Massive Gowanus development will be 100% affordable

Gowanus Green, a massive residential complex planned for the industrial Brooklyn neighborhood, is going fully affordable.

The de Blasio administration announced Thursday that the complex’s 950 residential units will all be below-market-rate, Crain’s reported. Previously, around 26 percent of its units were due to be reserved as market-rate.

“Given the dwindling supply of city-owned land, especially in high-opportunity neighborhoods such as Gowanus, the city decided to maximize the amount of affordable housing we can create at this large scale site,” said Louise Carroll, the commissioner of the city’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development.

Carroll told Crain’s that the project, which has been in the works for more than a decade, is an anchor for the Gowanus rezoning.

Gowanus Green, located on a site at Smith and Fifth streets near the Gowanus Canal, will prioritize housing for those who are considered low- and very low-income, or with an annual income of about $51,200 for a family of three. No more than 40 percent of its units will be for households earning $81,920 to $122,880 annually for a family of three. Additionally, 15 percent of its units reserved for the formerly homeless, the city said.

The broader Gowanus rezoning could create 5,000 new units of market-rate housing and 3,000 new units of affordable housing, providing homes for an estimated 20,000 new residents.

The city is limited in what it can promise as a result of rezoning projects, like the one it has proposed in Gowanus, because private developers ultimately decide what is economical. However, Gowanus Green will rise on city-owned land, giving the de Blasio administration more authority over what can be built.

In addition to the 950 apartments, Gowanus Green is due to bring a number of community benefits to the neighborhood, including a public school, a park, community space and retail.

[Crain’s] — Orion Jones