“We don’t need more parking lots for a handful of private cars on city owned land, but we certainly do need more affordable homes in Boerum Hill. We want to get more people, especially seniors, out of instability and into affordable, safe homes. HPD’s Nevins and Third project will change lives and make an already wonderful neighborhood even better,” said HPD Commissioner Adolfo Carrion Jr.    

In particular, the city is seeking distinct proposals for each site: 153 Nevins St. (the “Nevins Site”) for rental housing and 108-114 Third Ave. (the “Third Avenue Site”) for affordable senior housing. Anticipating approximately 60 homes per site, HPD plans to select the most promising proposal for each site by 2025.

The 11,500-square-foot Nevins Site is located at the corner of Nevins and Wyckoff street across from the Wyckoff Gardens NYCHA development. It also borders the Boerum Hill Historic District to the west. The 7,200 square foot Third Avenue Site is an “L”-shaped lot that fronts both Third Avenue and Wyckoff Street. 

Both sites were rezoned from a manufacturing district to a medium-density residential district in 2022. Much of the undeveloped land in Boerum Hill is a carryover from the 1930s, when entire blocks of brownstones were torn down to facilitate the building of the IND subway.

The two sites were most recently under a long-term lease with a private entity for off-street parking. Under the 280 Bergen Rezoning plan, passed by the City Council in 2022, the leases were negotiated to end early, and the sites were released back to the city to be redeveloped for future affordable housing opportunities.  

“There’s an affordability crisis in our city, and I was clear from day one that the rezoning at 280 Bergen must generate the deeply affordable housing our communities desperately need,” said Councilmember Lincoln Restler. “Thanks to the engagement and advocacy of our community, we secured control of two nearby parking lots that will be transformed into truly affordable housing that families and seniors can actually afford, as well as a grocery store that brings high quality, low-cost produce to our community.”  

The sites are in Brooklyn Community District 2 but are across the street from Community District 6. As a result, both community boards were engaged equally during the community visioning process. After a proposal or proposals are selected, HPD and the development teams will continue to provide regular updates to both community boards as the selected plans make their way through the city’s public approvals process. 

Near the end of construction, many of the new homes will be available to income qualifying households through the city’s Housing Connect lotteries portal.

“Brooklyn and all of New York State are in the thick of a housing crisis that we need to build our way out of urgently and intentionally,” said Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso. “I’m grateful to HPD for continuing to pursue affordable housing and community amenities in Boerum Hill, especially for our older adults seeking to age in place and continue to enjoy our borough to the fullest. City-owned land should always be dedicated to the public good, and converting a parking lot for private cars into stable, accessible housing for neighbors is precisely the work we need to do as we work to end the housing crisis rapidly destabilizing our communities.”

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