Special Downtown Brooklyn District (DB): Key Zoning Rules
What does the Special Downtown Brooklyn District change?
The Special Downtown Brooklyn District modifies the underlying zoning in Downtown Brooklyn, including the Fulton Mall and Atlantic Avenue Subdistricts: it changes FAR in several districts (for example 18.0 commercial FAR in C6-9 and 3.44 residential in C6-1), sets base and building heights by district, and allows towers with a 495 ft cap in C6-1 (ZR 101-21, 101-222, 101-223). It is also a special density area, so no dwelling unit factor applies (ZR 23-52). Check any Downtown Brooklyn address free on Zohgo.
Downtown Brooklyn has some of the densest zoning outside Manhattan, and most of its key numbers live in one chapter of the Zoning Resolution, Article X, Chapter 1.
What it is
The Special Downtown Brooklyn District ("DB") covers Downtown Brooklyn's commercial core and includes the Fulton Mall and Atlantic Avenue Subdistricts. Its purposes include strengthening the business core, fostering development with incentives where appropriate, and creating a transition between the downtown core and the lower-scale neighborhoods of Fort Greene, Boerum Hill, Cobble Hill and Brooklyn Heights (ZR 101-00). The underlying districts still apply except where this chapter changes them, and the chapter controls in a conflict (ZR 101-02).
The district plan has six maps in Appendix E: the district and subdistricts, ground floor retail frontage, street wall continuity and mandatory sidewalk widenings, curb cut restrictions, height limitation areas and subway station improvement areas (ZR 101-03). Two subdistricts carry extra rules: the Fulton Mall Subdistrict and the Atlantic Avenue Subdistrict (ZR 101-04).
Floor area changes by district
| Underlying district in DB | What changes (ZR 101-21) |
|---|---|
| R7-1 | Uses the R7A floor area rules |
| C6-1 | Residential FAR 3.44 for standard residences, 4.13 for qualifying affordable or senior housing |
| C6-4.5 | Commercial or community facility FAR 12.0; bonuses only for transit station improvements (ZR 66-51) |
| C6-6 | Underlying rules, except residential FAR 9.0 in Mandatory Inclusionary Housing areas mapped before October 21, 2021 |
| C6-9 | Commercial or community facility FAR 18.0; in the C6-9 bounded by Flatbush Avenue, State Street, 3rd Avenue and Schermerhorn Street, 12.0 commercial or community facility and 9.0 residential |
| C6-12 | Underlying rules; on large qualifying sites, residential FAR 19.0 for qualifying affordable or senior housing and 23.0 total for all uses |
Source: ZR 101-21. In the C6-9 district, a zoning lot of at least 50,000 sq ft with a public school of at least 100,000 sq ft built with the Educational Construction Fund gets 15.0 commercial or community facility and 12.0 residential FAR, and up to 46,050 sq ft of the school can be exempt from floor area.
Height and setback
| District | Max base height, beyond / within 100 ft of a wide street | Max building height, beyond / within 100 ft of a wide street |
|---|---|---|
| C2-4/R7-1 | 85 / 85 ft | 165 / 165 ft |
| C6-1 | 125 / 155 ft | 185 / 215 ft |
| C6-4.5, C6-6, C6-9 | 125 / 155 ft | 255 / 255 ft |
| C6-12 | 155 / 155 ft | 395 / 395 ft |
Source: ZR 101-222 table. Above the base, setbacks follow ZR 23-433. C6-1A districts are excluded. In C5-4 and C6-4 districts, the R10A height and setback rules apply, without the minimum base height.
- Towers: in C5-4, C6-1, C6-4, C6-6, C6-9 and C6-12 (not C6-1A), a tower under ZR 23-435 may be used above the base instead of the maximum heights. No height limit then applies, except 495 ft in C6-1 (ZR 101-223).
- Schermerhorn Street Height Limitation Areas (Map 5): towers are not allowed, building height is capped at 210 ft in Area A and 140 ft in Area B, and public plazas are prohibited in Area B (ZR 101-30).
- Fulton Mall street walls: required street walls rise to at least 60 ft or the building height, whichever is less, with a maximum base height of 85 ft (ZR 101-41).
Zohgo shows the zoning district, FAR, height and setbacks for any NYC address in about a minute. Free to start, sign in with Google or Apple.
Check any NYC address free on ZohgoNo dwelling unit factor
ZR 12-10 names the Special Downtown Brooklyn District as one of two "special density areas", with the Manhattan Core. In special density areas there is no dwelling unit factor for residential developments or enlargements, or for conversions of non-residential buildings to residences (ZR 23-52). Unit count here is set by floor area, building code and market, not by dividing by 680.
Street-level rules
- Ground floor retail frontage: streets on Map 2 are treated as Tier C frontages under the streetscape rules of ZR 32-30. On Fulton Street in the Fulton Mall Subdistrict, any establishment with more than 15 feet of frontage must have an entrance on Fulton Street (ZR 101-11).
- Eating and drinking above homes: eating or drinking establishments in Use Group VI may be on a story above dwelling units (ZR 101-11).
