1. $1 million for 67^th Precinct Clergy Council – Project ECHO (Empowering Communities through Healing and Opportunities). This $1 million request is for a violence intervention program which addresses unresolved trauma and lack of resources through community-based approaches. Further, this project offers life-changing opportunities for community members who are deemed “at risk”, enabling them to grow as individuals and acquire skills that will allow them to reach their full potential through victim services, mentorship and leadership opportunities, and street engagements. Additionally, this project addresses the urgent need for trauma support, mentorship, and mental health counseling within the East Flatbush community. The prevalence of violence among young people, especially young men, is a significant issue in this area, and Project ECHO provides access to adequate resources and training, empowers community members to combat poverty, unemployment, and poor mental health – ultimately reducing gun violence in Brooklyn and creating safer, healthier communities.

Financial Disclosure/Federal Nexus Letter

2. $185,000 for 77^th Precinct United Clergy Council – I Can Make A Difference Initiative – Alternative to Gang/Crime. This funding would be used for alternatives to crime by providing children aged 10-16 a safe, supportive, and positive environment for them to develop their skills, build relationships and learn important life lessons. This program will offer a sense of community and support to young people who may be at risk of getting involved in criminal activities, substance abuse or other negative behaviors. The participants in the program will meet with a counselor twice a week to address issues they are facing in the homes, school or with peers.  They will learn skills such as, but not limited to, discipline, teamwork, communication, and leadership. They will also participate in basketball drills and games; learning and/or developing their skills, should they decide to pursue a basketball career.

Financial Disclosure/Federal Nexus Letter

3. $1.5 million for East Flatbush Village – E.N.O.U.G.H Anti-Violence Program & S.T.A.N.D. Mental and Physical Health Initiative. E.N.O.U.G.H. Anti-Violence Initiative (Educating, Neighborhoods, Organizing, Underserved, Grassroots-organizing and Health-awareness) & S.T.A.N.D. Mental and Physical Health Initiative (Self-care, Tender-love, Always, Needed, Daily) are programs through the East Flatbush Village (EFV) which strives to promote peace and engage with targeted populations. This funding would allow EFV to expand on the Anti-Violence work through crisis management interventions and community engagement. EFV provides participants with programs and activities that are developed with you and for youth, particularly initiatives that seek to end gun violence at the neighborhood level by changing local norms around violence and creating more opportunities, such as our “Anti-Gun Violence” panels for meaningful educational and employment opportunities within our community. To keep both our students and educators safe, the EFV has sustained a successful partnership with surrounding schools within the proposed project area to facilitate crisis-management problems. 

Financial Disclosure/Federal Nexus Letter

4. $358,406.40 for Community Board 17 Housing Committee – Shower Bus. Amidst a housing crisis, CB17 seeks to alleviate some of the pressures various organizations may be under while administering their services to various communities. Therefore, the Community Board 17 Housing committee would like to have a shower bus to assist the unhoused residents within our community by providing them with transportation to social services and showers as they seek a more permanent housing solution.

Financial Disclosure/Federal Nexus Letter

5. $3,000,000 for the Neighborhood Housing Service – Condominium Conversion Program as a Community Project Funding request. NHS Brooklyn respectfully requests $3 million to increase the number of available affordable homeownership opportunities for moderate-income families-of-color throughout the NY-09 Congressional District. They will achieve this goal by expanding our existing Small Building Preservation Initiative by piloting the development of a new Condominium Conversion Program. Specifically during the next 12 months, NHS Brooklyn will purchase at least four buildings in the NY-09 Congressional District that each have a minimum of two housing units, at an average price of $750,000. NHS will then convert these buildings to small condominium complexes, which will enable a minimum of eight moderate-income families to sustain or achieve homeownership for the first time by purchasing these units for an average price of $425,000.

Financial Disclosure/Federal Nexus Letter

6. $175,000 for NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County – Greening and Beautification Project. This project would establish greens paces at NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County, a safety net public hospital primarily serving low-income patients and communities of color. These green spaces would include a community garden to plant food, public micro spaces, and relaxing spaces with beautiful views for frontline healthcare workers, patients, and residents of the surrounding community, all of which have shown to improve mental health. Additionally, this project will work to mitigate the disproportionate impact of urban heat islands prominent in this area and promote energy efficiency.

Financial Disclosure/Federal Nexus Letter

7. $100,000 for the Pakistani American Skilled Women Organization (PASWO) – Community Food Bank and Workforce Training Center. PASWO Community Food Bank and Workforce Training Center is a project aimed at addressing the issues of food insecurity and unemployment in the local community. The project is designed to provide individuals and families in need with access to nutritious food while also offering job training and employment opportunities. This project is aligned with the existing Food Pantry program, established in 2020. The Community Food Bank component of the project will involve the establishment of a food bank that will distribute food to those in need. The food bank will offer a wide range of nutritious food items, including fresh fruits and vegetables, canned goods, and other non-perishable items. The Workforce Training Center component of the project will offer job training and employment opportunities to individuals who are struggling to find work. The training center will provide a variety of vocational training programs, including computer skills, basic accounting, customer service, and other relevant job skills. Additionally, the training center will offer job placement services to individuals who complete the training programs.

Financial Disclosure/Federal Nexus Letter

8. $3,000,000 for Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty – Preston Court Food Warehouse Capital Improvement. Funding will be used to support infrastructure and operational improvements for Met Council’s 22,000 square foot emergency food warehouse. 

