The McKibbin Street Lofts are two opposing loft

Loft

A loft can be an upper story or attic in a building, directly under the roof. Alternatively, a loft apartment refers to large adaptable open space, often converted for residential use from some other use, often light industrial...

 buildings in East Williamsburg, Brooklyn

Brooklyn

Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...

. They share similar features, such as 5 floors (16 apartments per floor at 255 and 20 at 248). The apartments range in size from 400 to 2500 square feet (various units between the first and second floors of both buildings are duplex

Duplex (building)

The term duplex can be used to describe several different dwelling unit configurations:A duplex house is defined as a dwelling having apartments with separate entrances for two families. This includes two-story houses having a complete apartment on each floor and also side-by-side apartments on a...

es). Approximately 400 tenants live in the two buildings.
The building has a reputation for hosting raucous all-night "loft parties." Given this, and the preponderance of twenty-something recent college graduates living in the two buildings, the buildings have been given the nickname "Art Dorm." The building was constructed in 1936 and served as a factory

Factory

A factory or manufacturing plant is an industrial building where laborers manufacture goods or supervise machines processing one product into another. Most modern factories have large warehouses or warehouse-like facilities that contain heavy equipment used for assembly line production...

 space manufacturing various textiles and garments until 1998, when it was converted into residential lofts.

Potion Cafe

Potion Cafe was in the middle of 248 McKibbin. Open 6 days a week (closed on Wednesdays), the cafe had a wide variety of food and beverages. On Mondays, there was an open-microphone night attended by many local singer-songwriters, hip hop artists, poets, with many performers from all over the world appearing. Potion Cafe has since closed, but the core members have continued to host the open mic at The Tea Factory Lofts (175 Stockholm Street).

Major Events

• On July 4, 2005, at approximately 11 AM, at 255 McKibbin Street, apartment number 222 (304 in the new numbering—see below) exploded, causing major structural, smoke, and water damage to surrounding units. The explosion
  Explosion
  An explosion is a rapid increase in volume and release of energy in an extreme manner, usually with the generation of high temperatures and the release of gases. An explosion creates a shock wave. If the shock wave is a supersonic detonation, then the source of the blast is called a "high explosive"...
  
   is thought to have been caused by the combustion of wood
  Wood
  Wood is a hard, fibrous tissue found in many trees. It has been used for hundreds of thousands of years for both fuel and as a construction material. It is an organic material, a natural composite of cellulose fibers embedded in a matrix of lignin which resists compression...
  
   sealant
  Sealant
  A sealant may be viscous material that has little or no flow characteristics and stay where they are applied or thin and runny so as to allow it to penetrate the substrate by means of capillary reaction...
  
   vapor. Apartment 222 had recently been vacated, and was being refurbished by the building's management; the wood floor had been coated with sealant, and left unattended to saturate. When sealant vapor reached the pilot light of the unit's stove (which had not been turned off), it exploded. The windows and metal window frames in 222 were ripped out of the building's brick walls.
• On July 19, 2011, FBI agents raided 255 McKibbin looking for members of vigilante group Anonymous
  Anonymous (group)
  Anonymous is an international hacking group, spread through the Internet, initiating active civil disobedience, while attempting to maintain anonymity. Originating in 2003 on the imageboard 4chan, the term refers to the concept of many online community users simultaneously existing as an anarchic,...
  
  . Former residents from rock band Broken Glow were mentioned in a New York Post
  New York Post
  The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
  
   article as possible suspects.

Notable residents

The building is the current and/or former home of:

• Brooklyn comedy troupe Poykpac
  Poykpac
  POYKPAC is a Brooklyn-based comedy troupe consisting of five writer/performers: Ryan Hall, Ryan Hunter, Taige Jensen, Jennifer Lyon, and Maggie Ross.They are most well known for their YouTube videos, and...
  
  , who are best known for their videos "Hipster Olympics" and "Mario: Game Over".
• Guitar player and singer/songwriter Kaki King
  Kaki King
  Kaki King is an American guitarist and composer. King is known for her percussive and jazz-tinged melodies, energetic live shows, use of multiple tunings on acoustic and lap steel guitar, and her diverse range in different genres.In February 2006, Rolling Stone released a list of "The New Guitar...
  
  
• Indie Rock band Bishop Allen
  Bishop Allen
  Bishop Allen is an American indie rock band from Brooklyn, New York. The band's core members are Justin Rice and Christian Rudder, who are supported both on stage and in the studio by a rotating cast of musical collaborators...
  
  
• Jam Band U-Melt
• Indie Pop Band Devious Semantics

In media

• Several scenes from the Spirit Award nominated film Quiet City
  Quiet City (film)
  Quiet City is a 2007 film directed by Aaron Katz.It premiered at the 2007 South by Southwest Film Festival in the Emerging Visions category...
  
  were shot at 255 McKibbin, during the fall of 2006.
• Currently the local t.v show coincidentally called "The Mckibbin Show" is being filmed as of now. (2010)
• In 2005, writing/director/actor John Cameron Mitchell
  John Cameron Mitchell
  John Cameron Mitchell is an American writer, actor, and director. He is best known for his motion pictures Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Shortbus and Rabbit Hole.- Early life:...
  
   flyered the buildings in hopes of shooting a critical scene of his Shortbus
  Shortbus
  Shortbus is a 2006 comedy-drama film written and directed by John Cameron Mitchell. The plot revolves around a sexually diverse ensemble of colorful characters trying desperately to connect in New York City. The characters converge in a weekly Brooklyn artistic/sexual salon loosely inspired by...
  
  movie here in which two characters spot each other from across an alley or street. A more appropriate location in two Williamsburg, Brooklyn lofts was eventually chosen.
• An article on the front page of the New York Times on May 7, 2008 described the 248 and 255 McKibbin buildings and their free-wheeling atmosphere extensively.

External links

http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/ny/bushwick-lofthouse-tour-140970

• http://255mckibbin.org
• http://248mckibbin.org