NYC Mayor Mamdani and Gov. Kathy Hochul held a ribbon-cutting on Oct. 15 in East New York, Brooklyn, for Phase 1A of the Innovative Urban Village, which brings 386 affordable homes. Phase 1B, which will add 453 homes along with a child care center, has topped out its structural frame.
The first phase (1A), with 386 homes, has opened at the Innovative Urban Village (IUV), a large affordable housing complex rising in East New York, Brooklyn. At a ceremony on Oct. 15, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul cut the ribbon and also held a topping-out ceremony for the next phase (1B) building.
Phase 1B will include 453 affordable homes and a child care facility. The complex is being built on the site of the Christian Cultural Center (CCC) in East New York, and when all phases are finished, it will have nearly 2,000 permanently affordable homes in 10 buildings. It will also include a child care center, community programs, job training space, a performance venue, neighborhood retail and about 3 acres of public open space.
The Phase 1 buildings are equipped with electric heating and cooling, solar panels, green roofs and electric vehicle chargers. In May of this year, the city released "Block by Block," a housing plan to build 200,000 new affordable homes and preserve 200,000 homes over the next 10 years, and allocated $22 billion in housing capital funding over five years. The state housing plan totals $25 billion over five years.
The developer, the Gotham Organization, and CCC began their partnership after a 2018 request for proposals and received land use approval in 2022. In June, a Phase 2 plan was submitted for 599 homes, including 206 senior apartments. The mayor's office announcement did not include an application schedule or income requirements.