This month, New York City is conducting a month-long design festival called Archtober. Part of this event will be a tour open to the public on October 8 of a one-acre urban farm in the Red Hook section of Brooklyn. It is one of the first models in the country of a working farm on public housing property.
Added Value, a local nonprofit with a three-acre farm a few blocks away, initiated this project, called The Red Hook West Urban Farm, which it is maintaining and operating with Green City Force’s Clean Energy Corp. The New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) launched this project in June 2013, and the farm was installed by participants in the Center for Economic Opportunity’s Work Progress Program, a component of the Young Men’s Initiative.
The Red Hook West Urban Farm’s primary missions are the growth and distribution of healthy foods, the education of local residents about healthy diets, and a green jobs training program for NYCHA youth who are out of school and unemployed. Green City Force and Added Value manage a work readiness program to provide hands-on job skills training in the field of urban agriculture, as well as educational support and life-skills development.
Gita Nandan, RA, LEED AP, Principal and architect; and landscape architect Elliott Maltby, both of the firm thread collective, designed the Red Hook West Urban Farm, and will conduct the tour. The farm is described as “a built representation” of thread collective’s Lowlands concept for urban agriculture, green infrastructure, and resiliency.
As part of its Urban Agriculture Initiative, NYCHA—the largest such agency in North America, with 328 public housing developments—intends to replicate this farm on at least five other sites, the locations of which have yet to be disclosed.
NYCHA’s Garden and Greening Program manages one the largest and longest-running public gardening programs in the U.S., and has supported residents in developing more than 650 community-based garden plots.
In 2011, NYCHA partnered with Added Value and Green City Force in to launch a model NYCHA farm with the goal of increasing opportunities for affordable housing neighborhoods to gain access to fresh produce, horticultural training opportunities, and building community capacity.
The Red Hook farm received funding from the Center for Economic Opportunity and in-kind donations from the New York Department of Sanitation and Department of Parks and recreation.
Related Stories
Green | Jul 8, 2024
Global green building alliance releases guide for $35 trillion investment to achieve net zero, meet global energy transition goals
The international alliance of UK-based Building Research Establishment (BRE), the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA), the Singapore Green Building Council (SGBC), the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), and the Alliance HQE-GBC France developed the guide, Financing Transformation: A Guide to Green Building for Green Bonds and Green Loans, to strengthen global cooperation between the finance and real estate sectors.
Sustainability | Jul 1, 2024
Amazon, JPMorgan Chase among companies collaborating with ILFI to advance carbon verification
Four companies (Amazon, JPMorgan Chase, JLL, and Prologis) are working with the International Living Future Institute to support development of new versions of Zero Carbon Certification.
Sustainability | Jun 24, 2024
CBRE to use Climate X platform to help clients calculate climate-related risks
CBRE will use risk analysis platform Climate X to provide climate risk data to commercial renters and property owners. The agreement will help clients calculate climate-related risks and return on investments for retrofits or acquisitions that can boost resiliency.
Building Technology | Jun 18, 2024
Could ‘smart’ building facades heat and cool buildings?
A promising research project looks at the possibilities for thermoelectric systems to thermally condition buildings, writes Mahsa Farid Mohajer, Sustainable Building Analyst with Stantec.
University Buildings | Jun 18, 2024
UC Riverside’s new School of Medicine building supports team-based learning, showcases passive design strategies
The University of California, Riverside, School of Medicine has opened the 94,576-sf, five-floor Education Building II (EDII). Created by the design-build team of CO Architects and Hensel Phelps, the medical school’s new home supports team-based student learning, offers social spaces, and provides departmental offices for faculty and staff.
Codes and Standards | Jun 17, 2024
Federal government releases national definition of a zero emissions building
The U.S. Department of Energy has released a new national definition of a zero emissions building. The definition is intended to provide industry guidance to support new and existing commercial and residential buildings to move towards zero emissions across the entire building sector, DOE says.
Green | Jun 11, 2024
Tool helps construction and renovation projects with CalGreen compliance
One Click LCA recently launched a new software tool to help building teams comply with Part 11, Title 24, of the California Code of Regulations—CALGreen. The regulation is the nation’s first state-mandated green building code to include embodied carbon emission control as a mandatory component, effective from July 1, 2024.
Mass Timber | May 31, 2024
Mass timber a big part of Western Washington University’s net-zero ambitions
Western Washington University, in Bellingham, Wash., 90 miles from Seattle, is in the process of expanding its ABET-accredited programs for electrical engineering, computer engineering and science, and energy science. As part of that process, the university is building Kaiser Borsari Hall, the 54,000-sf new home for those academic disciplines that will include teaching labs, research labs, classrooms, collaborative spaces, and administrative offices.
MFPRO+ New Projects | May 29, 2024
Two San Francisco multifamily high rises install onsite water recycling systems
Two high-rise apartment buildings in San Francisco have installed onsite water recycling systems that will reuse a total of 3.9 million gallons of wastewater annually. The recycled water will be used for toilet flushing, cooling towers, and landscape irrigation to significantly reduce water usage in both buildings.
MFPRO+ News | May 28, 2024
ENERGY STAR NextGen Certification for New Homes and Apartments launched
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently launched ENERGY STAR NextGen Certified Homes and Apartments, a voluntary certification program for new residential buildings. The program will increase national energy and emissions savings by accelerating the building industry’s adoption of advanced, energy-efficient technologies, according to an EPA news release.
