NYCEDC Reveals Design for New Made in NY Campus Garment Hub and Public Realm

Campus at Bush Terminal in Sunset Park Will Include Affordable Workspaces for Fashion Industry Innovators, Garment Manufacturing and Local Production

BROOKLYN, NY—New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) today released the designs for the Garment Manufacturing Hub and public realm components of the new Made in NY (MiNY) Campus at Bush Terminal in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. The MiNY Campus will provide affordable, best-in-class industrial facilities for garment manufacturing, film and media production, and related services and industries.

Set to open in Spring 2021, the Garment Hub will be a center of gravity for local manufacturing, sustainable fashion, and textile technology innovation in New York City, and feature a diverse fashion ecosystem that co-locates garment manufacturers and emerging designers. NYCEDC is also delivering 5.3 acres of new public space to complement the adjacent Bush Terminal Piers Park, and providing new amenities to the community and campus workers. Public amenities will include landscaped waterfront access, enhanced streetscapes, pedestrianized plazas, and a water play feature.

Renderings of the new MiNY campus are available here.

“The new Made in New York Campus brings exciting opportunities to the Sunset Park community – providing affordable workspace for innovative and sustainable companies while also creating good jobs for local residents,” said Jhaelen Hernandez-Eli, NYCEDC Senior Vice President and Department Head of Design and Construction. “I’m excited to share our vision for the new campus today, and would like to thank nARCHITECTS and W Architecture and Landscape Architecture for their efforts on a project that weaves the historical fabric of the garment industry into a vibrant and interactive job center in Sunset Park."

In March 2019, NYCEDC announced the selection of a Brooklyn-based team, nARCHITECTS and W Architecture, and Landscape Architecture, to design the garment manufacturing hub of the new MiNY Campus. nARCHITECTS, along with Perkins Eastman, are transforming City-owned buildings into a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility. W Architecture and Landscape Architecture, along with Dewberry engineers, are leading infrastructure, streetscape, and public realm improvements across the nine-acre waterfront campus. Gilbane will serve as the construction manager.

“We are thrilled to contribute to the City’s efforts to support the garment industry,” said Mimi Hoang, Co-Founding Principal, nARCHITECTS. “With innovative design that incorporates Bush Terminal’s historical past, we are developing forward-looking, new manufacturing spaces for the Made in NY campus.”

“As landscape architects, we are pleased to be part of the team which will open this significant historic campus to the public and create a more sustainable, and accessible waterfront in Brooklyn,” said Barbara Wilks, Founding Principal, W Architecture and Landscape Architecture.

Today, garment manufacturing comprises 30 percent of the city’s manufacturing jobs.  To accommodate this expanding industry and workforce, the new campus will include the renovation of a 200,000 square foot building into a cutting-edge Garment Manufacturing Hub with workspaces ranging from 2,000 to 40,000 square feet. The Hub will support 20 to 30 garment manufacturing companies, with tenants involved in pattern making, marking and grading, cutting and sewing and sample making.

Sunset Park has the second largest concentration of garment manufacturers in New York City. The MiNY Campus and Garment Hub builds on this foundation and will create additional opportunities for local businesses and sector workers for the future. Companies that are interested in leasing space in the new Garment Hub can visit edc.nyc/MiNYGarmentHub to learn more.

NYCEDC also announced a Request for Expressions of Interest (RFEI) for one or more partners to operate a research and development center and training partnership in the Hub. The RFEI targets fashion brands or garment makers seeking to grow their presence in New York City; science or technology firms driving R&D in the fashion industry; academic programs in the fashion and design fields; mission-driven organization supporting the garment sector; companies along the fashion supply chain or manufacturing logistics sector; as well as cross-sector collaborators.

With a focus on local production, on-demand and advanced manufacturing, sustainable processes and circular fashion, material technology and textile innovation, the RFEI is seeking two types of proposals: 1) concepts for an R&D center, innovation laboratory and/or business accelerator; and 2) proposals for programming to train garment sector workers and local workforce to fill quality fashion manufacturing jobs.

Tenants in the hub will be required to utilize the City’s workforce development programs—HireNYC and Workforce1—to connect New Yorkers with good, local job opportunities.

The new campus reflects the goals of the Industrial Action Plan, released in November 2015 by Mayor de Blasio which was designed to spur thousands of good-paying manufacturing jobs through large investments in city-owned assets. The new manufacturing facilities also advance NYCEDC’s Sunset Park Vision Plan, which aims to improve community infrastructure, professionalize maritime and rail service and create new industrial jobs along the Sunset Park waterfront.

About NYCEDC
New York City Economic Development Corporation is a mission-driven, non-profit organization that creates shared prosperity across New York City by strengthening neighborhoods and growing good jobs. NYCEDC works with and for communities to provide them with the resources they need to thrive, and invests in projects that increase sustainability, support job growth, develop talent, and spark innovation to strengthen the City’s competitive advantage. To learn more about our work and initiatives, please visit us on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.