diff --git a/packages/@aws-cdk/cli-lib-alpha/.eslintrc.js b/packages/@aws-cdk/cli-lib-alpha/.eslintrc.js
index b284f20df26e9..f2bee0ec3d188 100644
--- a/packages/@aws-cdk/cli-lib-alpha/.eslintrc.js
+++ b/packages/@aws-cdk/cli-lib-alpha/.eslintrc.js
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 const baseConfig = require('@aws-cdk/cdk-build-tools/config/eslintrc');
 baseConfig.parserOptions.project = __dirname + '/tsconfig.json';
+baseConfig.ignorePatterns.push('**/*.template.ts');
 
 baseConfig.rules['import/no-extraneous-dependencies'] = ['error', { devDependencies: true, peerDependencies: true } ];
 baseConfig.rules['import/order'] = 'off';
diff --git a/packages/@aws-cdk/cli-lib-alpha/.gitignore b/packages/@aws-cdk/cli-lib-alpha/.gitignore
index 573a12d965554..e728027e0ff5f 100644
--- a/packages/@aws-cdk/cli-lib-alpha/.gitignore
+++ b/packages/@aws-cdk/cli-lib-alpha/.gitignore
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
 *.js.map
 *.d.ts
 *.gz
-!lib/init-templates/**/javascript/**/*
+lib/init-templates/
 node_modules
 dist
 .jsii
diff --git a/packages/@aws-cdk/cli-lib-alpha/build-tools/copy-cli-resources.sh b/packages/@aws-cdk/cli-lib-alpha/build-tools/copy-cli-resources.sh
new file mode 100755
index 0000000000000..d04e7fe939da4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/@aws-cdk/cli-lib-alpha/build-tools/copy-cli-resources.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+set -euo pipefail
+
+aws_cdk="$1"
+
+# Copy all resources that aws_cdk/generate.sh produced, and some othersCall the generator for the
+cp $aws_cdk/build-info.json ./
+cp -R $aws_cdk/lib/init-templates ./lib/
+
+mkdir -p ./lib/api/bootstrap/ && cp $aws_cdk/lib/api/bootstrap/bootstrap-template.yaml ./lib/api/bootstrap/
+cp $aws_cdk/lib/index_bg.wasm ./lib/
+cp $aws_cdk/db.json.gz ./
diff --git a/packages/@aws-cdk/cli-lib-alpha/package.json b/packages/@aws-cdk/cli-lib-alpha/package.json
index 49a48e313c633..a72dc5f7c736e 100644
--- a/packages/@aws-cdk/cli-lib-alpha/package.json
+++ b/packages/@aws-cdk/cli-lib-alpha/package.json
@@ -6,6 +6,9 @@
   "main": "lib/main.js",
   "types": "lib/index.d.ts",
   "jsii": {
+    "excludeTypescript": [
+      "**/*.template.ts"
+    ],
     "outdir": "dist",
     "targets": {
       "dotnet": {
@@ -52,7 +55,7 @@
     "build+test+package": "yarn build+test && yarn package",
     "bundle": "esbuild --bundle lib/index.ts --target=node18 --platform=node --external:fsevents --minify-whitespace --outfile=lib/main.js",
     "compat": "cdk-compat",
-    "gen": "../../../packages/aws-cdk/generate.sh",
+    "gen": "build-tools/copy-cli-resources.sh ../../../packages/aws-cdk",
     "lint": "cdk-lint",
     "package": "cdk-package",
     "pkglint": "pkglint -f",
@@ -63,9 +66,6 @@
   "cdk-build": {
     "post": [
       "yarn attribute",
-      "mkdir -p ./lib/api/bootstrap/ && cp ../../aws-cdk/lib/api/bootstrap/bootstrap-template.yaml ./lib/api/bootstrap/",
-      "cp ../../../node_modules/cdk-from-cfn/index_bg.wasm ./lib/",
-      "cp ../../../node_modules/@aws-cdk/aws-service-spec/db.json.gz ./",
       "yarn bundle",
       "node ./lib/main.js >/dev/null 2>/dev/null </dev/null"
     ],
diff --git a/packages/@aws-cdk/integ-runner/build-tools/generate.sh b/packages/@aws-cdk/integ-runner/build-tools/generate.sh
new file mode 100755
index 0000000000000..36839187b8726
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/@aws-cdk/integ-runner/build-tools/generate.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+set -euo pipefail
+
+# Copy the recommended-feature-flags.json file out from aws-cdk-lib.
+path=$(node -p 'require.resolve("aws-cdk-lib/recommended-feature-flags.json")')
+cp $path lib/recommended-feature-flags.json
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/packages/@aws-cdk/integ-runner/lib/runner/runner-base.ts b/packages/@aws-cdk/integ-runner/lib/runner/runner-base.ts
index 1a9bb7c6d645c..d614f703108b0 100644
--- a/packages/@aws-cdk/integ-runner/lib/runner/runner-base.ts
+++ b/packages/@aws-cdk/integ-runner/lib/runner/runner-base.ts
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
 import * as path from 'path';
 import { CdkCliWrapper, ICdk } from '@aws-cdk/cdk-cli-wrapper';
 import { TestCase, DefaultCdkOptions } from '@aws-cdk/cloud-assembly-schema';
-import { AVAILABILITY_ZONE_FALLBACK_CONTEXT_KEY, TARGET_PARTITIONS, NEW_PROJECT_CONTEXT } from '@aws-cdk/cx-api';
+import { AVAILABILITY_ZONE_FALLBACK_CONTEXT_KEY, TARGET_PARTITIONS } from '@aws-cdk/cx-api';
 import * as fs from 'fs-extra';
 import { IntegTestSuite, LegacyIntegTestSuite } from './integ-test-suite';
 import { IntegTest } from './integration-tests';
@@ -365,7 +365,7 @@ export abstract class IntegRunner {
 
