Vital Brookdale

Organization Name: Dattner Architects

Project Title: Vital Brookdale

Project Location: Brownsville, Brooklyn

Project Description:
An exemplary model of affordable Passive House and community-based housing with healthcare, Vital Brookdale brings 160 units of affordable housing and 25,000 sf of health-focused community space to the Brownsville neighborhood of Brooklyn. Alongside deeply affordable apartments, Vital Brookdale provides resources that promote health and wellness, job training, outdoor green space, and opportunities for recreation, supporting residents and the surrounding community. Tenants have access to a 2nd floor terrace, and front and rear-courtyards, which includes landscaping, a dog run, play area as well as passive recreation and seating areas. Additional amenities include complimentary building-wide wireless-internet access, a multi-purpose community room, game room, library/co-working space, fitness room, laundry room, cold-storage locker and package rooms, and a bike storage room. This Passive House project has a 100kW roof-mounted solar photovoltaic system, green roof, high-performance mechanical systems, insulation and windows, LED lighting, low-flow water fixtures, and several other energy-efficient measures to ensure the comfort and affordability for residents as well as sustainability of the building.

Community Impact:
Vital Brookdale is part of New York State’s Vital Brooklyn Initiative – an ongoing community development program for underserved neighborhoods in Central Brooklyn. Offering a holistic approach, the program focuses on eight integrated areas of improvement: open space and recreation; healthy food; education; economic empowerment; community-based violence prevention; community-based health care; affordable housing; and resiliency. Vital Brookdale includes amenities for high-quality living for residents with a wide range of incomes, and a health-focused community space will provide resources to support the larger community. The multipurpose community space on the ground floor will include a job training space and a fresh food program that will be integrated with the outdoor gardening area on-site. Additionally, The New York Foundling – one of New York City’s oldest and largest child welfare agencies – has an office suite in the building in support of the supportive units, targeted to children aging out of foster care and people with developmental disabilities.

Organization Description:
Dattner Architects is a mission-driven firm, dedicated to enriching civic space and the urban experience through impactful design solutions. The core of the firm’s practice covers a broad range of typologies – from multi-family housing, educational and healthcare facilities to transportation hubs, public infrastructure, parks & recreational spaces – essential architecture necessary to keep cities running. A leader in sustainable, resilient, and Passive House design, our firm is committed to achieving benchmark energy and greenhouse gas reductions.

Team Members:

MDG Design + Construction, Smith & Henzy Advisory Group, The New York Foundling, Monadnock Construction, Dattner Architects, Skyline Engineering, DeNardis Engineering, Starr Whitehouse, Bright Power

Follow On Twitter