Brooklyn to Get 900-Unit Affordable Community
The $400 million redevelopment is part of a $1.4 billion initiative launched in 2017.
Empire State Development Corp. has joined forces with New York State Homes and Community Renewal and nonprofit Breaking Ground to develop 900 affordable units in Brooklyn’s East Flatbush neighborhood. The project will redevelop the Kingsboro Psychiatric Center as part of the $1.4 billion Vital Brooklyn initiative.
The development has a price tag of $400 million and will bring needed affordable, supportive and senior housing apartments to the neighborhood, while also replacing homeless shelters dating back to the 1930s with two new facilities.
The full project team includes Almat Urban, Douglaston Development, Jobe Development and the Velez Organiation. Adjaye Associates and Studio Zewde will oversee the design.
In addition to the 900 apartments, the development will provide green spaces, a basketball court, areas for urban farming and a greenhouse on the 7.2-acre site at 681 Clarkson Ave. The community will also have exercise rooms, a 7,000-square-foot community room and a 10,000-square-foot grocery store.
The Vital Brooklyn initiative, launched by Governor Andrew Cuomo in 2017, is an ongoing community development program designed to address the economic and racial disparities of Central Brooklyn neighborhoods. The project aims to create more than 200 permanent jobs along with some 3,700 constructions jobs.
In October, the Arker Cos. completed the first phase of a 1,163-unit affordable housing project in Brooklyn. The development was also part of the Vital Brooklyn initiative, involving a partnership with Empire State Development Corp. and the HCR.
