First Phase of Brownsville Affordable Housing Development Ebenezer Plaza Completed

Hundreds of new affordable housing units have come to Brownsville, thanks to a local church that spearheaded the long-in-the-works Ebenezer Plaza development.

The first phase of the project opened Friday atop two lots — one at 672 Powell Street and the other at 96 New Lots Avenue, containing a combined 315 units of affordable housing units.

The units at 672 Powell Street are reserved for households with earnings at or below 60 percent of the Area Median Income.

The housing lottery for that building launched in February 2020, with studios going for as little as $367 per month, while the most expensive three-bedroom rented at $1,472.

The other building on the block, 96 New Lots Avenue, is targeted at households earning from 30 percent to 80 percent of the Area Median Income. The cheapest studios rent for $362 per month, while the most expensive three-bedrooms are going for $2,037.

Unlike many other developments with affordable units, there are no market-rate apartments in the complex, as the organization behind the project, the Church of God of East Flatbush, intended it to help local residents. In addition to a new house of worship for the church, the project also includes retail and community space.

“As a developing partner, the church will receive revenue from the project to support its mission,” according to NY1 — most likely from retail and residential rents, which could help fund maintenance of the property.

The church purchased the lot in 2011 for $8.18 million and sold it in 2016 to an LLC for $12.6 million with the intention of developing it as 100 percent affordable, city property records show.

Ebenezer Plaza Owner LLC is made up of the church, along with affordable housing developers Brisa Builders Corporation, Procida Companies and Evergreen City LLC. Brisa Builders paid the $12.6 million to the church, according to The Real Deal. The LLC received $160 million in funds to build the project from the New York City Housing Development Corporation in 2016.

The New York City Housing Development Corporation is a city agency that issues bonds to finance the development and preservation of affordable housing. Brisa is a longtime developer of affordable housing that has worked with Restoration Plaza Development Corp. in Bed Stuy.

After the sale, the owners then sought and won a rezoning needed for the project to proceed.

The buildings were designed by the architecture firm Perkins Eastman.

The Church of God will be opening a new, 40,000-square foot church on site, nestled between the two buildings in both ground-floor and basement space. The new digs, expected to open this coming spring, are quadruple the size of the church’s current home on East 95th Street.

The development also includes about 7,500 square feet of ground-floor retail space.

A second phase of the project is currently under construction, and is expected to bring an additional 200 below-market-rate units to the area.

The size of the project marks a boost to Mayor Bill de Blasio’s plan to build at least 300,000 affordable housing units by 2026. — additional reporting by Cate Corcoran

Editor’s note: A version of this story originally ran in Brooklyn Paper. Click here to see the original story.

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