Affordable Housing Lottery Opens for 37 Units in Brownsville, Starting at $666 a Month

An affordable housing lottery has opened for 37 newly constructed units in an eight-story building at 7 Livonia Avenue in Brownsville.

Of the affordable apartments, there are 26 one-bedroom units, nine two-bedroom units and two three-bedroom units. Monthly rents start at $666 and top out at $1,279.

The lottery is set at an area median income range of 40 percent for 11 of the units, 50 percent for 14 of the units and 60 percent for the remaining 12. Eligible incomes range between $25,303 and $73,680 for households of one to seven people. A preference for 50 percent of the units will be given to residents of Community Board 16.

The building, called Edwin’s Place, will have a total of 126 units. According to the lottery listing, the building, currently under construction, will include a fitness room, computer lab, bicycle storage, laundry, garden and 24-hour security.

Photos show the site, which covers the block front between Howard and Grafton streets, has been a vacant lot since the 1980s.

Robert A.M. Stern Architects is the architect of record. The firm of the Brooklyn-born Stern, better known for pricey residential projects, has another project currently under construction in the borough: a mansion in Midwood.

Housing provider Breaking Ground is behind the development. The land was transferred from HPD to an LLC called Edwin’s Place Housing Development Fund Corporation for $1 in 2018. Founded in 1990, Breaking Ground develops and operates supportive housing across the city. Housing the firm operates in Brooklyn includes 160 Schermerhorn Street in Downtown Brooklyn and 39 Hegeman Avenue in Brownsville. Collaborating with them on Edwin’s Place is nonprofit African American Planning Commission Inc.

Applications for the affordable housing lottery must be submitted by July 8, 2020. Apply through NYC Housing Connect. To learn more about how to apply for affordable housing, read Brownstoner’s guide.

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• Despite Building Boom, Housing in Brooklyn Is Not Getting More Affordable

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