NEW YORK CITY—Extell Development Corp. has ventured out of Manhattan and bought the remaining residential development rights at City Point, a 1.9 million square foot, mixed-use development in Downtown Brooklyn. The firm paid over $115 million—or about $217 per buildable square foot—to sellers Acadia Realty Trust and Washington Square Partners for a 21,500-square-foot parcel at the mega complex.

“It's a nice site, it's a significant size and it was a reasonable price,” Extell president Gary Barnett tells the New York Times. The firm technically will be leasing the property with the right to purchase it in a few decades.  A spokesperson did not return GlobeSt.com's call for additional comment.

Extell will develop a 665,000-square-foot tower on Willoughby St., between Gold St. and Flatbush Ave. Extension, that will be divided into 600,000 square feet of residential space—or approximately 500 units, which most likely will be condominiums in keeping with the developer's modus operandi—and 65,000 square feet of commercial space at the base of the tower. Construction is slated to start in 2017 and be completed by 2020.

Acadia and Washington Square will retain the remaining commercial portion of the parcel, also known as Phase 3. The purchase marks Extell's first residential development in Brooklyn and is a testament to the vast evolution of Downtown Brooklyn over the past few years into a highly desirable destination.

"We are thrilled to be entering the Brooklyn market," says Barnett. “With City Point leading its transformation, Downtown Brooklyn has emerged as one of the strongest neighborhoods in the borough.”

Commercial tenants already committed to City Point include major retailers, such as Century 21 department stores and City Target, as well as Alamo Drafthouse cinema.