From 2017-2021, Hester Street partnered with the Family Service Society of New York (FSSNY) to lead the community engagement process to build a new plan for the Bushwick Brownfield Opportunity Area (BOA).
The New York State Department of State (DOS) manages the Brownfield Opportunity Area (BOA) Program, with the overarching goal of planning and revitalizing development in zones designated as brownfields, which have been left vacant in the aftermath of environmental contamination.
FSSNY partnered with HST to revive their Bushwick BOA through strategic community engagement, in coordination with local community board leadership, the New York City Department of City Planning (DCP), the New York City Department of Health & Mental Hygiene (NYC DOHMH) and other state/local representatives. Through the pandemic, our team focused on opportunity zones within specific corridors along the Bushwick industrial business zone (IBZ), leading market-analysis of the area, partnering with contractors and identifying new zones with the potential to be developed, according to community priorities. In 2021, HST completed our partnership with FSSNY, advancing them to the next stage of applying for implementation dollars to designate specific areas as BOAs within Bushwick.
In order to ensure our approach to community engagement was informed by Bushwick residents and community leaders, HST convened a steering committee which met four times throughout the process to provide feedback and receive updates on the process.
In addition to the steering committee meetings, HST also hosted several public workshops and fielded a survey to solicit feedback from Bushwick residents.
Engagement materials include:
- Steering committee materials, including meeting presentations and steering committee roles and responsibilities.