Permits & development · Deals & development · 11/05/2026
The Bowen Finishes Office-to-Condo Conversion at 289 Schermerhorn Street
Construction is complete on The Bowen, a 13-story office-to-residential conversion at 289 Schermerhorn Street between Bond and Nevins Streets. GF55 Architects designed it for Urban Development Partners, adding new floors atop a seven-story office building. It has 71 condominium units, amenities and ground-floor retail, with Douglas Elliman teams handling sales.
Reported by New York YIMBYRead the original ↗
What happened
New York YIMBY reported on 11/05/2026 that construction is complete on The Bowen, a 13-story building at 289 Schermerhorn Street in Downtown Brooklyn.
The project converted an existing office building into housing. It also added new floors on top of the original seven-story structure. According to the report, this vertical expansion doubled the building's scope. The exact square footage is cut off in the available summary.
GF55 Architects designed the project. Urban Development Partners is the developer. The full article text was not available, so the number of apartments, rents and any affordable units are not known from this material.
Key facts
- Building
- The Bowen
- Address
- 289 Schermerhorn Street, Downtown Brooklyn
- Height
- 13 stories
- Original building
- Seven-story office building
- Project type
- Office-to-residential conversion with vertical expansion
- Architect
- GF55 Architects
- Developer
- Urban Development Partners
- Reported
- New York YIMBY, 11/05/2026
What it means
Tenants and voucher holders
This adds new apartments in Downtown Brooklyn, but the material does not say whether any are affordable or will accept vouchers. Watch NYC Housing Connect for a listing at this address before assuming there is a lottery.
Caseworkers
There is no confirmed affordable housing or lottery information in this report. Confirm through official channels before referring clients to this building.
Landlords
Office-to-residential conversions with added floors are another source of new rental supply nearby. Small owners in Downtown Brooklyn may see more competition for tenants once units lease up.
The highlights
- Six new floors rise atop a 100-year-old, seven-story office building, now 13 stories.
- The project doubled to 105,000 square feet with 71 condos, studios to three-bedrooms.
- Ground-floor retail space is complete but has no tenant yet.
Why it matters Landlords
Shows office-to-residential conversions finishing in Brooklyn, though these 71 units are for-sale condos, not rentals.
Not known yet
- How many apartments The Bowen has
- Whether any units are affordable or will be offered through NYC Housing Connect
- Rents and when leasing begins
- The total square footage after the expansion
Background
In New York City, office-to-residential conversions turn commercial buildings into apartments, sometimes with new floors added on top. Some conversion projects use government incentives that require a share of income-restricted units. When a building has income-restricted apartments, they are usually marketed through a lottery on NYC Housing Connect with set income limits, rents and an application deadline.
Summary written by Bulwark from New York YIMBY’s reporting. The original story is at newyorkyimby.com. This is general information, not legal advice.
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