Of the countless changes that have shaken Brooklyn over the past fifteen years, few have been as dramatic and significant as the transformation of downtown Brooklyn into a major hub of innovation, economic growth, and cultural development. Read about the current transformation of downtown Brooklyn, why and how it happened, and what consequences it has had for the neighborhood and the city at brooklyn-future.com.
Echoes of history
The key findings of the study of these changes emphasize that the growth of the region’s innovation economy, increased collaboration among local higher education institutions, and the resurgence of downtown Brooklyn as a major cultural center point to decades of targeted public investment. Smart land use policies, and local leadership, have fueled this success. This has ultimately led to the borough’s growth as well.
Technology in Brooklyn is a growing industry. It is not for nothing that people talk about Brooklyn as a technology center. But it should be understood that this is not something new; the borough has always been a place for advanced technology since the Civil War.
If the author E.B. White were to rewrite his favorite classic essay of 1949, “Here is New York,” in which he unequivocally describes the city as a center of art, commerce, sports, religion, entertainment, and finance, today he would definitely have to add one more thing – IT.
The strip of Brooklyn that runs along the East River, tucked under the Brooklyn and Manhattan bridges, is also known as DUMBO, where Sergio Leone shot his timeless classic Once Upon a Time in America. The Brooklyn Navy Yard and downtown Brooklyn, together, form the city’s largest cluster of technological activity outside of Manhattan.
This cluster is called the Brooklyn Tech Triangle, where more than 1,350 technology companies have already established themselves in this field. During this time, more than 17,300 people have been employed. In addition, the dynamic technology ecosystem has attracted global leaders in the field of technology. Just consider a company like United Technologies Corporation, which in March 2017 announced the newly renovated Empire Stores at 55 Water Street in DUMBO as the new base for its digital accelerator and incubator programs aimed at supporting technology startups. 55 in DUMBO, as the new base for its digital accelerator and incubator programs aimed at supporting technology startups at various stages of their development.
Downtown Brooklyn Partnership
Downtown Brooklyn Partnership — a non-profit local development corporation that runs the Make It in Brooklyn presentation competition. The organization has held six competitions so far, each with a separate theme. Several winners have subsequently entered the business profitably or received additional funding.
The new laboratory, located at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, opened its doors in 2016. It is a shared workspace for new technologies in robotics, artificial intelligence, and urban farming, with a focus on hardware development. Another facility with a similar concept is Tishman Speyer, which acquired a Macy’s store in downtown Brooklyn in 2015 with the aim of transforming it into a creative center.
Brooklyn Tech Triangle
Andrew Hoan, President and CEO of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce, believes that the Brooklyn Tech Triangle’s proximity to MetroTech, the nation’s largest urban academic and industrial research park, promises a large amount of the necessary talent and is an important reason for the triangle’s emergence as a technology center.
Another contributing factor is the high quality of life in Downtown Brooklyn, which attracts people. The president of the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership is convinced of this. In addition to Borough Brooklyn being a vibrant urban neighborhood in its own right, there are three other equally charming neighborhoods near the downtown business district – Boerum Hill, Cobble Hill, and Carroll Gardens, affectionately known as BoCoCa. Here, guests are offered historic old-world architecture and plenty of opportunities for socializing.
However, the tech industry boom in Brooklyn is not limited to this tech triangle. By the way, this triangle has another, no less intriguing name. It is the term “innovation coast”. In the last five years alone, areas along the East River, such as Greenpoint, Williamsburg, and Gowanus, have become a center of innovation for some well-known technology companies in the food and agriculture industries.
For example, in 2011, Gotham Greens established its flagship hydroponic farm and the first commercial-scale greenhouse of its kind in the country in Greenpoint. Edenworks is an aquaponic farming company owned by two founders who have become famous throughout the country, as recently as 2017, they were named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 list. And several other new food startups are flocking to the old Pfizer factory building, which is located on the border of South Williamsburg and Bed-Stuy.
In other words, with just a little digging, you can see that young and bold tech pioneers have been shaping the colorful tech landscape in Brooklyn all along. People are now talking about Brooklyn as a tech center everywhere, but with such a wide range of interests and activities of tech companies, there is undoubtedly much more to come.
Make It in Brooklyn
Make It in Brooklyn is a Brooklyn Downtown Partnership initiative that aims to grow entrepreneurship and the innovation ecosystem in Brooklyn through pitch competitions, meetups, and awards that connect entrepreneurs with resources and opportunities, including funding and professional services. The program actively collaborates with organizations such as NYU Tandon School of Engineering and Con Edison to support startups and companies, and to highlight the borough’s creative and technological achievements.
Additionally, Make It in Brooklyn is a Brooklyn Downtown Partnership initiative to support and highlight entrepreneurship and develop a sustainable innovation ecosystem throughout Brooklyn. Our programs reach out to hundreds of startups and diverse companies and foster the spread of transformative ideas. Through pitch competitions, meetups, and more, we have brought together hundreds of entrepreneurs and provided over $120,000 in seed funding and pro bono professional services.
It is no longer a secret that the Make It In Brooklyn campaign of the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership is aimed at supporting entrepreneurship and developing a sustainable innovation ecosystem throughout Brooklyn. It aims to support hundreds of startups. A series of pitch competitions, meetups, and summits brought together hundreds of entrepreneurs and provided over $90,000 in seed capital and pro bono professional services. All of this allowed them to make a profitable entry into the market, obtain additional funding, or scale their business.
Over the past three years, the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership’s Make It In Brooklyn campaign has supported hundreds of startups.
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