New Lower East Side Apartments

Quietly, Klein Development Inc. is leading the development of a five-story, 96-unit apartment building just south of E. Brady St. on the city’s Lower East Side. Although the neighbors would likely disagree, the project is easy to miss because of its location off of E. Brady St. between two short one-way streets.

The project is being developed on a vacant lot at 1632 N. Franklin Pl. The lot, which city records list at 43,560 square feet, was the site of a long-closed Boys Club that was demolished in 2016. The development team, KC Franklin Partners LLC, acquired the site in August 2015.

The development team includes brothers Joe and Mike Klein as well as Jeno Cataldo

Eppstein Uhen Architects is designing the building. CD Smith, at which Klein family patriarch Dennis Klein serves as an executive, is leading the building’s construction.

Area Alderman Nik Kovac, who at one point during the approval process called the project “adventuresome architecture,” noted that when the developers originally approached him and the Department of City Development, they were seeking a 14-story tower and that the developers could have made a reasonable case to be granted a building of that height. The proposed building is next to a city-owned senior housing high-rise that is approximately 24 stories tall, yet within a neighbor that includes a number of structures that are four stories or less. The developers came back with a building that was 10 stories tall and 140 units, but ultimately cut that to five floors after meeting with local stakeholders.

The 157,000 square-foot development is estimated to cost approximately $20 million to build and have rents ranging from $1,500 to $2,000.

The building will include a substantial amount of parking. Plans call for 133 stalls split over the first floor and an underground level, providing a ratio of 1.39 stalls per unit. The building will be a mix of studios (24), one-bedroom (64) and two-bedroom (32) units.

The project was approved in May 2017.

The Arlington Place is far from the only Klein-Cataldo project underway. The partners are redeveloping the former Park East Hotel into apartments on E. State St. They also have proposed a high-end apartment building for the northeast corner of N. Oakland Ave. and E. Locust St.

Photos

Renderings

Changes to Arlington Place Coming

At a Common Council meeting regarding the project, Kovac said he would bring forward a file to convert N. Arlington Pl. from E. Brady St. to N. Warren St. to a two-way street. This change is not required for the project to go forward, according to Kovac, but is something the developers and neighbors are behind. Kovac also noted that a conversion on Arlington Pl. from angled parking to parallel parking would increase the number of street parking spaces.

Included in the project already is the construction of pedestrian bump-outs along N. Arlington Pl. The bump-outs will increase pedestrian safety by shortening the distance to cross the street and increasing pedestrian visibility to vehicles. The bump-outs are scheduled to be constructed along with the project itself. Examples of bump-outs can be seen along E. Brady St.

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