Steps from Fort Greene Park, an 11-story transitional housing building that opened last September is quietly upending the usual script for families experiencing homelessness. At the Fort Greene Family Center, parents are not lining up for cots in a communal dorm. Instead, dozens of families live in private, apartment-style units with on-site case management, a small playground and a brightly colored mural that stares right back at the park. Staff and residents say the combination of design and services is helping parents enroll kids in school and secure permanent housing faster than in traditional shelters.
Purpose-built housing, not a stopgap
According to Westhab, the Fort Greene Family Center is an 11-story, $73 million development that opened in September 2025 and includes 105 transitional units for families with children. The nonprofit says the building offers community space, a playground and energy-efficient, all-electric systems that meet Enterprise Green Communities standards. The project was designed by Aufgang Architects and developed with Slate Property Group, with the explicit goal of functioning more like real housing than a temporary warehouse.
Apartment-style units and the mural
Inside, families stay in compact studios and one- and two-bedroom apartments, each with a private kitchen and bathroom, an intentional departure from congregate shelter layouts that operators say lowers stress for both children and caregivers. Business Insider highlighted the building’s large DaFlemingo mural and the on-site play areas that staff say help families feel more grounded and welcome. The project also includes a green rooftop and community rooms where case managers meet with parents and run youth programming.
Early results for families
Residents interviewed in that profile describe concrete gains. As one resident told the reporter, "This is the first shelter I've been in that I've actually gotten real help for me and my children." Business Insider reported that Marvina Brinkman and her four children moved into a one-bedroom at the center in October 2025 and were later able to secure a permanent apartment a few miles away. Staff say on-site case management helps parents tackle school enrollment, transportation and housing applications in one place, which can shorten the time families spend in shelter.
How this compares to other fights in Brooklyn
The relatively smooth rollout in Fort Greene looks very different from the drawn-out local battles over similar projects in southern Brooklyn. Coverage by CBS News has documented months of protests at a planned 169-unit shelter on Coyle Street, where residents erected encampments and legal disputes followed. Westhab’s leaders have pushed back on that resistance, arguing that family shelters should be located near transit and schools so children are not cut off from everyday services and opportunities.
What city leaders say and what's next
According to Westhab and city officials, the Fort Greene facility was deliberately built to meet housing standards that would allow it to convert to permanent affordable housing if shelter demand drops. As New York YIMBY noted, the site sits on land once home to St. Michael-St. Edward Church and is just steps from transit and schools, factors that officials say support families as they hunt for long-term homes. For now, operators say the early moves into permanent housing are exactly the outcome they hoped to see.
Whether the Fort Greene model can be replicated across the city still comes down to political will and sustained funding. Staff and families who have moved through the center say the early signs are promising. For neighborhoods now weighing new shelter proposals, the Fort Greene Family Center offers a local example that puts private space, on-site services and a clearer path to a lease and long-term stability at the center of the conversation.
