What's Coming to the Corner of 4th Avenue and 92nd Street? Everything Bay Ridge Residents Need to Know About 9201 4th Avenue

By Laurie Savino| Destination Living

If you've walked past the corner of 4th Avenue and 92nd Street lately, you've seen it: a hulking, seven-story commercial building that's been sitting dark and vacant for years. That's about to change — and Bay Ridge residents deserve the full picture.

Here's a complete, plainspoken breakdown of what's proposed, what it means for the neighborhood, and where things stand right now.

The Building That's There Now

The existing structure at 9201 4th Avenue was built in 1965. Over the decades it housed medical offices, nonprofits, eating and drinking establishments, and underground parking. The Certificate of Occupancy on record shows it once served as office space for nonprofits on floors 1 through 6, with medical offices on the lower levels and two levels of attended parking in the cellar.

It's been vacant for some time. And under its current zoning — C8-2 — it can only be used for commercial and auto-related purposes. No homes. No neighborhood retail. Not much that actually adds life to one of Bay Ridge's busiest corners.

What's Proposed

The applicant, 9201 LLC (developer Tim Ziss of Allied Properties), is seeking to rezone the site from C8-2 to C4-4D to make way for an 11-story mixed-use building. Here's what that means on the ground.

The Building:

• 11 stories, rising to 130 feet
• A base height of 86 feet, with upper-floor setbacks on 92nd Street (15 feet), 4th Avenue (10 feet), and 5th Avenue (10 feet) — so the upper floors step back from the street rather than rising straight up like a wall
• Total of approximately 176,000 gross square feet

The Homes:

• 97 apartments total
• 24 of those units will be permanently income-restricted — affordable housing targeted at households earning between 60% and 80% of Area Median Income, roughly $87,000–$116,000 for a family of three
• This affordability is locked in permanently through the city's Mandatory Inclusionary Housing (MIH) program — not a tax deal that expires in 20 years

The Street Level:

• 18,547 square feet of ground floor and mezzanine retail and commercial space, facing 4th Avenue, 92nd Street, and 5th Avenue
• Active storefronts at street level replacing what is currently a dead, blank facade

Let's Talk Parking

For a neighborhood where parking is always a hot-button topic, this project has a real answer.

The building will include 52 fully underground parking spaces, housed in both a cellar and sub-cellar level — roughly 36,000 square feet of below-grade garage space. There is no surface lot, no above-ground garage structure, and no visual impact on the streetscape from the parking at all.

Just as importantly, the project proposes no new curb cuts on any of the three surrounding streets — 4th Avenue, 92nd Street, or 5th Avenue. Curb cuts, the driveways that break up the sidewalk and create pedestrian conflict points, are one of the most common and legitimate complaints about new development in Brooklyn. This project adds zero.

What About the Environment?

The city conducted a full Environmental Assessment and issued a Negative Declaration on November 14, 2025 — meaning no significant adverse environmental impacts were identified across any category, including land use, shadows, air quality, noise, transportation, or neighborhood character. A few specifics worth knowing:

Shadows: The analysis found the new building would cast a small incremental shadow on the P.S./I.S. 104 school yard — approximately 25 square feet of a paved bench area, for about 10 minutes in the late afternoon near the spring and fall equinoxes. The city determined this was not significant.

Hazardous Materials: Because the site has a long commercial and parking history, the city is requiring soil, groundwater, and vapor testing before any construction begins. This is standard procedure for sites with prior commercial use and is captured in a formal "E-designation" (E-873) attached to the property — a legal requirement the developer must satisfy before building permits are issued. It's a protective measure, not a red flag.

Construction Timeline: The construction schedule calls for approximately 20 months of active building work, including demolition, excavation, foundation, superstructure, and interior fit-out. The project is anticipated to be complete around 2029.

This Corner Is Already Changing

It's worth noting that this isn't the first rezoning of its kind in this immediate area. Directly across 92nd Street from this site, a similar application was approved in 2021 at 9114 5th Avenue — also converting a C8-2 commercial zone to a residential/commercial mix — bringing a 9-story mixed-use building to that block. The 9201 4th Avenue project follows that same pattern and is consistent with how this stretch of the neighborhood has already been evolving.

Where Does Approval Stand?

This project has moved through the city's land use review process with strong community support at every stage:

• Brooklyn Community Board 10: Voted 24-2-0 in favor on January 20, 2026
• Brooklyn Borough President: Recommended approval on February 11, 2026
• The application is now before the NYC City Planning Commission, with City Council Member Kayla Santosuosso (District 47) as the final local voice before a full Council vote

A 24-2 vote at the community board level is about as close to a consensus as Bay Ridge politics gets.

The Bottom Line for Bay Ridge Residents

A long-vacant building that contributes nothing to street life would be replaced with nearly 100 new homes — 24 of them permanently affordable — and active ground-floor retail at one of the neighborhood's most-traveled corners, steps from the R train. The parking is underground, the curb cuts are zero, and the project has been environmentally cleared with no significant impacts identified.

Whether you're a longtime Bay Ridge homeowner, a renter, a local business owner, or just someone who walks past that sad empty building every day — this is what's coming.

Have thoughts? Community Board 10 has already weighed in, but the City Council review is the final local step. Stay tuned to Destination Bay Ridge for updates.

FAQ

Q: What is being built at 9201 4th Avenue in Bay Ridge? A: A developer is seeking to rezone 9201 4th Avenue in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn to build an 11-story mixed-use building with 97 apartments — 24 of which will be permanently affordable — and 18,547 square feet of ground-floor retail and commercial space. The project also includes 52 underground parking spaces. Completion is anticipated around 2029.

Q: Who is building 9201 4th Avenue Bay Ridge? A: The applicant is 9201 LLC, led by developer Tim Ziss of Allied Properties. The environmental review was prepared by GZA GeoEnvironmental.

Q: Did Community Board 10 approve 9201 4th Avenue? A: Yes. Brooklyn Community Board 10 voted 24-2-0 in favor of the 9201 4th Avenue rezoning application on January 20, 2026. The Brooklyn Borough President also recommended approval on February 11, 2026.

Q: How many affordable units will 9201 4th Avenue have? A: 24 of the 97 total apartments at 9201 4th Avenue will be permanently income-restricted under the city's Mandatory Inclusionary Housing (MIH) program, targeting households earning between 60% and 80% of Area Median Income.

Q: Will 9201 4th Avenue have parking? A: Yes. The proposed building at 9201 4th Avenue includes 52 fully underground parking spaces in a cellar and sub-cellar garage. No new curb cuts are proposed on any of the surrounding streets.