For years, Juan Machado bounced from shelter to shelter. Now he is among the first residents settling into Building G of the Marcus Garvey Extension in Brownsville, an eight-story, newly completed building that brings 109 affordable apartments, more than half reserved as supportive homes, along with on-site services and sustainability features. Officials say a formal ribbon-cutting is expected this fall.
State backing and local partners
The final phase of the Marcus Garvey Extension is a team effort, bringing together L+M Development Partners, Services for the UnderServed and The Osborne Association, with state financing doing a lot of the heavy lifting. Gov. Kathy Hochul helped secure $82.8 million for Phase 2, which will add 287 affordable and supportive apartments across three new buildings and bring the Marcus Garvey campus to roughly 635 homes, according to Governor Kathy Hochul. The funding package combines tax-exempt bonds, low-income housing tax credits and supportive housing subsidies.
What’s in Building G
Building G includes 109 affordable apartments, 55 of which are designated as supportive units under the city’s 15/15 program and paired with on-site case management and wellness coaching. The eight-story, roughly 118,000-square-foot building offers a mix of studios through three-bedrooms, along with on-site laundry, a fitness center, a resident lounge, a bike room and an outdoor courtyard. Developer materials and project partners cite a $78 million financing closing and an all-electric design featuring geothermal systems and rooftop solar panels, according to Services for the UnderServed.
Residents and supports on the ground
For residents, the mix of a front-door key and a built-in support network is the whole point. “It felt like home,” Juan Machado told News 12 Brooklyn, describing his move from shelters into an apartment with a dedicated wellness coach. Officials say on-site programming, from job training to financial counseling, is designed to help stabilize tenants and reduce returns to homelessness.
Where this fits in Brownsville's housing push
The Marcus Garvey Extension is intended to deliver neighborhood-scale affordable housing while energizing retail and community space along the Livonia Avenue corridor. Phase 1 added 348 affordable apartments, and Phase 2’s three buildings are slated to add 287 more, bringing the campus to roughly 635 units in total, according to New York State Homes and Community Renewal. Local leaders have cast the project as a model for pairing deeply affordable homes with supportive services and greener building systems.
Next steps and neighborhood impact
Officials expect a formal ribbon-cutting this fall, and developers say additional community retail and programming are on the way. The project’s all-electric systems, geothermal heating and rooftop solar panels are promoted as tenant-friendly energy investments that line up with city and state electrification goals, according to developer materials. L+M and its partners also point to construction pipelines and resident training programs tied to the development as potential longer-term economic boosts for Brownsville.
