COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
Building Community. Growing Leaders.
Our Community Development division strives to increase affordable housing in Cypress Hills, and make Cypress Hills a healthier and more energy efficient community.
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Community Advocates Food Access and Public Benefits
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Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and NYC Public Benefits (Cash Assistance, Fair Fares, Reduced Price Metro Card, One Shot Deal,
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Energy Assistance Program (EAP),
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Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP)
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Fresh Food Markets and Healthy Food Access
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Urban Agriculture and Community Gardening
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Affordable Housing Development (investment against displacement)
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Manufacturing Development (development of safe and sustainable spaces)
COMMUNITY ADVOCATES
Our Community Advocates work to improve the quality of life in Cypress Hills by increasing access to healthy food, assisting with SNAP and other benefits applications, and connecting residents to health resources and information. Located at our Chestnut Commons Community Center, 276 Chestnut Street, Brooklyn, NY 11208. Call our intake coordinator for an appointment: 929-481-7568.
CONTACT:
Alice Heeger (pronouns: she, her)
Program Director, Public Benefits and Food Access
aliceh@cypresshills.org
(929) 583-5046
NYC BENEFITS PROGRAM
Get assistance applying for NYC public Benefits with CHLDC. Our team assists with: SNAP, Cash Assistance, One Shot Deals, Fair Fares and Reduced Price Metro Cards, the Energy Assistance Program (EAP), and HEAP/HEAP Cooling.
We work to connect eligible New Yorkers to benefits they need and help them stay enrolled.
CONTACT:
Crystal Dixon
NYC Benefits Coordinator/Program Supervisor
(929) 379-3273
See NYC Benefits Offers Below
CASH ASSISTANCE
Cash Assistance is a benefit offered to individuals and families who reside in NYC. Eligible families may receive up to 60 months of federal funded cash assistance. This benefit includes SNAP and MEDICAID as well. A part of the cash assistance benefit may also include a shelter allowance. A shelter allowance helps pay a set amount of your rent which goes directly to the landlord.
CONTACT:
929-481-7568
ONE SHOT DEALS
A One Shot Deal is a one-time payment from the Human Resources Administration (HRA) to pay back rental and or utility arrears. You may be able to get cash help if you cannot pay your bills because you lost your job, are getting less pay from your job, or had another emergency like an unexpected medical situation. This help is called “Emergency Assistance'' or a “One Shot Deal.” These grants require repayment and in order to be considered, all applicants must show future ability to continue payments once the grant money is used.
Emergency assistance can help you if:
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You are experiencing homelessness or will lose your housing if you do not get help.
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Your gas or electricity has been shut off, or you got a notice saying that it will be shut off.
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You lost clothes, personal items, or furniture because of theft, a fire, or a natural disaster.
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You are affected by domestic violence.
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You have other issues that affect the health and safety of you or your family.
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You may be required to pay back some or all the Emergency Assistance. HRA will let you know if and how much to pay back.
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You may apply for Emergency Assistance even if you got it before. If you were asked to pay back a past grant but did not, your eligibility for a new grant may be affected.
CONTACT:
929-481-7568
SNAP
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly called the Food Stamp Program, provides support to eligible New Yorkers including individuals, families, the elderly and people with disabilities to increase their ability to purchase food. You can purchase food by using an Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) card where you shop.
CONTACT:
929-481-7568
FAIR FARES & REDUCES PRICE METRO CARD (65+)
Fair Fares
The Fair Fares Program was created to help low-income New Yorkers manage their transportation costs by reducing fare by half.
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50% discount on subway and bus rides OR Access-A-Ride (including weekly and monthly unlimited).
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Fair Fares does not ask or require information about your immigration status.
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If you are currently receiving Cash Assistance, you qualify for a Fair Fares MetroCard, and if you receive cash benefits, you can use your EBT card to add money to your MetroCard.
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Requirements: Must be between the ages of 18 and 64 years old. Provide Identification, proof of address, proof of income (ex. paystubs, Social Security statement)
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You will receive your Half Fare MetroCard in the mail in 2-3 weeks.
Close to 300,000 New Yorkers have already enrolled! Apply now!
