Slate JV plans affordable housing complex in Brownsville

Nonprofit RiseBoro will co-develop 215-unit project

RiseBoro's Scott Short and Slate Property Group's John Valladares with 326 Rockaway Avenue (Google Maps)
RiseBoro's Scott Short and Slate Property Group's John Valladares with 326 Rockaway Avenue (Google Maps)

Slate Property Group is teaming up with nonprofit RiseBoro Community Partnership to build a 215-unit affordable housing project in the Brownsville section of Brooklyn.

The joint venture is proposing a 160,000-square-foot building at 326 Rockaway Avenue, which would include 5,000 square feet of ground-floor retail and community facilities, The Real Deal has learned.

The 14-story project is expected to cost about $110 million, according to the developers. No official plans have been filed yet with the city. The duo — Slate is led by co-founder David Schwartz and RiseBoro by its CEO Scott Short — said the building would include a fitness room, a courtyard and 24-hour security. Construction is expected to begin next year.

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The units are set aside for households earning below 60 percent of area median income. Additionally, more than half the units will be supportive housing — offering on-site social services — for young adults who have aged out of foster care.

The joint venture paid $8.4 million for the 38,000-square-foot site. The Corporation for Supportive Housing, a housing advocacy nonprofit, provided financing.

The developers said they intend to partner with laborers union Local 79, under a new affordable housing labor agreement. Once completed, building employees would be from service workers’ union 32BJ SEIU.

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