Floyd Bennett Field’s historic hangars get $10M in state funding for redevelopment
Floyd Bennett Field’s Hangers 3 and 4. Image courtesy of the National Park Service.
New York State is providing $10 million to help restore and reactivate two historic hangars at Brooklyn’s Floyd Bennett Field for the first time in nearly a century. Gov. Kathy Hochul announced on Monday the funding for the Jamaica Bay-Rockaway Parks Conservancy’s (JBRPC) efforts to transform hangars 3 and 4 into a year-round public space at what was once New York City’s first municipal airport.
“Floyd Bennett Field is a true New York treasure. It was once a place where legends like Amelia Earhart took to the skies, and today it’s where families come to explore, play and connect with nature,” Hochul said.
“With this $10 million investment, we are turning these historic hangars into a place for learning, opportunity and fun,” she added. “As a mom, I want every family in this city to be able to enjoy this iconic place well into the future.”
Established in May 1931, Floyd Bennett Field became an internationally renowned hub of aviation innovation. The airport hosted record-breaking flights by famous aviators, including Amelia Earhart, Roscoe Turner, and Howard Hughes, according to JBRPC.
During World War II, Floyd Bennett Field was transferred to the U.S. Navy and operated as a naval air station. It was deactivated in 1971 and later transferred to the National Park Service (NPS), which now manages the site as part of Gateway National Recreation Area. The field remains one of the five boroughs’ largest open spaces.
In September 2024, after a decade of stakeholder engagement and visioning, JBRPC unveiled its vision to build a center for innovation in “nature-based solutions” as part of a broader restoration of the field. The broader plan includes a cultural events space, food and beverage offerings, and communal areas.
There are eight original Art Deco-style hangars, with hangars 5-8 converted into the Aviator Sports and Events Center in 2006. The redevelopment of hangars 3 and 4 will be designed by architecture firm LTL.
Under the plan, hangar 3 will host public functions, including food halls, a performance venue, and spaces for park-related programming. Hangar 4 will be built for scientific research and innovation revolving around the natural environment and “advancing nature-based solutions,” according to the group.
NPS is currently renovating the exterior of the buildings. JBRPC says they are a third of the way to their fundraising goal of $75 million.
“This $10 million commitment from Governor Hochul represents a transformative investment in the future of Floyd Bennett Field and Jamaica Bay,” JBRPC Chair Tom Secunda said in a statement. “Restoring Hangars 3 and 4 is an ambitious undertaking, and investments of this scale build the momentum needed to turn a bold vision into reality.”
Another underutilized section of the former airport will become a new education campus. This past September, nonprofit Runway Green announced a 60-year lease with NPS to transform seven acres of the field into a shared education campus, designed in collaboration with landscape architecture firm SCAPE and firms ARO and Collageate.
Runway Green will operate the education hub, which will offer programs focused on environmental stewardship, agriculture, career exploration, and other “real-world” learning opportunities that take advantage of the site’s lush natural landscape, according to the Brooklyn Paper.
Slated to break ground in 2027, the first phase includes a three-acre urban farm developed in partnership with The Campaign Against Hunger. Future phases are expected to bring a public high school, welcome center, ropes course, and campgrounds, along with programs focused on clean energy, sustainable agriculture, building decarbonization, and marine science.
The project has already secured $9.3 million in public funding, including $1 million from Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, $3.3 million from the City Council, and $2 million in federal funding secured with the support of Sens. Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand. An additional $3 million has been designated for site improvements.
The transformation of Floyd Bennett Field joins a broader push to invest in nature-based solutions and repurpose aging city infrastructure as hubs for climate resilience education and innovation. On Governors Island, a $700 million climate research hub known as the New York Climate Exchange is planned to advance research and develop solutions to the global climate crisis.
RELATED:
