With urban manufacturing experiencing a national renaissance, there is an increasing challenge for cities to provide affordable industrial space. The Brooklyn Navy Yard Master Plan sets out a vision for creating new vertical manufacturing space which would allow 30,000 people to work in the Yard by 2030. The Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation (BNYDC) commissioned WXY to develop the plan, which envisions more than 5 million square feet of new space.

The Master Plan focuses around three development sites within the Yard: Kent, Flushing and Navy. All three include the ground-up development of a vertical manufacturing space along with amenities for tenants, public realm and accessibility improvements. Each proposed building is made resilient by using the ground level for parking and loading uses. The plan adheres to the not-for-profit Yard’s mission by proposing a tenant mix of 75% manufacturing jobs 20% creative office and 5% amenities and services.

New vertical manufacturing buildings are anchored by robust logistics bases that combine loading, staging, XL production spaces, and storefronts for public amenities. A mix of production/light industrial and creative office floors are stacked above, connected by shared resources and common space.

The plan for the Kent site includes a 2.7 million square foot development of two buildings near Kent Avenue in the northern corner of the Yard. The buildings would rise along an improved inlet, called the Barge Basin Loop, with a waterfront esplanade that provides a new public space for the adjacent Williamsburg neighborhood and ground floor space for tenants to display products.

The second development site is located along Flushing Avenue. The two buildings would total 1.4 million square feet of predominantly manufacturing space adjacent to the recently completed Building 77 that would be an anchor for food manufacturing and a potential food hall. A publicly accessible flyover walkway to access the NYC Ferry stop was also created and opened in early 2018. 

The third site would be located on the current NYPD tow pound near the Yard’s Sands Street entrance. Plans for the site comprise two buildings at opposite ends of a publicly-accessible plaza, with ground floor space in the larger of the buildings to house a potential science and engineering museum, workforce development space and STEM-oriented youth programs. 

Focused on improved transportation both to and within the Yard, the Master Plan envisions multi-modal spaces at the gates for shuttles, buses, bikeshare and the potential BQX. The plan includes more bike and carshare opportunities, increased Navy Yard shuttle bus capacity and street improvements to maintain truck access while making the Yard more pedestrian and cyclist- friendly. 

The Master Plan envisions a Navy Yard more integrated within the local community through activation of open pedestrian plazas, ground floor space in new development sites, and the Barge Basin Loop waterfront esplanade. The plan includes improved wayfinding, lighting, streetscapes and amenity spaces that will foster an environment that encourages innovation and collaboration between firms at the Yard.