Ocean Hill Affordable Housing Lottery Opens, With Units Starting at $486

An affordable housing lottery has opened for 90 apartments in a 100 percent affordable development overlooking the JMZ subway tracks at Broadway and Hancock Street in Ocean Hill.

The studio, one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments at 1510 Broadway are aimed at households earning between 30 percent and 80 percent of Area Median Income, a truly affordable range compared to the majority of the units offered in the city’s housing lottery system. The level of affordability is due to a private and nonprofit development partnership making use of a city program that funds housing construction for very low income families.

Eligible incomes range from $19,578 to $154,080 for households of one to seven people, and rents vary from $486 to $2,664 a month depending on unit size and income level, according to the NYC Housing Connect listing.

Included are seven studio apartments ranging from $486 to $1,546 a month, 38 one-bedrooms from $617 to $1,941 a month, 34 two-bedrooms from $727 to $2,316 a month, and 11 three-bedrooms from $829 to $2,664 a month.

The lottery site says there is a preference for residents of Brooklyn Community Board 16 and city employees, and 5 percent of units are set aside for people with mobility issues and 2 percent for people with vision or hearing issues.

The new eight-story building has 108 units, with the 18 units not included in the affordable housing lottery being set aside for formerly homeless residents referred through city and nonprofit programs. The development resembles a modern row of townhouses in a blue, grey, and white color scheme, and the residential component surrounds a large interior courtyard.

The building includes big store windows for retail at the ground level, and the row house-inspired facade includes indentations, colors, and window placement that evoke the celebrated housing type. Income from the stores along Broadway and Hancock — totaling 9,105 square feet — could help fund future building expenses.

When Brownstoner stopped by last week, a green construction fence still surrounded the site. While work on the building’s exterior seemed to be wrapped up, workers were going in and out of the site with equipment.

Designed by architect firm Gluck+, 1510 Broadway, as it appears to be called, is being developed by East Brooklyn Housing Development Corporation, MacQuesten Development LLC, and the Local Development Corporation of East New York, with input from Community Board 16, according to NYC’s Housing Preservation and Development.

According to Gluck+’s website, the new development “responds to the critical need for affordable housing in the Bushwick and Bed Stuy neighborhoods in Brooklyn.” The firm says that rather than building eight stories right in front of the subway tracks, a creative V-shape design positions apartments along Hancock Avenue and Saratoga Avenue.

“This simple strategy allows more daylight to reach Broadway and, at the same time, creates a triangular buffer on the second floor of the building—an open terrace to promote a vibrant residential community,” the site reads.

Units include hardwood flooring, energy efficient appliances, and an intercom system, the listing says. Sound-deadening windows and PTAC air conditioning units will help drown out noise from the elevated tracks. On site will be bike storage, a package room, and laundry room. Amenities include a 1,400-square-foot indoor recreation space, a large landscaped outdoor area, and free Internet, according to the listing. The building, which is smoke free and pet friendly, will also have a live-in super and porter, who are both full time. The building is insulated and LEED certified.

The complex is part of HPD’s Extremely Low and Low-Income Affordability Program, also known as ELLA, which mandates that apartments be affordable to households earning no more than 80 percent of Area Median Income.

The property was an empty lot going back many years. Like many such long-empty lots along Broadway in Ocean Hill and Bushwick, it was once home to a handsome 19th century brick apartment building with storefronts that may have burned down in the arson fires of the 1970s.

The property shares the block with a religious organization called Healing Sanctuary in what was a 1920s auto garage at 17 Saratoga Avenue. In recent years, a building boom has filled many empty lots in the neighborhood with new condos and affordable housing.

The lottery for 1510 Broadway Apartments closes on July 18. To apply, visit the listing on Housing Connect.

[Renderings via Gluck+]

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