Financial Disclosure/Federal Nexus Letter

9. $3,000,000 for The Campaign Against Hunger – Permanent Community Food Hub. The Campaign Against Hunger’s permanent community food hub will be a first-of-its-kind ecosystem that uses food access, education, and innovation in urban farming to break the systemic and interconnected cycle of hunger in NYC. TCAH plans to acquire an 88,000 SF warehouse at 909 Remsen Avenue, Brooklyn to amplify the emergency food network’s capacity to store, pack, and distribute healthy food by providing storage, loading, refrigeration, and freezer space. TCAH plans to outfit the hub with 30,000 SF of green space to grow and expand access to healthy food, a commercial kitchen for meal preparation, disaster response capabilities and culinary arts training, on-site workforce development and innovation programs to boost job creation and provide skills and employment pathways for disadvantaged youth and adults. The food hub will reduce food waste through composting and recycling and advance bioenergy by converting organic waste material into renewable natural gas and probiotic plant food, generate renewable energy into heat, hot water, light, electricity, and vehicle fuel, and serve as a community hub for food education, family activities, and service opportunities.

Financial Disclosure/Federal Nexus Letter

10. $975,000 for SBH Community Service Network – Client Hub Improvement. The SBH Renovation of 425 Kings Highway, Brooklyn NY project will renovate, remodel, and expand the client choice pantry and food preparation area of the building and replace the roof to allow for improved quality of client services, more efficient delivery of services, expansion of services, and the hiring of additional staff. Due to cramped conditions, the Food Pantry can currently only accommodate 2 clients at a time. A newly renovated and redesigned Food Pantry will accommodate at least 5 clients at a time. It will more than double in size and will be able to maintain as much as twice the number of food items that it currently maintains. It will have space for 4 refrigerators and 3 freezers for more food storage. It will also have a larger waiting area for clients and additional office space for staff and volunteers.

Financial Disclosure/Federal Nexus Letter

11. $149,000 for Brooklyn Emerge – Community Food Bank. Brooklyn Emerge’s Halal Hot Meal Share and Food Pantry Program are designed to address food insecurity in the community. The plan includes the Halal meal-share program, which provides hot, halal meals to those in need, fruits, vegetables and other grocery items such milk, peanut butter etc. Through these initiatives, Brooklyn Emerge aims to alleviate hunger and food insecurity in the community and empower individuals to access healthy, nutritious food. Overall, the organization is committed to providing a range of services that address various community needs, including education, environmental sustainability, and empowerment for marginalized groups.

Financial Disclosure/Federal Nexus Letter

12. Provide a funding level of $500,000 for My Time Inc. – Parent Support and Resource Center. My Time Inc.’s Parent Support and Research Center will educate, uplift, and empower parents of children with autism and other developmental disabilities. My Time Inc. was founded to support these parents and help them live a life they deserve in their community.

Financial Disclosure/Federal Nexus Letter

13. $1,500,000 for JCC of Greater Coney Island – Home Delivered Meals Program. JCCGCI operates three separate Home Delivered Meals (HDM) programs. All are experiencing significant budget deficit challenges due to increases in food, fuel and staffing costs complicated by an absence of an increase in reimbursement from NYC DFTA. Collectively, these programs serve Brooklyn Community Districts 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15 and include a high-standard Glatt Kosher menu which, for many Ultra-Orthodox and Hasidic Older Adults, is the only acceptable source of City-funded HDM. These programs serve 500 meals daily. In addition, this project will address the documented unmet need of HDMs for Holocaust survivors which is a vulnerable and high-risk population.

Financial Disclosure/Federal Nexus Letter

14. Provide a funding level of $3,000,000 for HASC Center – Avenue M Facilities Construction and Renovation. HASC Center Inc. requests funding to build out space in its new building to house services for individuals with intellectual/developmental disabilities (I/DD), as well as those with physical disabilities and autism. The project will construct “home rooms” for day-hab programs, conference rooms, reception rooms, sensory rooms for individuals with autism, a kitchen, dining areas (to teach self-sufficiency), space for vocational and supportive employment training, and office and storage facilities. The building will be fully handicapped accessible to allow for various types and sizes of mobility devices. Total square footage of the proposed construction is 25,000 square feet. This project will enhance HASC’s capacity to provide services and programming for adults with I/DD, as well as those with physical disabilities and autism. HASC currently serves more than 2000 clients per year. Once completed, HASC will be able to significantly expand the number of individuals served and expand its work force. Advanced programming for individuals with autism will be introduced based on the larger space in the new facility.

Financial Disclosure/Federal Nexus Letter

15. $575,000 for Flatbush Development Corporation – Newkirk Plaza Storefront Improvement. The Flatbush Development Corporation is requesting a storefront improvement grant for the Newkirk Plaza 34 businesses. The Plaza is home to a diverse range of mom and pop shops that are proud to be a hub of economic activity in the Flatbush area. However, the reality of Newkirk Plaza over the last several decades has been of underinvestment due to economic downturns, and its multijurisdictional ownership between the MTA, DOT, and private owners. Without proper investment, the Plaza has not lived up to its potential. Its worn out storefront facades give way to high vacancy rates, limited retail mix, unattractive storefronts, and insufficient greening and sanitation services. Many neighbors describe the Plaza as sad looking and unsafe even in daylight and prefer to shop elsewhere. The pandemic has exacerbated these long-term challenges with increasing crime, rodent infestations, and homelessness that negatively impact small businesses in the Plaza—mostly owned by women, immigrants, and low income New Yorkers.
    
    With the support of this funding, FDC plans to implement a series of storefront improvements to the Plaza. These may include: Repainting and repairing facades, updating signage and awnings, Installing new lighting fixtures, repairing or replacing windows and doors, and enhanced landscaping. By making these improvements, we aim to create a more vibrant and visually appealing business district that will make it a destination for shopping, transportation and green space.

Financial Disclosure/Federal Nexus Letter