Ebenezer Plaza, designed by Perkins Eastman Architects
The City Planning Commission approved the construction of “Ebenezer Plaza” which will contain two new mixed-use buildings with 531 affordable dwelling units, commercial space and a new house of worship for the Church of God of East Flatbush. On July 12, 2017, the City Planning Commission issued a favorable report on a joint application from Brownsville Linden Plaza LLC. The application requested four zoning map amendments and a zoning text amendment to designate the project as a Mandatory Inclusionary Housing area. The map amendments will upzone two blocks in the Brownsville neighborhood of Brooklyn. The project area is bounded by Mother Gaston Boulevard to the west, Powell Street to the east, New Lots Avenue to the north, and Hegeman Avenue to the south.
The project is a joint venture between Brownsville Linden Plaza LLC, Procida Companies, Brisa Builders Corporation, and the Church of God of East Flatbush. The Church currently owns the two blocks and operates a house of worship at 409–15 East 95th Street in Brooklyn.
On one block the applicant proposes the construction of a nine- and eleven-story building with 240,408 square feet of residential space divided into 315 dwelling units. All 315 units would be affordable to households at or below 60 percent of the area median income. The building would contain 34,481 square feet of community space for the Church. The ground floor would also contain 7,468 square feet of commercial retail space.
On the second block the applicant proposes a seven- and eleven-story building with 166,510 square feet of residential floor area divided into 216 dwelling units. All 216 units would be affordable to households at or below 80 percent of the area median income. The ground floor would also contain 19,687 square feet of commercial retail space.
Ebenezer Plaza, designed by Perkins Eastman Architects
On April 25, 2017, Brooklyn Community Board 16 voted 22-0 to approve the project. On June 2, 2017, Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams issued a report recommending approval of the application subject to conditions. The conditions included commitments to resiliency, local retail, local preference for renting, fifty percent of the units be two- and three-bedroom units, traffic safety commitments, and Brooklyn-based workforce participation.
On May 24, 2017, the City Planning Commission held a public hearing at which four people spoke in favor of the application and none opposed. A representative of Procida Companies spoke on the applicant team’s efforts to find community appropriate tenants for the retail spaces, and the urban design features of the development to promote pedestrian safety.
In its report, the Commission found the application to be appropriate. The Commission noted that the development site is underutilized and has “excellent transit access.” The Commission wrote that the “proposed development would significantly improve the connection between the residential neighborhoods of southern Brownsville and the Brownsville Recreation Center and Playground.”
CPC: Ebenezer Plaza, Brooklyn (170190 ZRK; 170189 ZMK) (July 12, 2017).
By: Jonathon Sizemore (Jonathon is the CityLaw Fellow and a New York Law School Graduate, Class of 2016).