Report: Amazon seeking to expand in Brooklyn

Amazon may be looking to expand its distribution operations in Brooklyn to as much as 1 million square feet, according to a published report. 

Earlier this year, the retail giant announced it had abandoned its plans to develop a 25,000-employee second headquarters in Queens. According to a Crain's New York Business story published Wednesday, Amazon is searching for a large space to operate a logistics facility and is considering a location in Industry City in Sunset Park.

The 35-acre property is owned by a group of real estate investors including Jamestown, Belvedere Capital and Angelo Gordon. 

“While it’s clear that a number of companies are looking to satisfy their ‘last mile’ needs in Brooklyn, we decline to comment on any specific negotiations that might be underway,” Lisa Serbaniewicz, a spokeswoman for Industry City, said in a statement.

An Amazon representative said in an email that the company doesn't "have anything confirmed in Brooklyn."

Neil A. Dolgin, co-president of Kalmon Dolgin Affiliates Inc., a 115-year-old Brooklyn-based industrial real estate brokerage, said that while he's heard from Amazon that the company is looking for additional space in Brooklyn, "no one has come up with those types of numbers yet” in reference to expansion to 1 million square feet. 

Amazon currently occupies 50,000 square feet near Industry City at 850 Third Ave., a building that his brokerage represents, Dolgin said.

“They’ve had discussions about expanding their operation within the building or within the area,” he said, but added that accommodating 1 million square feet in the area would likely require new construction and would face major infrastructure hurdles.

"They would have to do a lot of changes to accommodate that type of square footage,” Dolgin said. 

Amazon operates a 161,360-square-foot warehouse in Bethpage in the former Goya Foods building, and an 855,000-square-foot warehouse on Staten Island. 

— With David Reich-Hale