Building New York City Since 1996

The Department of Design and Construction is celebrating 30 years of delivering world-class infrastructure and public buildings for New York City. DDC’s responsibilities have continued to grow since our founding in 1996, and in that time, we have completed over 5000 projects and seen our portfolio’s value expand to $34 billion.

1990s

The Department of Design and Construction first opened its doors in July 1996. Prior to the agency’s founding, the capital construction process in NYC was split amongst a variety of City agencies, each with their own construction division. DDC became the City’s primary capital construction manager, freeing up other agencies to focus on providing their vital services for New Yorkers.

In 1997, DDC created the Sustainable Design division, and to this day sustainability remains at the forefront of the agency’s work. By 1998, the agency had already completed its 500th project across the five boroughs. DDC was tasked with everything from roadway construction and sewer repairs to building libraries, police stations, and fire houses.

2000s

When the tragic attack at the World Trade Center took place on September 11th, 2001, DDC employees were on site the same day to survey the damage. The agency was charged with removing debris from the area and, by October, had already cleared 150,000 tons. DDC’s cleanup efforts involved assistance from FDNY and partnership with a variety of city agencies. The agency also hired and managed contractors to further speed up the process. By May 2002, the last column was removed from the World Trade Center site, and 1.8 million tons of debris had been cleared.

In 2004, DDC established the Design and Construction Excellence program. The program utilizes a modified bidding process and allows DDC to partner with some of the world’s top design firms and deliver on behalf of New Yorkers. DDC has completed over 300 projects under the program, which remains active to this day.

In 2006, DDC implemented Local Law 86 one year ahead of the required schedule. Under Local Law 86, capital construction projects at a certain value need to seek LEED Silver Certification, a global environmental standard. Many of DDC’s projects not only meet LEED Silver standards but exceed them and achieve the requirements for Gold or Platinum certification.

2010s

By 2010, DDC’s project portfolio was valued at more than $6 billion. This included flagship projects like the Queens Police Academy, which had broken ground the previous year, as well as work on City Water Tunnel 3, which would complete in 2013.

In 2014, the agency formed its Office of Diversity and Industry Relations and Community (ODIR). ODIR implements and monitors programs and policy to ensure Minority and Women-owned Business Enterprises (M/WBE) utilization goals are met by the agency and its contractors. ODIR is also relied upon to build and maintain the strong industry relationships needed to continue delivering state-of-the-art projects.

DDC undertook several plaza reconstruction projects throughout the 2010s. Two high-profile projects in Manhattan, Times Square and Astor Place, reopened in 2016. The Times Square project involved the addition of five new plazas and a total of 85,000 square feet of new pedestrian space. At Astor Place, two new plazas and 42,000 square feet of pedestrian space were added.

In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, it was clear that NYC needed a more resilient coastline to prevent dangerous and damaging flooding. Thus, the Coastal Resiliency program was founded at DDC, and by 2018 engineering reviews were underway to find solutions. The first of the resiliency efforts to break ground was the East Side Coastal Resiliency Project, which continues to progress to this day. Since that time DDC has begun other projects, such as the Red Hook Coastal Resiliency and Brooklyn Bridge-Montgomery Coastal Resiliency Projects, to further strengthen the City’s coastline.

2020s

The Covid-19 pandemic brought with it a new set of challenges, and DDC rose to meet the occasion. Not only did the agency continue to deliver on our essential projects throughout 2020 & 2021, but DDC also worked to set up emergency response centers that allowed health care workers more room to test and treat patients.

Throughout the 2020s the agency has begun utilizing alternative delivery methods that speed up construction times while saving the City money. One of these methods, Design-Build, was first used to build Queens Garage and Community Space in Kew Gardens, which was completed in 2023. Using Design-Build allowed the project to be completed in half the time that a traditional method would have required.

Design-Build was also used to build the Shirley Chisolm Recreation Center in Brooklyn, which opened in 2026 and took just three years to build thanks to alternative delivery. DDC is continuing to build other major recreation centers throughout the decade, such as the Mary Cali Dalton Center in Staten Island and the Roy Wilkins Recreation Center in Queens.

Looking forward, DDC will continue to innovate, finding new ways to build efficiently and sustainably across the five boroughs. The agency has seen plenty of changes in policy, technology, and best practices throughout our first 30 years, and more might change in the future, but our goal remains the same. Whether our projects are big or small, challenging or simple, we’re committed to delivering them for NYC.