New York City Mayor Eric Adams, Deputy Mayor for Operations Meera Joshi, and New York City Department of Parks and Recreation (NYC Parks) Commissioner Sue Donoghue last Wednesday celebrated $160 investment in the Brownsville Recreation Center in Brooklyn and additional maintenance workers at 62 parks to improve quality of life across the five boroughs.
Adams said the major investments in New York City’s public parks and facilities are part of an “on-time, balanced, and fiscally-responsible” $112.4 billion Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 Adopted Budget that “addresses the city’s affordability crisis head-on and invests in the future of the city and the working-class people who make New York the greatest city in the world.
“The FY25 Adopted Budget ensures parks have what they need to engage New Yorkers and attract tourists and other visitors, as a critical part of the city’s economic and social wellbeing, as well as to improve healthy lifestyles,” the mayor said.
After making multiple investments in New York City’s parks, including in the Parks Opportunity Program (POP) that gives thousands of low-income New Yorkers six-month paid opportunities and training programs each year and help maintain and operate New York City parks and facilities, Adams said he and the City Council went even further in the FY25 Adopted Budget by investing $160 million to fully rebuild the 70-year-old Brownsville Recreation Center, providing a brand-new, state-of-the art recreation center in the heart of Brooklyn.
Additionally, thanks to a $15 million city investment, Adams said NYC Parks will hire an additional 240 full-time maintenance and operations staff to provide a second shift of cleaning service at 100 hotspots at 62 public parks in all five boroughs.
Last month, the City Council voted to pass the FY25 Budget. After the budget handshake announcement, Adams said New Yorkers from across the city, including parks advocates, praised the budget for its wide-ranging investments that help protect public safety, rebuild the economy, and make New York City more affordable and livable.
Funding for this “second shift” is baselined in the FY25 Adopted Budget, Adams said.
“We came into office with a clear mission: protect public safety, rebuild our economy, and make our city more affordable and livable for working-class New Yorkers. And providing New Yorkers with clean, vibrant public spaces, particularly in neighborhoods like Brownsville that have long been overlooked, helps us continue to deliver on that mission,” said Mayor Adams.
“Our $160 million investment in the Brownsville Recreation Center will transform this 70-year-old complex into a state-of-the-art community space in the heart of Brooklyn,” he added. “And because we’re focused on keeping our public spaces clean, too, we’re investing $15 million in a second cleaning shift at parks in all five boroughs.
“We came into office promising a safer, cleaner, more livable city that is equitable and affordable,” the mayor continued. “The new Brownsville Recreation Center and cleaner parks are the next steps forward in our mission.”
“The city’s $160 million investment to reconstruct Brownsville Recreation Center will provide Brooklynites with a new, state-of-the-art recreation facility that will serve generations to come,” said NYC Parks Commissioner Donoghue. “In addition, baselined funding for ‘second shift’ cleaning will ensure our most heavily used parks citywide are clean and safe. Along with the recently announced initial investment of $3.2 billion for our Vital Parks plan to bolster the city’s living infrastructure, we’re advancing our mission of providing accessible, safe, and well-maintained public spaces for all.”
Adams said the Brownsville Recreation Center first opened as a city facility in 1955. In 2016, then Mayor Bill de Blasio announced a $20 million selective reconstruction of the center; preliminary work on the center found significant damage and deterioration requiring a partial closure (including the indoor pool and the gymnasium) and a complete demolition and reconstruction of the center.
Adams said the new facility will be designed with extensive input from the Brownsville community, and NYC Parks will work with DDC to build the new space quickly and cost-efficiently.
While the recreation center is closed for the multi-year demolition, planning, design, and construction period, the mayor said NYC Parks will open interim spaces in Brownsville to ensure residents continue to have uninterrupted access to the classes and resources that NYC Parks’ recreation centers provide.
“It is often said that a budget is a statement of values. The Brownsville Recreation Center has been such a valuable and important center of activity for our young people, so it follows that this year’s budget includes $160 million to renovate, revitalize and rebuild the BRC,” said US House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who represents Brownsville in the 8th Congressional District. “The residents of central Brooklyn deserve nothing less than the finest recreation center in the world and this funding is an important step towards bringing that to life.”
“Investing in our city’s future means investing in our communities. I commend Mayor Adams and Deputy Mayor Meera Joshi for this commitment to rebuild the historic Brownsville Recreation Center, and enhancing sanitation services across 62 parks citywide,” said New York State Sen. Roxanne J. Persaud, the Guyanese-born representative for the 19th Senate District in Brooklyn that encompasses Brownsville. “These investments reflect our dedication to a cleaner, safer, and more vibrant New York City.”
“The Brownsville Recreation Center has been central to the fabric of my community for decades. It has been a safe haven for 70 years. More recently, it served as a food distribution center at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic and as a learning lab for students to stay connected to their schoolwork remotely,” said New York State Assemblywoman Latrice Walker, who also represents Brownsville in the State Assembly.
“The staff has been working out of the Golden Age wing of the building, while the main part of the building, including the gym and swimming pool, is closed for repairs,” she added. “The city’s investment in the complete renovation of the BRC is welcome news that I cannot wait to share with the community of Brownsville where I was born and raised.”
