Homecrest’s soaked streets and flooded basements might finally get some relief. On Thursday, city officials rolled out a $95 million plan they say will cut chronic flooding across the low-lying stretch of southern Brooklyn by capturing stormwater before it overwhelms neighborhood sewers. The concept pairs underground storage, porous pavement and redesigned public spaces, so neighbors could eventually see changes to parking lanes, schoolyards and the courts at Kelly Park if the project moves ahead.
As reported by News 12 Brooklyn, the city describes the effort as a Cloudburst-style project that would span roughly 350 acres and focus on corridors including Kings Highway, Coney Island Avenue and Avenues P through V. The plan calls for porous pavement in some parking lanes, subsurface storage tanks, including a proposed tank beneath the Kelly Park tennis courts, and upgraded park surfaces. Officials told News 12 the system is expected to keep about 30 million gallons of stormwater out of the sewer network each year and to handle bursts of about 2.3 inches of rain per hour. “This project will help protect homes, streets and businesses from extreme rainfall,” DEP Commissioner Lisa Garcia told News 12, and city officials say a community presentation is slated for mid-May, with construction potentially beginning in about three to four years.
How the Work Will Function
DEP’s Homecrest factsheet lays out the “store, absorb, transfer” playbook for these Cloudburst hubs. Rain gardens and porous pavement are meant to let water soak into the ground, while tanks and so-called water squares hold stormwater temporarily. Re-grading and targeted drainage are used to move runoff away from homes. That factsheet, along with DEP’s broader Cloudburst Management materials, highlights nuisance and deeper flood hotspots across the hub and shows where subsurface detention and green infrastructure could be placed. The Cloudburst program has grown with major capital funding and pilot projects that double as upgraded public spaces, as reported by amNewYork.
Neighbors’ Experience and Earlier Fixes
Neighbors have long complained about standing water after storms in local playgrounds and on the neighborhood’s low streets, a pattern that has been documented in local coverage. The city is already testing porous pavement in other parts of Brooklyn, installations that DEP and local outlets say can keep tens of millions of gallons of water out of the sewer system each year, offering a preview of Homecrest’s approach, according to Brooklyn Paper. Local reporting has also zeroed in on specific problem spots, such as persistent pooling at neighborhood playgrounds that officials say the Homecrest hub is designed to tackle, including sites detailed by News 12 Brooklyn.
What Comes Next
The plan is still in design, and city officials say community outreach will continue as details are refined. The administration estimates that construction could begin in roughly three to four years, after design work and permitting are complete. Until then, DEP is urging residents to keep reporting flooding through 311 and to track Cloudburst program updates through the city’s outreach channels. Neighbors are being told to watch for the mid-May presentation for a closer look at where work would be staged and how short-term park and street upgrades would be coordinated with the longer-term underground construction.
