1,000-unit affordable and supportive housing project breaks ground in East Flatbush
Aerial rendering of Sparrow Square. Credit: Phillip Van Nostrand
Work on a major affordable and supportive housing project with roughly 1,000 new homes officially broke ground in East Flatbush this week. Gov. Kathy Hochul on Wednesday announced the start of work on the first phase of Sparrow Square, a redevelopment of the Kingsboro Psychiatric Center Campus, as part of the Vital Brooklyn initiative to build 4,000 affordable homes in Central Brooklyn. Designed by Adjaye Associates with Hill West Architects as architect of record, the first phase includes two 10-story buildings with 261 affordable apartments, including 117 supportive homes for formerly homeless New Yorkers.
Located at 681 Clarkson Avenue, Sparrow Square is being developed by Douglaston Development, Almat Urban, Breaking Ground, Brooklyn Community Services, the Center for Urban Community Services, Jobe Development, and the Velez Organization. Upon completion, the redevelopment will include roughly 1,000 affordable and supportive homes.
The project is part of the $1.4 billion Vital Brooklyn Initiative, launched by former Gov. Andrew Cuomo in 2017 to address long-standing disparities in Brooklyn and create a model for community development and wellness in some of the borough’s most underserved neighborhoods. A request for proposals for the site was issued in the summer of 2020 and selected in July 2021.
Residents will have access to shared amenities, including a fitness center, bike storage, landscaped terraces, and on-site supportive services. The site will also include a roughly 10,000-square-foot facility for Brooklyn Ballet, expanding access to arts and cultural programming.
The project will also create Sparrow Way, a new private drive running parallel to East 43rd Street that will integrate the site into the surrounding street grid.
Both buildings will be constructed to meet Passive House sustainability standards and use all-electric systems, solar panels, and green roofs. The project will also include street infrastructure such as electric vehicle chargers and sustainable stormwater management systems.
Breaking Ground secured $242 million in financing for Phase 1 in December through a combination of tax-exempt bonds, subsidies, tax credits, and funding from New York State Homes and Community Renewal, the state Homeless Housing and Assistance Corporation, and the state Office of Mental Health.
The Urban Investment Group at Goldman Sachs Alternatives is providing nearly $240 million in additional financing for Phase 1. Construction is slated for completion in the first quarter of 2029.
“Today’s groundbreaking represents far more than a milestone of a development—it marks another step towards the beginning of a new community,” Jeff Levine, founder and chairman of the Douglaston Companies, said.
“Sparrow Square will transform this site into a place where families, seniors, and individuals have access to high-quality affordable housing, supportive services, homeownership opportunities, and welcoming public spaces,” he added.
Hochul also announced the completion of Utica Crescent on Thursday, a 322-unit affordable and supportive housing project built on a former parking lot adjacent to Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center. The project was first announced in July 2020.
Another component of the Vital Brooklyn Initiative, the project includes 322 units for households earning up to 80 percent of the area median income; 89 units include on-site supportive services for eligible elderly residents. The building also includes a health care center operated by One Brooklyn Health System, retail space, a grocery store, a community facility, and recreational space.
With Sparrow Square, Utica Crescent, and other developments, including The Rise in Brownsville, Alafia Phase 1 in East New York, and Herkimer Gardens in Bedford-Stuyvesant, more than 2,500 homes have been completed or are under construction as part of the initiative.
“These two transformative developments in East Flatbush bring the promise of the Vital Brooklyn Initiative to life – creating affordable apartments and expanding access to health and community services in an area of the city that has been underserved for decades,” Hochul said.
“These investments put the health and well-being of the developments’ residents and the surrounding neighborhood at the forefront and bring us closer to creating a more equitable Brooklyn where everyone has a fair shot at a brighter future.”
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