The city will invest $100 million in a new Climate Innovation Hub at the Brooklyn Army Terminal, Mayor Eric Adams announced during his State of the City address on Wednesday.
“This hub will bring business development, incubation and research to a 4 million square foot campus, turning Sunset Park into a center for clean tech innovation and manufacturing,” Adams said during the speech.
The funding is part of a larger city project dubbed “Harbor of the Future,” intended to bring state-of-the-art technology to the city’s shorelines, from the Bronx to Staten Island. New climate and science-focused projects are slated to be built at Hunts Point Market, Kips Bay, on Governors Island, on the North Shore of Staten Island, and at the Brooklyn Army Terminal and the Brooklyn Navy Yard, Adams said.
The Navy Yard “will provide new spaces for startups that will take us into the future of sustainability and green tech. Really exciting projects,” Adams said.
In the coming months, the city’s Economic Development Corporation — which manages the Brooklyn Army Terminal — will release a request for proposals to start building out the Climate Innovation Hub, according to the EDC’s website. The agency is hoping to develop “cutting-edge” labs and facilities at the Hub and establish business development services for climate innovation companies, as well as develop a workforce training program focused on green jobs.
“The Climate Innovation Hub will be a signature NYCEDC initiative to advance rapid climate technology adoption in NYC,” the website states.
The Brooklyn Army Terminal already serves as a space for companies to test and trial new climate-focused technology.
According to the EDC, companies participating in the Climate Innovation Pilot Program have access to a “live environment” with roadways, water and electrical systems and more in which to test and develop their technology and products.
Three companies have already made use of the terminal to develop projects related to water usage, electrical monitoring, and reducing HVAC-related carbon emissions – with more to come.
The Climate Innovation Hub will join another significant climate project in Sunset Park, as the city announced last year that the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal is set to be transformed into an offshore wind facility.
In the next few years, Adams said the Harbor of the Future project is expected to create 53,000 temporary and permanent jobs across the city and generate $95 billion. The project is part of the new Green Economy Action Plan, which was also announced during the State of the City. That plan aims to bring 5 million green jobs to New York City by 2025.
