Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams has thrown his support behind a plan to develop two mixed-use affordable housing developments in Brownsville.
The project, led by Bridge Rockaway Housing Development Fund, would include a six and a seven story building with 174 affordable apartments and a shared industrial ground floor to be used for light manufacturing.
Of the apartments, 50% would be for the formerly homeless and 87 would be supportive housing units for youth aging out of foster care and other vulnerable populations.
The Uniform Land Use Review Procedure, which Adams was part of, is recommending the project's approval. He said the project advanced the goals of the Brownsville Plan by building affordable housing on vacant or underdeveloped City-owned land and including amenities for the neighborhood.
Adams said the COVID-19 pandemic had not put other crises in the borough, like the lack of affordable housing and dearth of economic opportunity in underserved areas, on hold, " if anything, it has exacerbated them."
"I believe the vibrant mixed-use space proposed for 803 Rockaway Avenue has the potential to truly serve a diverse set of needs in this community, ensuring people have affordable places to live, a community facility that serves as a hub for the neighborhood and manufacturing space that provides sorely-needed jobs for local residents," he said.
"As someone who has long advocated for more services targeted toward homeless youth and those aging out of foster care, I also believe the supportive housing in this development must prioritize these vulnerable populations, who have long suffered from a lack of decent housing options."
As part of his recommendation, Adams said the manufacturing jobs created by the project needed to go to local residents and he required the manager of the ground-floor manufacturing space to conduct outreach to local manufacturers.
The application will be heard by the New York City Department of City Planning (DCP) on Wednesday, October 7th.
