These School Projects Won Part Of Bed-Stuy's $1M Participatory Budget

BED-STUY, BROOKLYN — Three Bed-Stuy schools will get a slice of $1 million from their local council member to fund upgrade projects this year.

Three school projects — including a computer lab, multimedia studio and new water fountains — were chosen by neighbors to win Councilmember Chi Ossé's participatory budget, which lets residents brainstorm, pitch and vote on ideas for local funding.

The three projects come after more than 1,400 votes were cast in the district earlier this spring, the council member noted in his newsletter Tuesday.

The vote was the first time in at least two years the program has been used in District 36, which includes Bed-Stuy and northern Crown Heights. Ossé brought back the program when he took office at the start of the year.

There were a total of five neighborhood projects in the running this year for the funding. Those that didn't get a slice of the budget include a proposal for upgrades at a community garden in North Crown Heights and a tree-planting and sidewalk repair project for the entire district.

Here's a look at the projects that won and how much they will cost:

• Filtered water bottle fountains for Bedford Academy High School – $56,000: Funding to install seven new water bottle fountains for Bedford Academy High School.

• Multimedia studio for MS 35 – $350,000: Funding to construct a multimedia studio for MS 35 with A/V equipment, recording interface, digital audio workstations, and studio speakers and instruments.

• Computer Laboratory Update at P368K – $60,000: Upgrade PS 368's technology lab by funding 41 Mac desktops and keyboards, 1 printer with built in scanner, and 1 smartboard for the lab.