1000 Dean St.: Crown Heights project wants tech tenants [photos]

1000 Dean Street is known colloquially around Crown Heights as “The Studebaker Building” because it was once a facility owned by the Studebaker company at its height.

Though, interestingly, as Christopher Havens of aptsandlofts, our guide through the space, told us that it was Pontiac that first built the place before quickly selling it. It was picked up by the company that still bares its name today.

We know that space is a major issue for companies in Brooklyn, and while Crown Heights is outside today’s hotbed of tech ventures, it will be interesting to see if the high cost of Dumbo sends more tech operations southeast — maybe here, to the building with a tenant entry to the space’s giant new beer garden.

The project has Internet roots. Its rehabilitation has been led by Jonathan Butler, the blogger behind Brownstoner with offices in Dumbo. The next time your brother-in-law makes fun of your blog, let him know that a writer in New York turned his online opining into a multi-million dollar real estate purchase. He did it alongside BFC Partners and the Goldman Sachs Urban Investment Fund, according to The Commercial Observer.

Havens also helped facilitate the rehab, bringing some of what he learned as a real estate professional during the renewal of Dumbo to his work on 1000 Dean. For example, Havens said, “You have to have multiple Internet providers in a building.” We’ve written about the problem with fiber access, but this project has it, as well as cable and dish.

The building has some attributes that make it appealing to startups and tech firms:

• Community features. Rather than installing lots of in office kitchens, each of the top floors has a pantry/kitchen. This should help tenants make connections.
• Public space. The giant entryway (former car showroom) is the one everyone will see, which will be made available for events to tenants. There are also two former vehicle ramps that the team hopes to turn into lecture and theater spaces (see photos).
• Lots of outlets. The building has favored the quad outlet approach with lots of outlet access along the walls.
• A modest sized beer and food hall. Just 9,000 square feet, so get there early to get a seat at happy hour.
• Flexible leasing. Havens said he would work with tenants who didn’t want to commit forever. One year, 18 month or two year leases are an option.
• Mechanically ventilated or lightwell offices (see photos). Tenants can save a few dollars on these spaces and certain operations might prefer the lower levels of light.
• Intercom access. The building will have a locked door, but tenants with evening visitors can let them in by way of intercoms.
• Services such as accounting and IT support available from other tenants in the building. Yoga and Pilates, too.

The building is about 50 percent leased now, though it is looking to solidify a few of those last big anchor tenants. Talks are underway with some, but nothing has been announced for most of the largest spaces. As we’ve previously reported, the plan for one of the largest ground floor spaces fell through with the closure of 3rd Ward.

[slideshow_deploy id=’16210′]