A luxury building in Fort Greene is making a new push on an unusual perk — free summer camp. While the amenity arms race is nothing new, the Ashland has chosen an opportune moment to remind prospective tenants that a week of free child care is included in its offerings.
The tower at 250 Ashland Place near the border of Downtown Brooklyn has paired with Treasure Trunk Theatre, a Brooklyn-based theatrical arts program for children, to host a free camp during a week in which many camps aren’t available — this year, August 19 to August 23. The Ashland has been providing the camp hookup for the past three years (this will be the fourth), according to a spokesperson from the Gotham Organization, the tower’s developer. This year’s theme will be a Taylor Swift one. (Previous camps have been met with “rave” reviews, per the spokesperson.)
More than 80 percent of New York families can’t afford child care, Gothamist recently reported, and parents across the city are currently sending in their applications for free 3-K and universal preschool ahead of a March 1 deadline. However, the Ashland camp isn’t exactly a salve for most households: two bedrooms run from roughly $5,000 to $8,000 a month in the building.
