NYC Mayor Mamdani doubles 3-K expansion plans, adding 2,000 new seats this fall

Cayla Bamberger, New York Daily News on May 18, 2026

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NEW YORK — Mayor Zohran Mamdani is doubling his expansion plans for New York City’s universal preschool program for 3-year-olds, bringing the total number of new 3-K seats this fall to 2,000, he said Monday.

The mayor also announced the opening of a new public preschool in Brooklyn that had been completed but left empty for years.

“On day eight of this administration, we made a promise to New Yorkers: we would fix the 3-K system and build a city where every family can count on affordable, high-quality child care,” Mamdani said in a statement. “Today, we’re delivering on that promise.”

The expansion is part of the Mamdani administration’s efforts to open more 3-K programs in neighborhoods with unmet demand. Since its launch, universal 3-K has struggled with a mismatch between where sites are located and where families live or work — resulting in long waitlists in some Zip codes, while providers failed to fill seats in others.

The majority of new seats will be housed in community-based childcare programs, which contract with the city to offer 3-K, rather than inside public school buildings.

Applications to 3-K this fall have already closed, so parents can request the new seats by adding themselves to waitlists.

The city plans to make 3-K offers to children whose parents signed up during the regular application period on Tuesday. Families who receive an offer this week, but prefer one of the new programs, can still add themselves to the waitlists.

The full expansion will be paid for by funding from Gov. Kathy Hochul, which was announced in January, a Mamdani spokesperson said. The governor also gave Mamdani, who ran for mayor on the promise of universal childcare, the funds to launch a public childcare program for 2-year-olds for the first time and provide low-income families with vouchers for private providers of their choosing.

The Brooklyn preschool will open in the Columbia Waterfront neighborhood with 45 3-K seats and 18 pre-K seats for 4-year-olds, according to a news release.

The city spent $12 million on the building at 129 Van Brunt St., plus more than $1 million in annual rent since 2022 while the center remained empty, NY1 reported earlier this month.

The preschool is the ninth previously stalled childcare center to open under Mamdani. In February, the mayor and City Council Speaker Julie Menin announced the opening of a vacant Upper East Side preschool with 72 seats for 4-year-olds and 60 seats for 3-year-olds.

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