Massive Affordable Housing Development Coming To Clarkson Avenue

EAST FLATBUSH, BROOKLYN — Gov. Andrew Cuomo's plan to bring 4,000 affordable homes to Central Brooklyn will include nearly 300 new apartments on Clarkson Avenue, the governor announced Tuesday.

Officials unveiled plans this week for "Clarkson Estates," a 291-apartment development that will be built on a Clarkson Avenue plot owned by the nearby Health Science Center.

The development — which will include a 30,000-square-foot "HUB" of community services — is the latest in Cuomo's $1.4-billion Vital Brooklyn initiative, a project launched in 2017 to address economic and racial disparities in Brooklyn neighborhoods.

"This project is going to result in nearly 300 new affordable and supportive housing units that will help hundreds of our friends and neighbors in Central Brooklyn, and the State will continue to find ways to support the New Yorkers who need it most as we address the unprecedented challenges of today," Cuomo said in a release Tuesday.

The new development is one of a dozen sites slated for a Vital Brooklyn project. Cuomo also recently announced a 322-apartment development near the Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center.

The Clarkson Avenue building will include 146 units set aside for youth aging out of foster care, formerly incarcerated individuals and formerly homeless young adults, according to the release.

CAMBA Housing Ventures, the developers, will provide on-site services in the "HUB" including childcare, a health screening center, a small business incubator, workforce training, a performance space, a food pantry and a technology center with classes. The HUB will be open to the public.

It will be named in memory of Dr. Roy A. Hastick, who died from the coronavirus in April. Hastick founded the Caribbean American Chamber of Commerce and Industry and was a leader in the Brooklyn business community.

"Dr. Roy A. Hastick Sr., was a man of great wisdom with a spirit of giving and a calling to help others," the Hastick family said. "...It is only fitting that this intergenerational community hub would bear his name."

The Clarkson Estates building will include laundry rooms, a fitness room, a training kitchen, library, computer room, bike storage and a community room. It will also be outfitted with green roofs with solar panels, a courtyard with a serenity garden, a wooded walk, a turf field, communal seating and a children's play area.

"One of the most critical challenges we face in Central Brooklyn is ensuring our residents have access to safe and affordable housing," Assembly Member Diana Richardson said. "This project is unique because we will bring not only desperately needed affordable housing to our community but a state of the art community facility space...Our partnership with Governor Cuomo will create a landmark project that will have a lasting impact on our community for decades to come."