Brownsville, Brooklyn - Urban Design Forum

About the Project

Pitkin Avenue BID will work with Studio Cooke John Architecture and Design to transform Zion Triangle Plaza and other public spaces along Pitkin Avenue into a welcoming destination for residents, shoppers and visitors of Brownsville.

The team will engage Brownsville’s multigenerational community to develop a vision plan for the district’s public spaces. They will also activate Zion Triangle Plaza and its surrounding areas with interactive art, lighting, markets and events. Their goal is to increase economic opportunities and provide access to arts, culture and community celebrations for Brownsville residents and businesses within their own neighborhood.

A pre-activation shot of Zion Triangle Plaza, which will be activated with a lighting installation this fall. (credit: Cameron Blaylock)

The team hosted a community engagement workshop to share lighting design options with residents.

Input from community workshops helped shape a larger vision for Brownsville’s public realm.

During a community engagement event with the design team, residents answered prompts about their lived experience in Brownsville and what they’d like to see in their neighborhood.

At an afterschool workshop with youth and adults, community residents shared ideas of what they wanted to see in the neighborhood’s public spaces.

The team unveiled the ‘Brownsville Is’ lighting installation in November. Credit: Cameron Blaylock

The completed installation has brought more light to Zion Triangle. Credit: Cameron Blaylock

The lighting installation features customized posts with messages of what Brownsville means to residents. Credit: Cameron Blaylock

A drumline performance by a local group called Brownsville Excellence Marching Band kicked off the event. Credit: Nico Shot

Jazz dancers from the local performing arts group Victory Music and Dance Inc. performed as well. Credit: Nico Shot

Nina Cooke John, with the design team, introduced the lighting project. Credit: Nico Shot

Dasia Jenkins, Tiera Mack, Mark Tanis and Renee Muir with Pitkin Avenue BID welcomed guests to the unveiling. Credit: Nico Shot

The Brownsville Team were joined by Urban Design Forum and ANHD team members at the opening. Credit: Nico Shot

Team

Pitkin Avenue BID is a nonprofit community development organization that serves businesses and property owners on Pitkin Avenue and creates programming for the entrepreneurs and residents in Brownsville. They work to make Brownsville a better place to live, work, shop and visit.

Tiera Mack

Pitkin Avenue BID

Dasia Jenkins

Pitkin Avenue BID

Studio Cooke John is a multidisciplinary design studio that values placemaking as a way to transform relationships between people and the built environment. They see public space as places to build community and strengthen the bonds with those whose backgrounds might be different to ours.

Nina Cooke John

Studio Cooke John

Deena Darby

Studio Cooke John

Dhruva Lakshminarayanan

Studio Cooke John

Phillips Lytle LLP is providing legal support across the project teams.

Molly Brennan

Phillips Lytle

Shengkai Xu

Phillips Lytle

Jocelyn Ng

Phillips Lytle

Flora Donovan

Phillips Lytle

Images credit: Cameron Blaylock and partner organizations

Support

Connected Corridors projects are made possible with support from National Grid’s Project C, NYC Department of Small Business Services, Charles H. Revson Foundation, Deutsche Bank, and the NYC Green Relief & Recovery Fund, administered by City Parks Foundation. Our programs are made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.

To learn more about supporting the Local Center, please contact Katherine Sacco, katherine@urbandesignforum.org and Lauren Nye, lauren.n@anhd.org.