A Red Roof Inn on Flatbush Avenue that has operated as a family hotel for more than a year is suddenly at the center of a neighborhood fight. City officials are weighing a plan to convert the building into a shelter for single adult men under a nonprofit operator, a proposal that has left Ditmas Park residents sharply divided between those who call it compassionate and those worried about safety and the site’s proximity to nearby schools. Community Board 14 has scheduled a public hearing at Kings Theatre next Wednesday for locals to air their views.
What’s being proposed
As outlined in a DSS–DHS notification posted by Community Board 14, the city notified the board that a commercial hotel at 1024 Flatbush Avenue would be used to provide housing for single adult men and lists the site’s capacity at 130 beds. The notice names Project Renewal as the nonprofit service provider. The letter says the shift was prompted by structural-safety concerns at the Bellevue intake facility and the need to relocate assessment beds to alternative sites.
Services and security promised
City officials told News12 Brooklyn the shelter would include case management, independent-living and life-skills workshops, supports for finding employment, and on-site security measures such as 24/7 monitoring, controlled access and security cameras. Project Renewal, the nonprofit tapped to run the site, operates shelter and transitional programs across the city and emphasizes wraparound services that link residents to health care, job training and housing navigation. Project Renewal has led similar Brooklyn projects in recent years.
Neighbors' reaction
Responses in Ditmas Park have ranged from supportive to wary, residents told News12 Brooklyn. “Why wouldn’t it be a good thing to help the homeless?” one neighbor asked, while another said the plan “scares me a little bit,” according to the outlet. Several residents also pointed to the site’s proximity to at least five schools and cited roughly 122 reported incidents in the neighborhood last month as a reason for concern.
What happens next
Community Board 14 will host a public hearing on Wednesday, May 6 at the Kings Theatre, 1027 Flatbush Avenue; city representatives are expected to present details and accept testimony, and residents may pre-register to speak. The DSS notification lists a contract commencement targeted for summer 2026, though any final conversion will depend on community feedback, approvals and permitting. Community Board 14 has posted the meeting notice and related materials.
Neighbors on both sides say they will attend the hearing and press their positions, and city officials say they remain committed to ongoing outreach and prioritizing safety as the process moves forward.
