As 2023 comes to a close, the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership is celebrating key wins, improvements and developments made in Brooklyn’s busy metro area. Throughout the year, the team has announced new public spaces and art, new businesses, programs and now, they’re promoting even more changes in 2024.
Regina Myer, president of the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership, gave a cheers to the organization’s work in improving Brooklyn’s busiest area.
“From sweeping advancements in the public realm to meaningful art installations that represent the spirit of our vibrant community, Downtown Brooklyn has had a jam-packed 2023,” Myer said in a statement. “Every new event, infrastructure improvement, business opening, art installation and technological innovation have played a part in making Downtown Brooklyn a dynamic, mixed-use hub this past year.”
Public spaces
In September, city leaders unveiled a newly renovated Fulton Mall entrance of the Hoyt Street Subway Station. Janno Lieber, CEO of the Metropolitan Transit Authority, Quemel Arroyo Chief Accessibility Officer for MTA, Council Member Lincoln Restler and Regina Myer DBP President celebrated the increased accessibility renovations which include a new elevator.
DBP heavily petitioned to have long-standing sidewalk sheds removed from the Willoughby Plaza. By fall, the area was “freed from the shackles” of the sheds that surrounded 345 Adams St. for the past seven years, according to a spokesperson with the partnership. Brooklynites can once again enjoy the outside plaza and enjoy local businesses.
Beautified streets
Outside of structural improvements, downtown Brooklyn received a cosmetic facelift in 2023. DBP’s art program helped install Cheryl Wing-Zi Wong’s COMMON GROUND at The Plaza at 300 Ashland. The interactive public art piece uses sound-activated lights to transform the public space into a playable topography.
A local artist brought life into the nabe by transforming pedestrian spaces with colorful asphalt art through Downtown Brooklyn’s Shared Streets program. Ann Tarantino introduced vibrant hues to popular downtown roads to complement the colorful street furniture, bike racks, granite blocks and planters — creating an inviting plaza.
Businesses
Brooklynites said hello to new eateries and dives along busy downtown corridors. Locals looking for a healthy dish can stop into one of the new health-conscious restaurants including Quality Greens Kitchen, Everytable and DIG along Willoughby St. which led to renaming the area ‘Salad Alley.’ Diners can also pop into new fast food joints like Dave’s Hot Chicken, 375° Chicken n’ Fries and Circa Brewing Co. which was recently renamed Sound & Fury Brewing.
Other new features include Court 16, a tennis club, at City Point BKLYN and Solidcore, a Pilates studio at 11 Hoyt ST.
Programs
DBP kept the neighborhood busy with various programs and initiatives hosted throughout the year. To celebrate the 50th anniversary of hip-hop, the team put on Check the Rhyme Hip-Hop Karaoke, a hip-hop edition of their annual dance and cultural event, a Juneteenth celebration and an all-out hip-hop party titled FLAVORS.
From Ping-Pong games, and Zumba sessions to Vinyl Nights at Albee Square and concerts on the Willoughby Plaza, locals were sure to enjoy at least one DBP event in 2023.
Coming in 2024
With 2024 around the corner, Brooklynites can look forward to even more neighborhood improvements that are already in the works.
Mayor Eric Adams announced a $20 million investment to build the Brooklyn Navy Yard a Biotech Hub, a 50,000 square-foot incubator that would provide workforce training and space for industry startups, amongst other goals.
According to Lindsay Greene, president and CEO of the Brooklyn Navy Yard, the next few years will be about “building out” the hub to include labs with the essential tools, materials and machinery needed for innovation.
The mayor also announced an investment of over $40 million in Downtown Brooklyn, that will deliver streetscape improvements, transportation and public space upgrades, and pedestrian safety enhancements. According to a DBP spokesperson, $8 million of the funding will go towards the Fulton Mall Streetscape.
Abolitionist Place between Duffield St. and Albee Square W. nears completion and is slated to open in Spring 2024. The new 1.15 acre of open space will have a children’s play area, water play feature, lawn space, a dog run, multiple seating areas, and more.
