Architects of Brooklyn multifamily properties today aim to design not just another set of apartments, but a distinct community centered around shared neighborhood history as well as uniquely Brooklyn activities and character.

Two Trees Management’s newest project, 325 Kent, is one of the most prominent examples of this trend in South Williamsburg.

The building, designed by Lower Manhattan-based architecture firm SHoP Architects, features 522 apartments across 16 stories centered around a 2K SF fourth-floor courtyard garden. Though it appears as a “square donut” from a front-facing view on Kent Avenue, passersby to the property’s north, east or south are privy to sloping, layered structure dotted with bordered terraces and inner courtyards.

325 Kent’s square hole is topped by a three-story bridge, which serves as the location of all of the property’s key amenities.

SHoP Architects has outfitted the building with a copper-and-zinc facade, specifically to glaze the donut with a vintage exterior as the metals oxidize in coming decades. The curtain wall is punctuated with a wide array of patterns to maximize natural sunlight in each apartment.

Sitting on a former Domino’s Sugar refinery site north of the Williamsburg Bridge, 325 Kent is the first chapter of an 11-acre mixed-use waterfront community that will soon include a 380K SF office campus. Residents, future employees and neighborhood visitors will be able to enjoy the six-acre Domino Park designed by James Corner Field Operations.

Tenants will reside in a building specially designed to draw a gentle visual connection between the extant neighborhood, the landmarked former Refinery building and future waterfront skyscrapers.

The building offers its residents a panoramic view of downtown Brooklyn from its rooftop health club. The tenant lounge features a chef’s kitchen, pool tables, a 7K SF roof deck and other amenities specifically chosen to create a friendly building community.

Still more compelling is the fact that these amenities — typically associated with Class-A products — will be part of a mixed-use residential property ranging from studios to one- and two-bedroom apartments. Two Trees has already received 87,000 applications for 325 Kent’s 104 apartments set aside for affordable and low-income tenants.

“325 Kent is the first building to open on the Domino Sugar site, and with that, we are delivering on our promise to bring striking architecture, affordable housing to local residents, and local Brooklyn retailers to the Williamsburg waterfront,” Two Trees Management principal Jed Walentas said. “The building features incredible outdoor space for residents to enjoy, that will complement the spectacular new waterfront public park coming to the neighborhood next summer.”

Part of creating a distinctly Brooklyn community is offering local Brooklyn retail. 325 Kent’s street level will be anchored by a new branch of Clinton Hill craft beer and artisanal sandwich favorite Mekelburg’s store, bar and restaurant.

To learn more about this Bisnow content partner, click here.