A proposal to replace an early 20th century garage at 406-410 MacDonough St. in Brooklyn with a modern apartment building is moving forward, but the design team needs to return to the Landmarks Preservation Commission with revisions.
At a Tuesday hearing, the commission took no action on plans from StudioSC for a 5-story, 13-unit building on the 50-by-100-foot site in the Expanded Stuyvesant Heights Historic District. The existing low-slung commercial garage dates to 1916 and replaced three 19th century houses.
The front elevation presented to commissioners features a deep red brick facade with a sand-toned precast base, plus recessed terraces at the outer edges and brick detailing around the windows. The rear and side facades use a lighter-colored brick, and the rear design includes projecting balconies and large windows. Plans also show a new one-story parking garage at the rear, designed with a look that references early 20th century garages.
Commissioners praised the effort to balance contemporary design with historic context, but they pressed for refinements. Commissioner Mark Ginsburg said the rear facade “needs work,” criticized the large window sizes in relation to surrounding buildings, and called for a warmer brick on the side and rear. Commissioner Frank Mahan said the front detailing adds interest but asked for more variation at the base and better harmony between the two brick selections and the stone-cast base. Christina Conroy of the Victorian Society called for more vertical elements to better match the scale of neighboring buildings.
For mason contractors, the hearing is a clear reminder that in landmark districts, reviewers scrutinize brick color shifts across elevations, base materials, and window surrounds as closely as overall massing. When those details change, takeoffs, sequencing, and detailing around openings, balconies, and terraces change with them.
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