Dear NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission:

We, the undersigned, ask the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) to deny the proposal (LPC-25-04617) by Watermark Capital to develop a residential high rise tower over and around the historic Duffield Street townhouses. 

SAY NO TO ERASING HISTORY!

Downtown Brooklyn has been the vibrant and vital civic, commercial, and cultural heart of the borough for two hundred years. During the 19th century, when Brooklyn was an independent city, Downtown Brooklyn was also home to a bustling residential neighborhood of middle-class merchants and tradesmen, and was a hotbed of abolitionism. 

However, due to 20th-century urban renewal and the upzoning of 2004, little trace of this rich history, and once low-rise neighborhood remains, except the four, irreplaceable landmarked homes now located at 182-188 Duffield Street. During the nineteenth century and early twentieth century, these houses were occupied by merchants, lawyers, brokers, engineers, teachers, builders, and shipmasters.

• In 1990 the neighborhood was erased by eminent domain, and these four occupied homes were saved from demolition, and moved at great expense to their current location nearby. They were designated for preservation by the LPC in 2001 for their "architectural significance.”
• The original preservation agreement signed in 1988 between the MetroTech developers, the city, and state stipulated: “the houses should be occupied for institutional, commercial or residential uses that are compatible with its physical and historical integrity” and “protected from future alteration or disturbance.”  
• The current plan does not honor the original intent of preserving these homes or their landmark designation.

The proposal in front of the LPC will, in fact, destroy many landmarked architectural features of these four houses by:  

• the removal of a stoop and alteration of the original entryway of 188 Duffield,
• the significant removal of the rears of 186, 184, and 182 Duffield, and
• the complete decimation of the original interiors and floor plans, obliterating their identity as the landmarked townhomes as they historically and currently stand. 

Would these kinds of alterations be allowed on landmarked houses in Brooklyn Heights or Fort Greene?

HERE’S WHY TO SAY NO:

• The current proposal is woefully lacking of any specific details regarding the engineering plans for how the developer intends to protect these delicate structures during construction.
• The lot is extremely limited in space and egress. There are serious concerns as to whether these individual homes would survive the excavation of the foundation, let alone the construction of a 345-foot tall tower behind, above, and inside these townhomes, now fragile from years of neglect.
• The current plan does not honor the history of these homes, or the reason for which they were saved. These homes were preserved for their architectural importance and to commemorate a middle class neighborhood with a rich history important to the development of 19th-century Brooklyn, and building a skyscraper over these, and destroying all but the front facades, is a betrayal of that purpose. 

The Landmarks Preservation Commission has an obligation to disapprove the current proposal LPC-25-04617 to build a 30-story luxury apartment building directly on top of these landmarked, 3-story townhomes. This project would not only mar their architectural integrity but essentially erase the last remaining pieces of neighborhood history from the once independent city of Brooklyn. 

On behalf of the local community who calls Downtown Brooklyn home, we urge you to vote no. There are better ways to restore and protect these landmarks. The community would like these homes to be preserved as four separate houses, honoring the residents of the former neighborhood, as originally intended.

Downtown Brooklyn Community Association (DBCA) (dobroca.org)

The DBCA was formed by residents to enhance the quality of life for the growing number of community members who live, learn, and worship in the neighborhood. As the historic heart of the once independent city of Brooklyn, the DBCA also advocates for historic preservation to protect the rich history and remaining historic architecture in Downtown Brooklyn, ensuring that it remains a cherished part of the community.

RE: October 21st, 2025 LPC Hearing for LPC-25-04617 - 182-188 Duffield Street Houses