To settle lawsuits brought by neighborhood groups, a bevy of government agencies and nonprofit groups outlined an agreement this week for adaptive reuse of historic buildings in Brooklyn Bridge Park.

The Civil War-era Tobacco Warehouse (foreground) will now become a cultural venue.The accord would allow for development of the Tobacco Warehouse -- a Civil War-era structure that is now a brick shell -- into a cultural venue, and the neighboring Empire Stores, another historic building in the park, into a retail complex.

At the same time, the agreement identified land in the form of city-owned property beneath the Manhattan Bridge that will be added to the park. Two state lawmakers, Sen. Dan Squadron and Assemblywoman Joan Millman, who helped negotiate the agreement, insisted on the creation of a community advisory committee to help plan the new parkland, which measures about one acre.

Among the groups signing the accord are the Brooklyn Heights Association, the Fulton Ferry Landing Association, the New York Landmarks Conservancy and the Preservation League of New York; all had been party to the litigation.

Before any development can begin on the two sites, state legislation has to be passed and the National Park Service needs to approve such development. If the necessary approvals are reached, the Tobacco Warehouse could reopen for programming as early as this summer, according to the city.