The Brooklyn borough-based jail will be located at the site of the current Brooklyn Detention Center at 275 Atlantic Avenue. The new, state of the art facility will have dedicated space for on-site services and programming, indoor and outdoor recreation, food services, staff offices and facilities, amenities, below grade accessory parking, and a secured entry (sally port).
The new facility will contain 886 beds for men and will provide 292 accessory parking spaces below grade for all staff and service providers. In addition, the facility will provide 30,000 sq. ft. of community space on the ground floor.
The Department of Design and Construction (DDC) is awarding two separate Design-Build contracts — one for the new facility and one for the dismantle and sally port project required to prepare the site and facilitate NYC Department of Correction’s transfers for court appearances during construction.
The City’s overarching goals for all component projects undertaken as part of the Borough-Based Jails Program (BBJ Program), including new detention facilities and Early Works, such as dismantle and swing space projects, are described below.
The City aims to create a dignified, safe, and healthy environment for all individuals within these Sites—including people in custody, staff, visitors, and service providers—conducive to justice in every sense of the word. This approach is grounded in an understanding of the context and continuity of people’s lives, on the importance of supportive services such as health care and education, and on the need to reintegrate individuals released from custody into their communities.
These Sites should be designed to support the communities within – including people in custody, staff, service providers, and visitors — to enhance the network of support available to individuals in custody and help reintegrate them into their neighborhoods upon release.
These new Sites should serve as resources and assets for all New Yorkers, exemplifying outstanding public architecture that contributes to a sense of place while celebrating and contributing to the unique character, history, and culture of surrounding communities. No longer isolated and out of sight, these new jails must be understood as significant civic institutions, as much a part of the City’s life as libraries, fire houses, and schools.
These Sites should be designed to stand the test of time as enduring community assets aligned with the goals of the City’s OneNYC 2050 Strategic Plan.
The Brooklyn Detention Site Project consists of demolishing the existing detention center and replacing it with a modern facility
The new Brooklyn Detention Site will be located at 275 Atlantic Avenue, the same location as Brooklyn’s previous detention center
The Brooklyn Detention Site Project is expected to be completed by 2027
Building the new facility is part of the borough-based jail system
which aims to create a smaller, safer, and fairer system by
incarcerating less people and building modern facilities