Downtown Brooklyn Partnership completes $4.1m Boerum Place extension project

Downtown Brooklyn's revitalization reached another milestone as the Boerum Place extension project was officially completed. The multifaceted initiative along the quarter-mile stretch of "Brooklyn Bridge Boulevard" creates a connection between the downtown core and the surrounding neighborhoods of Brooklyn Heights and Boerum Hill. This is the first completed project in a series of city-funded streetscape improvements. The $4.1 million project extends the planted median along Boerum Place from Fulton St. to Atlantic Ave., and also resurfaces the roadway. Under the plan, a series of pedestrian friendly enhancements and traffic calming measures were implemented, including new sidewalks, sidewalk extensions, safer crosswalks and vehicle channelization. The initiative, which began in September 2007, was made possible through the Bloomberg Administration's investment of $3.1 million and Borough president Marty Markowitz's commitment of $970,000. The median contains more than 500 plantings, including a variety of small shrubs, roses, and Hawthorne and Kwanzan Cherry trees. The design and construction team, composed of Urbitran, HDR/Daniel Frankfurt, and ADC, Inc., was overseen by the NYC Economic Development Corp. (NYCEDC). The Bloomberg Administration has committed over $40 million in capital funds for a series of streetscape projects that will beautify the area, and improve conditions for pedestrians and traffic. "As our revitalized Downtown Brooklyn continues to bloom and flourish, the Boerum Place project is a colorful reminder that, as in all the great cities of the world, our vibrant urban thoroughfares are more than just concrete and asphalt—they are living symbols of movement and progress," said Markowitz. Maintenance and oversight of the planted median will be managed by the Court-Livingston-Schermerhorn Business Improvement District (CLS BID). Approved in July 2007 by Mayor Michael Bloomberg, the CLS BID marks its first anniversary with the completion of the median extension.