Reduced Fare Metrocard (Seniors 65+ and People with Disabilities)
The Reduced Fare Metrocard Program offers a discounted fare for eligible seniors and individuals with qualifying disabilities. The reduced fare for subways, the Staten Island Railway, and local, limited, and Select Bus Service buses is $1.45 (half the $2.90 base fare) at all times of the day. No income verification required.
CONTACT:
929-481-7568
CHLDC CHILDCARE ENROLLMENT PROGRAM
Finding the right child care options for your family can be difficult. The CHLDC Child Care Enrollment Program helps families connect with childcare providers, do outreach to programs, navigate child care applications on MySchools and MyCity and HRA, and finalize enrollment. Child Care Specialists assist families with children in Daycare, 3K, Pre-K and Kindergarten. There are 3 options for childcare that depend on the child's age and schedule.
CONTACT:
Kenya Cruz
Childcare Enrollment Specialist
kenyac@cypresshills.org
929-583-5048 Ext: 5048
FARMSTAND
CHLDC manages a farmstand on Fridays July to November, which is staffed by young people from the community. The markets are affordable and provide access to fresh fruits and vegetables at their prime when they are the tastiest and most nutritious. The markets accept cash, debit, credit, and EBT. We participate in the New York City Health Bucks program. We also host cooking classes and nutrition workshops.
Schedule:
NOW OPEN FROM JULY 11 - NOV 21, 2025
Location:
3208 Fulton St, Brooklyn, NY 11208 (Outside of Cypress Hills Senior Center; on the corner of Fulton and Richmond Street)
CONTACT:
732-860-8589
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MANUFACTURING DEVELOPMENT
The provision and availability of a steady, living wage job is the foundation for any community. CHLDC believes that it can leverage the significant stock of manufacturing land in the Cypress Hills /East New York community to help support existing businesses, to animate vacant and underutilized land and, perhaps most importantly, to create the types of jobs that provide a living wage and good benefits. As a result, CHLDC has made it a strategic priority to provide employment and training opportunities for community residents through the development of safe and sustainable industrial spaces.
If you are interested in finding space for your business, or would like more information about our manufacturing development initiatives, contact us.
CONTACT:
Jessica Bartolini
Division Director, Community Development
BASEMENT APARTMENT CONVERSION PILOT PROGRAM (BACPP)
Administered by the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development, in partnership with Cypress Hills Local Development Corporation, the Basement Apartment Conversion Pilot Program (BACPP) provides eligible low- to middle-income homeowners living in one- to three-family homes in East New York and Cypress Hills, Brooklyn (Community District 5) with low-interest, no-interest, or even forgivable, loans to convert their basement or cellar into a safe, legal, and rentable apartment.
The homeowner is also provided with the technical assistance needed to close on a loan and complete the construction project. This pilot program will help to create safe housing for tenants or occupants while providing homeowners an opportunity to earn rental income.
Additional Information:
For information on loan terms and the program, see the BACPP term sheet,
La versión en espanol de este formulario está aqui.
More information can be found on this website: www.nyc.gov/basementconversion.
This program is no longer accepting new applicants. If you would like to join a waiting list to be notified if similar opportunities open up in the future, please email eny-basement@cypresshills.org.
CONTACT:
Ryan Chavez
Program Director, Basement Apartment Conversion Pilot Program
2685 Pitkin Avenue 11208 Brooklyn, NY
ENERGYFIT
EnergyFit is a free program that helps small homeowners seal and weatherize their homes, install energy efficiency measures, upgrade fossil fuel appliances to electric, and make critical repairs — improvements valued between $25,000 and $30,000 — so they can cut down on energy use, breathe cleaner air, and keep their home comfortable all year round.
CONTACT:
Wilmer Baez
Project Manager of Small Homes Programs
2966 Fulton Street, Brooklyn, NY 11208
917-727-8463
EnergyFit Hotline: 718-636-3496
RETROFITTING
Small home retrofits may include addressing moisture and humidity, leaky roofs and windows, damp basements, pest management, water efficiency and green cleaning. These efforts protect the environment, improve the condition of small homes and help homeowners save on their energy bills.
We are currently not accepting any more applications to retrofit homes – please email healthyhome@cypresshills.org if you would like to be notified when this resumes.
If you’re looking for a particular service, but don’t know the name of the program, head to the “How Can We Help You?” form so a program staff member can contact you directly.