Plan released for a seven-building, 800+ unit affordable development in Brownsville

Plans for a seven-building affordable housing development in Brooklyn’s Brownsville were released this week, as part of the city’s revitalization effort in the neighborhood. As part of the “Brownsville Plan,” the proposed project includes eight-to nine-story residential buildings with new retail and community space along Livonia Avenue. The project would extend the existing Marcus Garvey Apartments, a housing complex built in the mid-1970s that currently has many underutilized parking lots (h/t YIMBY). Overall, the more than 900,000-square-foot development will bring over 840 affordable apartments, currently estimated to be set aside for New Yorkers earning 80 percent or below the area median income.

Last June, the city’s Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) released its Brownsville Plan, a $150 million investment in the neighborhood’s parks and roadways, community space, health center and affordable housing over the next five years.

Developed by L+M Development Partners, along with HPD, NYC Parks and the city’s Administrative Services, the Marcus Garvey Extension, adds over 98,000 square feet of community facility space and more than 35,000 square feet of local retail space, which would include a grocery, sit-down restaurants, a bank and social service providers. Curtis+Ginsberg Architects are handling the design of the complex.

L+M purchased the Marcus Garvey Apartments in 2014 and then had them renovated with new kitchen and bathrooms, replacement boilers, window repairs and sidewalk and courtyard repairs. As the architect, Curtis+Ginsberg installed the largest solar photovoltaic and first fuel-cell and lithium battery installation for affordable housing in the state.

According to the planning documents, each individual building will take about 18 to 24 months to construct. For all seven buildings, construction should wrap up in four years. Developers anticipate the buildings to be operational sometime in 2024.

[Via YIMBY]

RELATED: 

• Robert A.M. Stern’s affordable housing development in Brownsville approved by City Planning
• Governor Cuomo’s $1.4B Central Brooklyn plan stokes gentrification debate
• The city will produce 500 affordable apartments across 87 hard-to-fill vacant lots

Renderings/ Graphics via HPD, L+M and Curtis+Ginsberg Architects