Brooklyn Brewery

Brooklyn Navy Yard: A Green Manufacturing Center

The future of the United States and its businesses depend on the green economy—and Brooklyn is doing something about it. 
 
A thriving light industrial manufacturing center, The Brooklyn Navy Yard has recently been met with a high demand for additional space.  New York State stepped in, providing Brooklyn Navy Yard with $16 million, including a capital grant of $15 million from the New York State Senate and $1 million from the Empire State Development (ESD).  The Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation (BNYDC) will use $10.5 million from the State Senate funding, as well as ESD’s grant, to facilitate the construction of a $30 million, 220,000-square-foot manufacturing facility. But this is not just any kind of facility; the current redevelopment of a Green Manufacturing Center is a national model for sustainable industrial parks and will create nearly 300 green collar jobs.
 
The project includes the adaptive reuse of three connected former World War II machine shops to create a new $30 million Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver certified, multi-tenanted Green Manufacturing Center.  The Navy Yard has been at full capacity for five years and is home to a rapidly growing cluster of green manufacturers. 
 
“Thanks to the New York State Senate and Empire State Development the green transformation of the Navy Yard will be accelerated,” said Andrew H. Kimball, President and CEO of the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation, which manages the 300-acre industrial park on behalf of the City.  “These projects will not only create good paying, skilled jobs, but will also provide inspiration for young people to pursue careers in sustainable industries or to start their own green business.”
 
The building, which will house cutting-edge green infrastructure, will include one of New York State’s largest solar panel installations and will adaptively re-use the concrete foundations and steel frames of the late 19th century buildings.  Construction will begin in spring 2010 and is expected to take 18 months.  The balance of construction funding will come from pending grants and private financing.
 
“Not only is this project the Navy Yard’s largest expansion since WWII, it will be one of the most environmentally sustainable urban industrial parks in the nation,” said Empire State Development New York City Regional Director Joseph Tazewell. “The Brooklyn Navy Yard is certainly growing as a center for green manufacturers, but it is also putting a spotlight on Brooklyn as a great place to grow a 21st century business.  There’s a reason New York City is called the greatest city in the world and attracts all kinds of creative projects.  That reason is in its numerous assets.  As the global hub of international business and home to industry giants, New York City has extensive market access, a highly educated workforce and a wealth of cultural opportunities.”
 
Currently, there are more than 30 green manufacturers at the Yard employing 350 people.  Other sustainability initiatives underway at the Navy Yard include: creating more than $200 million in adaptive reuse projects to renovate historic Navy-built buildings for their original industrial intent; using green technologies for renovations and maintenance, such as Energy Star roofs and energy efficient windows and light bulbs; undertaking a major water sewer project to upgrade the Yard’s aging infrastructure and improve water conservation; rebuilding the road system with improved stormwater management systems; installing more than 90 wind-solar street lamps that will save $600,000 on installation costs and $11,000 a year in electricity costs; purchasing hybrid and low-emission vehicles for the Yard’s fleet; installing solar-powered, compacting trash cans; purchasing eco-friendly paint and cleaning products; installing bicycle racks and lanes; and providing setbacks along the perimeter of Yard to enable the first phase of the Brooklyn Waterfront Greenway for bicyclists and pedestrians.
 
New York State is proud to be supporting businesses that not only play a role in securing a healthier and more environmentally-friendly future for the state, but ones that will enhance our global competitiveness.
 
About the Brooklyn Navy Yard
The Brooklyn Navy Yard is owned by the City of New York and managed by the not-for-profit Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation.  BNYDC leases space in the Yard, promotes local economic development, develops underutilized areas and oversees modernization of the Yard's infrastructure.  The corporation’s board of directors is comprised of leaders of Brooklyn’s economic development community.  Established in 1801, the Brooklyn Navy Yard served as one of America's preeminent military facilities for more than 150 years. Closed by the federal government in 1966, the City of New York subsequently assumed ownership and re-opened the Yard as an industrial park.