A contentious plan to tear down a beloved Brooklyn Public Library branch to build a new library and 139 luxury condominiums cleared another hurdle Dec. 27.

The Department of Buildings approved the plans for a new 26,620-square-foot library branch on the first floor of a 36-story, luxury high-rise. The design also includes a pop-up retail space and a coffee shop. Hudson Companies agreed to pay $52 million for the library site last year.

The developer has also agreed to build 144 apartments priced to be affordable to households earning 60% to 165% of the area median income, and located on the other end of Downtown Brooklyn. The tower is scheduled to be finished by 2019, but won’t be allowed to open until the affordable apartments are complete.

Read More at Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Connect with Hudson Companies’ Fowler