City officials, project partners, and community leaders recently joined to celebrate the commencement of construction at Dekalb Commons, a three-building affordable housing complex in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. Designed by Magnusson Architecture & Planning and developed in partnership by the Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation and St. Nicks Alliance, the buildings are currently addressed as 652 Dekalb Avenue, 639 Dekalb Avenue, and 1187 Fulton Street.
The complex will include a pair of seven-story buildings and one four-story building that together yield 85 affordable units. This includes 13 apartments set aside for formerly homeless individuals. There will also be around 1,190 square feet of ground-floor commercial space.
The buildings are all designed to Passive House standards and have already received New York State Energy Research and Development Authority’s Buildings of Excellence Blue Ribbon Award, demonstrating commitment to building more carbon neutral-ready multi-family spaces.
The developers were selected in 2017 by the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) to develop the three city-owned sites, which sat vacant for years.
“The start of construction of Dekalb Commons is a major win for Bed-Stuy and Central Brooklyn,” said Blondel Pinnock, president and CEO of Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation. “New York is in the midst of a housing crisis and our community is under threat of displacement. We know that housing stability is at the heart of a successful community and Restoration is proud to serve as a co-developer on this project to significantly increase the neighborhood’s affordable housing supply.”
The $62.3 million project received financing from a variety of sources including HPD’s Extremely Low- and Low-income Affordability (ELLA) program, the Housing Development Corporation’s tax-exempt city bonds, along with the NYSERDA award.
The project also received NY City capital grant funds from city councilmember Chi Osse and former Brooklyn borough president now Mayor Eric Adams.
Construction and permanent financing is being provided by Webster Bank. CREA LLC with HSBC Bank is making the Tax Credit equity investment in the project.
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So that’s $743,000 per unit on city-owned land. Is it any wonder why there’s a housing crisis which City leaders cannot adequately resolve?