- Sidewalk widening: buildings on the south side of Willoughby Street between Adams Street and the Flatbush Avenue Extension provide a 5 ft deep sidewalk widening, which applies to developments and to horizontal enlargements of 3.0 FAR or more (ZR 101-42).
- Curb cuts: no curb cuts for parking or loading on the streets on Map 4, unless the City Planning Commission authorizes one for a lot with no other street access (ZR 101-51).
- Atlantic Avenue Subdistrict: aims to protect the three- and four-story 19th-century attached buildings with shops, keep a mix of homes and retail, and limit automotive service uses (ZR 101-701).
A worked example
A 10,000 sq ft zoning lot in a C6-1 district inside the Special Downtown Brooklyn District, within 100 ft of a wide street:
- Standard residential floor area: 10,000 x 3.44 = 34,400 sq ft (ZR 101-21).
- With qualifying affordable or senior housing: 10,000 x 4.13 = 41,300 sq ft (ZR 101-21).
- Height: base up to 155 ft and building up to 215 ft, or a tower under ZR 23-435 up to 495 ft (ZR 101-222, 101-223).
- Units: no dwelling unit factor, because the district is a special density area (ZR 23-52).
Mandatory Inclusionary Housing applies in the MIH areas listed in Appendix F, with ZR 27-10 modified by this chapter (ZR 101-021). Transit sites can earn a bonus for station improvements through ZR 66-51 (ZR 101-20).
Downtown Brooklyn zoning FAQ
What is the maximum FAR in Downtown Brooklyn?
It depends on the district. In the Special Downtown Brooklyn District, C6-9 allows 18.0 commercial or community facility FAR (12.0 in the C6-9 bounded by Flatbush Avenue, State Street, 3rd Avenue and Schermerhorn Street), and large qualifying sites in C6-12 can reach 23.0 total (ZR 101-21).
Is there a height limit in Downtown Brooklyn?
Yes for standard buildings: for example 215 ft within 100 ft of a wide street in C6-1 and 395 ft in C6-12. Towers under ZR 23-435 can exceed those limits, with no height cap except 495 ft in C6-1 (ZR 101-222, 101-223). The Schermerhorn Street Height Limitation Areas cap buildings at 210 ft and 140 ft (ZR 101-30).
Does the dwelling unit factor apply in Downtown Brooklyn?
No. The Special Downtown Brooklyn District is a special density area, where developments and enlargements of residences have no dwelling unit factor (ZR 12-10, ZR 23-52).
What are the subdistricts of the Special Downtown Brooklyn District?
Two: the Fulton Mall Subdistrict and the Atlantic Avenue Subdistrict, each with extra rules on top of the district rules (ZR 101-04).
Can I put a curb cut in Downtown Brooklyn?
Not on the streets shown on Map 4, unless the City Planning Commission authorizes one for a zoning lot with no access on another street (ZR 101-51).
Related pages
Sources
Every number on this page comes from the sources below, read 2026-10-26.
- NYC Zoning Resolution 101-00: General purposes: https://zr.planning.nyc.gov/article-x/chapter-1/101-00
- ZR 101-02: General provisions: https://zr.planning.nyc.gov/article-x/chapter-1/101-02
- ZR 101-021: Mandatory Inclusionary Housing: https://zr.planning.nyc.gov/article-x/chapter-1/101-021
- ZR 101-03: District plan and maps: https://zr.planning.nyc.gov/article-x/chapter-1/101-03
- ZR 101-04: Subdistricts: https://zr.planning.nyc.gov/article-x/chapter-1/101-04
- ZR 101-11: Special ground floor use regulations: https://zr.planning.nyc.gov/article-x/chapter-1/101-11
- ZR 101-20: Special bulk regulations: https://zr.planning.nyc.gov/article-x/chapter-1/101-20
- ZR 101-21: Special floor area regulations: https://zr.planning.nyc.gov/article-x/chapter-1/101-21
- ZR 101-222: Standard height and setback: https://zr.planning.nyc.gov/article-x/chapter-1/101-222
- ZR 101-223: Tower regulations: https://zr.planning.nyc.gov/article-x/chapter-1/101-223
- ZR 101-30: Height limitation areas: https://zr.planning.nyc.gov/article-x/chapter-1/101-30
- ZR 101-41: Street wall location: https://zr.planning.nyc.gov/article-x/chapter-1/101-41
- ZR 101-42: Mandatory sidewalk widenings: https://zr.planning.nyc.gov/article-x/chapter-1/101-42
- ZR 101-51: Curb cut restrictions: https://zr.planning.nyc.gov/article-x/chapter-1/101-51
- ZR 101-701: Atlantic Avenue Subdistrict purposes: https://zr.planning.nyc.gov/article-x/chapter-1/101-701
- ZR 23-52: Maximum number of dwelling units: https://zr.planning.nyc.gov/article-ii/chapter-3/23-52
- ZR 12-10: Definitions (special density areas): https://zr.planning.nyc.gov/article-i/chapter-2