The New York City Department of Design and Construction has shared more information about the planned construction of a jail in Mott Haven.

It would be located off the Bruckner Expressway, on the corner of E 141st Street.

Renderings show how the 11-story building would tower over nearby St. Mary's Park.

"It's just another building to take up space, not to provide opportunity, but to take it," said Kyiva Beasley, who was enjoying the nice weather there.

"It'll throw the whole neighborhood off," said another man in the area. "I don't think that's a good idea."

The DCC says the building would be 11 stories tall, and at a meeting with the New York City Public Design Commission in April, designers acknowledged the size, but also said of the design, "the idea that it would step down was a way to, I think, try to ameliorate that scale difference," compared to the much smaller residential and industrial buildings nearby.

The projected is estimated to cost $2.971 billion, and construction is estimated to start in the second quarter of 2026.

"I don't like the design at all, it belongs somewhere else," said Edward Williams, who lives nearby, of the renderings.

Another man looked at them and then said "it's a terrible design, I don't know how I really feel about the design, the way its compacted, they got it mixing."

Right now, the PDC has given the DDC approval to move on to preliminary review, saying when they meet again, they want to see a little more about the ideas for landscaping, have the designers add some extra protection on the outside, and then also do some more studies and renderings about exactly how shiny and reflective the material on the outside facade will be.

"What are they going to do?" said Beasley when asked what she would want to see changed. "Put sunshine and rainbows on the building to make it look prettier? Just don't build it."

Williams agreed the area would be better served with another use, saying, "what they should do is build a nice something for kids here."

Plans for the jail do show some public areas in the building, including retail space on the first floor.

"Who wants to shop in a jail? What are we going to get? Orange uniforms?" Beasley scoffed.

"That doesn't do it," Williams agreed. "That's just something to get up in here, that's a slimy, slimy snake, that's all it is."

The DDC will be holding a public community design workshop from 6pm - 8pm with more updates on June 23rd at SoBro Social at 229 Bruckner Blvd.