Bensonhurst.
SSJ hones in on waterfront areas to restore the shoreline and reestablish the public's access to the water. "Great neighborhoods looked like blight. The waterfront was industrial and commercial. It was forgotten, underutilized and neglected. It's a crime."
One example of the firm's efforts is that it just picked up a three-acre property for $8.8 million in Gerritsen Beach. SSJ plans the Riviera, a townhouse development costing approximately $30 million to complete. The firm also plans another Riviera development along Mill Basin at East 66th Street and Dakota Place. This effort is expected to cost approximately $20 million. Each project takes six to nine months to plan using the firm's in-house development team and approximately a year to build. Other Riviera projects are in Sheepshead Bay and Cape May, NJ.
"It is my mission to restore Brooklyn to its long forgotten prominence as a place that celebrates its water's edge," Jemal says. "Brooklyn is ready for this." Jemal says every project is designed for its particular neighborhood, enhancing and harmonizing with the surrounding built environment. "We're looking to build a brand that will stand for something. We want to maximize the waterfront and blend in with the communities."
Now that the zoning has changed, the opportunity for waterfront housing is alive. "Volume is there, the market is tremendous. It's niche development." Jemal says he has had a love of waterfronts due to fond memories of spending time with his father at the Jersey Shore. "We're looking to enhance and revitalize. They have a great waterfront, but it's been inaccessible to them. They can't enjoy it."
Jemal was a founding partner of the "Nobody Beats The Wiz" electronics chain. While building the chain, he launched a string of real estate ventures, developing more than six million sf of retail space in the northeast. After the sale of the company, he wanted to continue in the real estate realm. He developed executive conference centers and hotels with spas, situated golf courses, in conjunction with Marriott. In 2001, he developed the masterplan for developing Southpoint, the southern tip of Roosevelt Island. That effort is still under way.
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