Full Square Block Of Luxury In Williamsburg

By Daniel J Bollinger

The Oosten; a complete square city block of luxury living in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, is located at 429 Kent Avenue, mere blocks from the famous Peter Luger Steakhouse. The design and architectural team has figured “it” out and are implementing “it” flawlessly.

The Oosten is more like a compound than a building. I toured their sales office and was shown all the fixtures and details of the interiors. I also toured the actual construction site, the actual space, scope, and size of the project. The Oosten is still in construction and slated for a July 2016 completion.

There is no “one thing” about this project that I can write about because there are so many “one things” pertaining to The Oosten that make it such an outstanding development. I am going to write about the great design details that The Oosten’s architects and designers have come up with on this very special project.

First, The Oosten scores high honors from me for building a ‘compound’ like structure around an entire square city block. They get high honors because they have designed an enormous (short of one acre) courtyard on the inside space. It reminds me of Gramercy Park’s private outdoor park in Manhattan, though no key is required for entrance into The Oosten’s- only residency.

At the end of this courtyard is an indoor pool, though I would describe it more as an indoor/outdoor pool since the pool receives much natural light through the wall of windows that look out onto the landscaped courtyard. On both sides of the pool area are a host of additional amenities including a wellness area, yoga room, and espresso and juice bar to name just a few.

Second, The Oosten doubles down on ‘getting it’ with its green spaces, by offering private backyards with the townhouses and maximizing common space by developing the rooftop as well. There are some private rooftop areas, which we will get to when I tell you about the available living quarters.

But there is also ample resident public rooftop space. Let me paraphrase Oosten’s literature since they have summed up the rooftop experience so well, “A place to relax with friends after work or for an evening cocktail, the lushly landscaped rooftop lounge features a reflecting pool, lounge seating and professional chef’s grills for outdoor cooking and entertaining.” - thank you M18, I don’t think I could have said it better myself. Now, onto the actual living quarters.

The Oosten has covered all the bases by providing 1, 2, and 3-bedrooms, lofts, duplex homes, penthouses, and townhouses. Whatever your current living needs are, The Oosten can fulfill them in both luxury and style. I am only covering the penthouses and townhouses because of the “one thing” that these residences offer which the others do not: private parking spaces. These are truly ‘private’ parking spaces; they are not just reserved spaces in which no one else is allowed to park. They are private in the fact that they have garage doors that wall off your residence when closed for complete privacy. There are private entrances to your residence with stairs for the townhouse and private elevators for the penthouses.

Coming up the stairs and into your townhouse, you will find that the space is designed much like a classic brownstone: There are 25-foot widths, 10-foot ceilings, etc. The genius in this design is that The Oosten offers neo-brownstone-like living inside of a luxury building. The ‘one thing’ that also sets the townhouses apart from other residences, is the private garden area (only available with the townhouses). The layout is superb with a chef’s kitchen (with island) next to the den overlooking the private garden area, overlooking the resident courtyard. It’s the perfect design for a get together with friends and family. This unique layout and the perspective of looking out the window from the den cannot be described properly on paper, it must be experienced... internally it is functional and spatially pleasing, extending outward to the private garden and courtyard, it is multi-layered. Or is it multi-faceted? It has levels of perspective? I cannot find the right words to correctly describe it. High honors to the designers for this beautiful layout.

The townhouses are ground floor residences, but if you enjoy being higher in the sky since this is New York City, then let me tell you about the penthouses. The penthouses are slightly larger than the townhouses. Private parking, as mentioned above and private elevators, will take you up to your duplex penthouse (top two floors). Bedrooms are located on the lower floor of the penthouses and kitchens are on the top floor. Another of the penthouses’ “one thing” is that there are open spaces on both the north and south sides of each residence. On the street level side there is a nice sized viewing patio running across the whole length of the apartment. Even nicer though, is the internal (inner compound side) private garden area. Whether you prefer townhouse or penthouse style living the layouts of the kitchens and dens in relation to the accompanying private outdoor gardens are fluid, both functionally and aesthetically. And ­­­all of these ‘one things’ do not end there.

The Oosten allows for customization of the interiors. If you would like a larger bedroom, additional closets, etc., The Oosten design team can customize your townhouse/penthouse by offering flexible layouts. Purchase includes an optional trip to Amsterdam to meet with the design team for such purpose.

One fixture that stands out is their choice of range in the kitchen. The SMEG 48” stainless steel range with 5-gas burners, electric grill and double oven shows how serious The Oosten design team is in creating the ultimate in luxury living. Of all the luxury buildings I have toured in Brooklyn The Oosten has been the most impressive for its execution in design, from the big picture (compound) down to the last detail (range). There are a limited amount of townhouses and penthouses available so I suggest you make an appointment soon. There are small variations in some of these residences that equate to large value differences. So no matter what style of city living you are currently looking for The Oosten not only has that space for you, but offers a multitude of additional luxury amenities. If you would like to know more about The Oosten or to schedule a viewing please feel free to contact me at Daniel@apgny.com or (646)692-9496.