A vacant lot tucked between Empire Boulevard and Lefferts Avenue in East Flatbush is headed for a seven-story residential building with 22 apartments, according to newly filed permits. The site at 17 Lamont Court sits just steps from the Sterling Street subway station, and the filing marks developer Moshe Tal's second attempt to build on the same patch of land in less than a decade.
The new proposal calls for a 74-foot-tall structure spanning 15,301 square feet of residential space, according to New York YIMBY. With an average unit size of about 695 square feet, the building is most likely headed for the rental market, per the same outlet's reporting. Plans also call for a concrete-based structure with a 33-foot-long rear yard, and Nataliya Donskoy of ND Architecture & Design PC is listed as architect of record.
Tal is listed as the owner behind the applications, and this isn't his first swing at this particular lot. Back in August 2018, permits were filed under his name and the same architecture firm for a smaller, 6-story building at 17 Lamont Court proposing just 11 apartments across 8,840 square feet of residential space, according to New York YIMBY's earlier coverage. Demolition permits were filed in mid-July 2018 to clear the existing building, but the building was never demolished and the lot did not remain vacant.
Doubling Density on the Same Footprint
What stands out about the new filing is how much has changed while the building's height barely moved. The 2026 proposal packs 22 residences into a structure reaching virtually the same 74 feet as the 2018 plan, essentially doubling the unit count without adding floors, a shift the outlet frames as a move toward smaller, higher-density rental units. No estimated completion date has been announced for the project.
Donskoy is listed as architect of record for the Lamont Court proposal.
Part of a Wider Pattern Near Sterling Street
The Lamont Court filing isn't an isolated case. Just last month, permits were filed for another vacant infill lot at 643 Midwood Street, also near the Sterling Street station, proposing a four-story, 16-unit building.
That pattern tracks with the neighborhood's rental math. Median monthly rent in East Flatbush hit $3,000 as of September, a 4.35% jump from a year earlier, according to Realtor.com Economic Research. Home values in the area climbed too, reaching an average of $719,051 in September, up 2.9% year-over-year per the Zillow Home Value Index — numbers that help explain why developers keep circling back to pocket lots like this one.
Zoning Rules Open the Door to Denser Lots
City and state policy has also shifted in ways that favor projects like this. The NYC Council approved the City of Yes for Housing Opportunity zoning amendment in December 2024, aiming to enable roughly 80,000 housing units citywide over 15 years by adjusting floor area ratios and easing parking requirements near transit.
The 17 Lamont Court proposal is a small infill project, with apartments likely intended for rental use.
