Rendering of 743 Blake Avenue, one of the four proposed buildings. Image Credit: NYC CPC.
The sites are all located within a few blocks from each other. On March 30, 2022, the City Planning Commission held a public hearing for an application that would facilitate the construction of four new buildings with a total of 46 affordable units in East New York, Brooklyn. The four sites are located at 492-496 Glenmore Avenue, 2358-2362 Pitkin Avenue, 943 Dumont Avenue, and 743 Blake Avenue, as part of the Sutter Place Neighborhood Construction Program project. All sites are City-owned and currently vacant lots.
492-496 Glenmore Avenue is a proposed three-story walk-up building with six affordable two- or three-bedroom rental units. The building will have in-unit laundry, and a landscaped rear yard accessible to all tenants.
2358-2362 Pitkin Avenue is a proposed eight-story elevator building with 26 affordable units featuring a mix of one- and two- bedroom units. The building will also feature a landscaped rear yard accessible to all tenants, bicycle parking, a common laundry room, terrace space on the eighth floor, and recreation space and commercial space on the ground floor.
943 Dumont Avenue is a proposed three-story building with six affordable units that will all be three-bedrooms. All units will have in-unit laundry and tenants will have access to a landscaped rear yard.
743 Blake Avenue is a proposed four-story building with eight affordable three-bedroom units. All units will have in-unit laundry and tenants will have access to a landscaped rear yard.
Across the four buildings, the units will be offered at a range of 30 to 70 percent area median income, with 85 percent of the units available at 60 percent AMI or less. At those ranges, a one-bedroom unit could range between approximately $506 to $1,176, and a three-bedroom could range from approximately $675 to $1,916. The units will be bound by a regulatory agreement at the time of closing to dictate the level and length of affordability. All units will be available through the HPD Housing Connect 2.0 portal, and during the initial lease-up 50 percent of the affordable units will have an occupancy preference for residents of Brooklyn Community Board 5, where the sites are located.
To facilitate the project, the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) is requesting a Urban Development Action Area designation and Urban Development Action Area Project (“UDAAP”) approval, which will provide an up to a 20-year tax exemption from real estate taxes on the assessed value of the building. HPD is also seeking the disposition of City-owned property, which will then allow co-developers Cypress Hills Local Development Corporation and Mutual Housing Association of NY (MHANY) Management, Inc., to proceed with the development of the four buildings.
At the public hearing, Commissioner Anna Hayes-Levin commented that she appreciated the effort to make something of these smaller sites.
Commissioner David Burney raised a concern about the proposed inclusion of areas of planters strips outside of the buildings and how difficult maintenance and upkeep can be. The applicant team responded that it was required as part of the residential zoning for this area.
No members of the public spoke on this application.
City Planning will vote on this application on a later date.
By: Veronica Rose (Veronica is the CityLaw fellow and a New York Law School graduate, Class of 2018.)