City Planning Advances Central Brooklyn Rezoning That Could Create 4,600 Apartments

The City Planning Commission (CPC) has approved a plan that could create up to 4,600 housing units along Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn.

The plan, which would transform a 22-block corridor along Atlantic Avenue between Vanderbilt and Nostrand avenues, could lead to the construction of 1,440 permanently income-restricted homes if it is adopted by New York City Council in the coming months.

Mayor Eric Adams and the New York City Department of City Planning (DCP) pitched a rough outline for the proposal back in September 2023 stating that the old industrial zoning for the area left behind a string of abandoned buildings and some converted lofts created by developers granted spot rezonings.

“Atlantic Avenue has been held back by outdated zoning for far too long,” Dan Garodnick, director of the DCP and chair of the CPC, said in a statement. “A central corridor like this should be a vibrant place for residents and workers alike, and that’s exactly what this plan will achieve.”

The parts of Crown Heights and Bedford-Stuyvesant covered in the plan would also see a number of infrastructure upgrades, public amenities and traffic safety improvements, according to the mayor’s office.

Some of the housing — about 380 units — the city plans to build itself at 542 Dean Street, 516 Bergen Street and 1134-1142 Pacific Street, which will be reserved for the elderly, the formerly homeless and low-income households, according to the city.

The city also allocated $24.2 million to renovate St. Andrew’s Playground and Lowry Triangle as part of the rezoning.

Rezoning efforts kicked off eight years ago during former Mayor Bill de Blasio’s administration. Since then, dozens of meetings have been held with Brooklyn’s Community Board 8 and neighborhood groups to gain feedback from residents.

The new zoning regulations could help produce 800,000 square feet of new commercial space for manufacturing businesses and community facilities, according to officials in the Adams administration.

Buildings directly on Atlantic Avenue can rise up to 18 stories under the rezoning while side streets will be a little lower in stature, according to a DCP spokesperson.

The Atlantic Avenue rezoning is on top of Adams’s recent citywide rezoning push, known as the City of Yes for Housing Opportunity. That effort aims to clear the way for up to 80,000 new units of housing in the city over the next 15 years along with a $5 billion investment from the city and state in infrastructure and housing upgrades.

Mark Hallum can be reached at mhallum@commercialobserver.com.