New Brooklyn Jail Reaches the Top, in Latest Step Toward Closing Rikers Island

New Brooklyn Jail Reaches the Top, in Latest Step Toward Closing Rikers Island

DDC: Ian Michaels, 646-939-6514, [email protected]

(Brooklyn, NY - April 23, 2026) The NYC Department of Correction (DOC), NYC Department of Design and Construction (DDC) and Mayor's Office of Criminal Justice (MOCJ) joined more than 100 construction workers yesterday as the last piece of structural steel was placed atop the new Brooklyn jail in a traditional steel "topping out" ceremony. The jail, at the site of the former Brooklyn House of Detention, is one of four being built by the City to replace Rikers Island and is due to be completed in spring 2029 as part of the Borough-Based Jails program. Demolition and site preparation for three additional jails in the Bronx, Queens and Manhattan is already completed, and the jails will be turned over in 2031 (Bronx, Queens) and 2032 (Manhattan). Construction and early work for the facilities has started at each of the sites.

This milestone represents the second major step toward closing the jails on Rikers Island in recent weeks. Earlier this month, the Mamdani Administration opened the City's first Outposted Therapeutic Housing Unit at NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue. The 104-bed unit now serves people in custody who have complex medical needs, providing them with closer access to specialty care.

"Every day, the city moves closer to a future off Rikers Island and toward a more modern, supportive system that uses design to uplift the people it serves," said New York City Department of Correction Commissioner Stanley Richards. "The reality is that the facilities on Rikers Island were built decades ago. It is time to provide our staff and the people in our care with conditions that center their humanity and help create a more compassionate legal system. Moreover, facilities, like the Brooklyn borough-based jail, will provide greater accessibility to lawyers, loved ones, and therapeutic programs that give people a better chance at success when they return to the community."

"Today is more than a construction milestone; it is real progress toward a safer, more humane criminal legal system for New York City," said Mayor's Office of Criminal Justice (MOCJ) Director Deanna Logan. "Mayor Mamdani made clear: government must work for all New Yorkers. That's why we at MOCJ are continuing to build a system that provides tailored support to each person in our care to reduce unnecessary incarceration, break cycles of harm, and create pathways for people to successfully return to their communities as neighbors. Every day we take one step closer to a system that puts fairness and stability first - making our City safer for all."

"Today's milestone brings us one step closer to closing Rikers Island and providing facilities with better conditions for both those in custody and the staff who work there," said NYC Department of Design and Construction (DDC) Acting Commissioner Eduardo del Valle. "DDC has held extensive workshops with affected communities and local stakeholders to design safer, more humane facilities that resemble living spaces with natural lighting, provide on-site areas for healthcare, legal services, and visitation, and include exterior and community spaces that will serve as neighborhood assets. We are grateful for the collaboration of our agency partners and the local community, and we look forward to continuing the important work."

The new jail being constructed in Brooklyn at 275 Atlantic Avenue is 15 stories, with a maximum height of 295 feet at the roofline plus mechanicals. The building will have a zoning floor area of 712,150 square feet with over 30,000 square feet of that space designated as community space with separate entrances fronting Atlantic Avenue. It will have a capacity of 1,040 beds and will include 82 parking spaces below grade for authorized vehicles. It's being designed and constructed by the design-build team of Tutor Perini Corporation/HOK and has a projected budget of $2.959 billion. Construction began in November 2024 and is expected to reach substantial completion in spring 2029.

The design of the new facility was developed over several years and involved numerous community design workshops and other meetings with the justice-involved community. The design principles that the design-build team followed include supportive environments with residential-style spaces and natural lighting and includes on-site areas for healthcare as well as education and legal services. The building has been designed to be durable as well as to meet and exceed green building standards for sustainability, and the ground floor areas include welcoming visiting areas for the facility as well as uses that serve the surrounding neighborhood.

The transition to the Borough-Based Jail system depends on continued citywide efforts to safely reduce the jail population, lower rearrest, and promote stability for New Yorkers returning to their communities after involvement in the criminal legal system. Employing the support of MOCJ's service provider partners, thousands of New Yorkers successfully move away from incarceration and are supported through their reentry journey each year. In Fiscal Year 2025:

• More than 33,000 individuals were enrolled in Supervised Release, allowing people to remain connected to housing, employment, treatment, and family support while their cases proceed. Participants achieved an 86 percent successful court appearance rate.
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• More than 9,000 individuals were enrolled in Alternatives to Incarceration programs, with an 84 percent successful completion rate.
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• More than 5,000 individuals successfully participated in Project Reset, a citywide pre-arraignment diversion program that allows people arrested for low-level offenses to complete community-based programming in lieu of appearing in court.
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• Through MOCJ's Community Justice Reentry Network, nonprofit partners completed more than 4,100 discharge plans, conducted more than 4,200 community intakes, and secured 1,459 job placements for people returning home from custody.

These efforts reflect a broader commitment to safely shrinking the jail population while improving outcomes for individuals, families, and communities across New York City.

About the NYC Department of Design and Construction
The Department of Design and Construction is the City's primary capital construction project manager, providing New York's diverse communities in all five boroughs with new or renovated public buildings such as firehouses, libraries, police precincts, and new or upgraded roads, sewers and water mains. To manage this $34 billion portfolio, DDC partners with other City agencies, architects and consultants, whose experience bring efficient, innovative and environmentally-conscious design and construction strategies to City projects. For more information, please visit nyc.gov/ddc.