Bruklyn Builders signs $19.2M construction loan with S3 Capital for 48-unit project in Gowanus

Bruklyn Builders’ David Halberstam through the entity 282 4th Ave Owner LLC as borrower signed a new construction loan with lender S3 Capital through the entity S3 Re 282 4th Ave Funding LLC valued at $19.2 million for the industrial building (E9) at 284 4th Avenue in Gowanus, Brooklyn.
On the lot, there is one active new building construction project, B00751849, for a 48-unit, 32,716 square-foot residential (R-2) building. The project was submitted by Francis Leung with plans filed June 8, 2022 and permitted June 14, 2022.
The deal closed on June 11, 2025 and was recorded on June 27, 2025. The prior lender was S3 Capital which held debt that had an original loan amount of $4.8 million. The loan price per project zoning square foot is $587 per the PincusCo analysis. (The price per square foot analysis is the transaction price divided by square feet as reported in public records and assumes no air rights have been sold.)
The owner bought the property on December 31, 2024, for $7.8 million. The signatory for David Halberstam was David Halberstam.

Zoning Diagram LINK

The property

The industrial building in Gowanus has 5,880 square feet of built space and 17,686 square feet of additional air rights for a total buildable of 23,556 square feet according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The parcel has frontage of 40 feet and is 97 feet deep with a total lot size of 3,913 square feet. The zoning is C4-4D which allows for up to 3.4 times floor area ratio (FAR) for commercial and up to 6.02 times FAR for residential with inclusionary housing. The city-designated market value for the property in 2022 is $567,000.

Violations and lawsuits

The property was involved in one lawsuit and zero bankruptcies over the past two years. The suit was a $9 million money judgment concerning a contract filed on August 30, 2023, by CW Realty Group and Cheskie Weisz against Yuk Jin Lam. In addition, according to city public data, the property has received one DOB violation, $16,400 in ECB penalties, and $16,400 in OATH penalties in the last year.

The neighborhood

In Gowanus, The bulk, or 46 percent of the 9.2 million square feet of commercial built space are industrial buildings, with elevator buildings next occupying 19 percent of the space. In sales, Gowanus has 2.9 times the average sales volume among other neighborhoods with $750.6 million in sales volume in the last two years and is the 4th highest in Brooklyn. For development, Gowanus has 1.9 times the average amount of major developments relative to other neighborhoods and is the 5th highest in Brooklyn. It had 2.2 million square feet of commercial and multi-family construction under development in the last two years, which represents 24 percent of the neighborhood’s built space.

The block

On this tax block, PincusCo has identified the owners of eight of the 10 commercial properties representing 50,805 square feet of the 56,997 square feet. The largest owner is Avery Hall Investments, followed by Cw Realty Group and then Anna Belobrovka.
On the tax block, there were four new building construction projects totaling 187,196 square feet. The largest is a 128-unit, 104,140 square-foot residential (R-2) building submitted by Avery Hall and filed by Alexander Cutrona with plans filed December 14, 2021 and permitted June 10, 2022. The second largest is a 66-unit, 49,165 square-foot residential (R-2) building submitted by Joseph Vogel with plans filed November 15, 2021 and permitted May 26, 2022.

The majority, or 95 percent of the 56,997 square feet of built space are industrial buildings, with walkup buildings next occupying 5 percent of the space.

The borrower

The PincusCo database currently indicates that David Halberstam owned at least 10 commercial properties with 155 residential units in New York City with 39,410 square feet and a city-determined market value of $10 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $219.8 million in debt, with top three lenders as S3 Capital, Citibank, and Dwight Capital respectively. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 34 percent of the 39,410 square feet of built space are elevator properties, with industrial properties next occupying 19 percent of the space. They are all located in Brooklyn.

Direct link to Acris document. link