Capital Program
This Fall of 2010 marks a critical moment in BRAC’s 25-year history. After six years of fundraising, planning, and designing, our 100-year old, 18,000 sq. ft. building is poised to go under a seven-million-dollar renovation. This exciting project has been made possible with support from the Bronx Delegation of the New York City Council and its Majority Leader, Joel Rivera, the office of Bronx Borough President, Ruben Diaz Jr., the office of Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs. The new facility will be a model for sustainable design and will have a striking presence in the heart of the Bronx, through its award-winning (New York City Design Commission, 2009 Award for Design Excellence) exterior Super-Graphics (illustrated).
During the approximately two-year construction period, BRAC plans to fully maintain our programming and our presence in the West Farms community. Our offices will be relocated into a nearby organization’s facility, from where we will continue to do our outreach and registration for classes, as well as administer our education programming in partnership with Bronx schools, cultural institutions, and other community-based organizations (CBOs). Entitled “BRAC on the Block”, we will be setting up art studios in several sites throughout the Bronx, in order to continue offering our unique interdisciplinary Art and Environmental Studies after-school programming. BRAC will also relocate our Art Gallery to an up-and-coming art space, located in Mott Haven within the “South Bronx Cultural Corridor”. Through these exhibitions, we will continue to present cutting-edge and socially significant contemporary art.
The BRAC Environmental Education Garden, completed September 2010
Funded by the José E. Serrano WCS/NOAA Lower Bronx River Partnership
Landscape Design: KaN Landscape Design
Contractor: Paul W. Steinbeiser Landscape Construction
