Brooklyn Senior Housing Project First to Get on Green Fast Track Approval Process
A proposed affordable senior housing project in Brooklyn will become the first development to go through a new streamlined process for city approval.
New Green Fast Track Aims to Speed Up Small and Medium-Sized All-Electric Housing
The proposed housing development in the Brooklyn neighborhood of Homecrest is slated to become certified at the City Planning Commission’s Monday meeting. The development would replace two vacant four-story brick buildings with a larger seven-story building. Operated by an Orthodox Jewish organization, Ahi Ezer Congregation, the development would have 53 income-restricted apartments for seniors making no more than about $55,000 per year. The building will also feature space for social services and include a backyard for recreation.
Green Fast Track Cuts Red Tape for Small and Medium-Sized Projects
" With the Green Fast Track, we’ve cut red tape for buildings like this one that advance our housing and environmental goals as a city," said Dan Garodnick, director of the Department of City Planning. "By reducing the time before the public review process can start, we’ve made it easier to deliver affordable senior housing in an all-electric building."
Eligibility Requirements for Green Fast Track
Projects eligible for Green Fast Track must include no more than 250 apartments (or 175 apartments if in a low-rise area), use electric heating instead of gas or oil, and be outside flood-prone coastal areas and away from major roads, among other considerations. The expedited review targets projects that won’t have an adverse impact on the environment and help achieve the city’s goals to slash carbon emissions.
Cutting Costs and Time
Typically, a new housing development that requires zoning changes must undergo a lengthy environmental review and gain approval from the Department of City Planning — which itself can take between one to three years. That part, prior to the land use review process, is what Green Fast Track accelerates, aiming to cut the usual time in half. It could save about $100,000 for qualifying projects, according to DCP.
Industry Reaction
Jolie Milstein, president and CEO of New York State Association for Affordable Housing, a developer trade group, called the environmental review process "the place where affordable housing projects go to die," because it’s where lawsuits and pushback crop up. "It’s really a huge step forward for affordable housing projects to have this alternate route to streamline the process," Milstein said. "If we can do this in a complicated place like New York City, we definitely should be able to do it at the state level."
State-Level Streamlining
Gov. Kathy Hochul proposed in her State of the State address to create a similar streamlined housing review process for New York.
Project Status
The proposed building in Homecrest has been in the works since 2023, according to City Planning documents, but it got a boost when Green Fast Track came into effect in June.
Expert Analysis
"This is the poster child of the type of project that benefits the most from it," said Sean Campion, director of housing and economic development studies at the Citizens Budget Commission. "It’s not as if they’re not getting evaluation and scrutiny and input," he added. "It’s just that now it’s really focusing on, what are the benefits of this project? Rather than trying to come up with a litany of impacts that it may or may not have."
Next Steps
The project will still have to go through the land use review process, which takes an average of more than two years. This is true for the affordable senior housing project in Homecrest, which will have to go before Brooklyn Community Board 15, Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, the City Planning Commission, and the City Council.
Conclusion
The Green Fast Track is a significant step forward in streamlining the process for small and medium-sized all-electric housing projects. With this new process, the city can deliver more affordable housing while reducing its environmental impact.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is the Green Fast Track?
The Green Fast Track is a new process for small and medium-sized all-electric housing projects to speed up the approval process. - What are the eligibility requirements for Green Fast Track?
Projects must include no more than 250 apartments (or 175 apartments if in a low-rise area), use electric heating instead of gas or oil, and be outside flood-prone coastal areas and away from major roads, among other considerations. - How much time and money can be saved with the Green Fast Track?
The process can save about $100,000 for qualifying projects and cut the usual time in half.