   protected getContext(additionalContext?: Record<string, any>): Record<string, any> {
     return {
-      ...NEW_PROJECT_CONTEXT,
+      ...currentlyRecommendedAwsCdkLibFlags(),
       ...this.legacyContext,
       ...additionalContext,
 
@@ -432,3 +432,13 @@ export const DEFAULT_SYNTH_OPTIONS = {
     CDK_INTEG_SUBNET_ID: 'subnet-0dff1a399d8f6f92c',
   },
 };
+
+/**
+ * Return the currently recommended flags for `aws-cdk-lib`.
+ *
+ * These have been built into the CLI at build time.
+ */
+export function currentlyRecommendedAwsCdkLibFlags() {
+  const recommendedFlagsFile = path.join(__dirname, '..', 'recommended-feature-flags.json');
+  return JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync(recommendedFlagsFile, { encoding: 'utf-8' }));
+}
diff --git a/packages/@aws-cdk/integ-runner/package.json b/packages/@aws-cdk/integ-runner/package.json
index 3b96e1f8d8194..482510d735fcb 100644
--- a/packages/@aws-cdk/integ-runner/package.json
+++ b/packages/@aws-cdk/integ-runner/package.json
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@
     "integ-runner": "bin/integ-runner"
   },
   "scripts": {
+    "gen": "./build-tools/generate.sh",
     "build": "cdk-build",
     "lint": "cdk-lint",
     "package": "cdk-package",
diff --git a/packages/aws-cdk-lib/cx-api/build-tools/flag-report.ts b/packages/aws-cdk-lib/cx-api/build-tools/flag-report.ts
index 654684c091d77..00477c8833876 100644
--- a/packages/aws-cdk-lib/cx-api/build-tools/flag-report.ts
+++ b/packages/aws-cdk-lib/cx-api/build-tools/flag-report.ts
@@ -15,6 +15,9 @@ async function main() {
     diff: changedFlags(),
     migratejson: migrateJson(),
   });
+
+  // Write to the package root
+  await updateRecommendedFlagsFile(path.join(__dirname, '..', '..', 'recommended-feature-flags.json'));
 }
 
 function flagsTable() {
@@ -117,7 +120,7 @@ function oldBehavior(flag: FlagInfo): string | undefined {
 function recommendedJson() {
   return [
     '```json',
-    JSON.stringify({ context: feats.NEW_PROJECT_CONTEXT }, undefined, 2),
+    JSON.stringify({ context: feats.CURRENTLY_RECOMMENDED_FLAGS }, undefined, 2),
     '```',
   ].join('\n');
 }
@@ -206,6 +209,10 @@ async function updateMarkdownFile(filename: string, sections: Record<string, str
   await fs.writeFile(filename, contents, { encoding: 'utf-8' });
 }
 
+async function updateRecommendedFlagsFile(filename: string) {
+  await fs.writeFile(filename, JSON.stringify(feats.CURRENTLY_RECOMMENDED_FLAGS, undefined, 2), { encoding: 'utf-8' });
+}
+
 function firstCmp(...xs: number[]) {
   return xs.find(x => x !== 0) ?? 0;
 }
diff --git a/packages/aws-cdk-lib/cx-api/lib/features.ts b/packages/aws-cdk-lib/cx-api/lib/features.ts
index 72ab65805054f..2992b611be55a 100644
--- a/packages/aws-cdk-lib/cx-api/lib/features.ts
+++ b/packages/aws-cdk-lib/cx-api/lib/features.ts
@@ -1317,10 +1317,13 @@ export const CURRENT_VERSION_EXPIRED_FLAGS: string[] = Object.entries(FLAGS)
  * Add a flag in here (typically with the value `true`), to enable
  * backwards-breaking behavior changes only for new projects.  New projects
  * generated through `cdk init` will include these flags in their generated
+ * project config.
  *
  * Tests must cover the default (disabled) case and the future (enabled) case.
+ *
+ * Going forward, this should *NOT* be consumed directly anymore.
  */
-export const NEW_PROJECT_CONTEXT = Object.fromEntries(
+export const CURRENTLY_RECOMMENDED_FLAGS = Object.fromEntries(
   Object.entries(FLAGS)
     .filter(([_, flag]) => flag.recommendedValue !== flag.defaults?.[CURRENT_MV] && flag.introducedIn[CURRENT_MV])
     .map(([name, flag]) => [name, flag.recommendedValue]),
@@ -1352,10 +1355,10 @@ export function futureFlagDefault(flag: string): boolean {
 /** @deprecated use CURRENT_VERSION_EXPIRED_FLAGS instead */
 export const FUTURE_FLAGS_EXPIRED = CURRENT_VERSION_EXPIRED_FLAGS;
 
-/** @deprecated use NEW_PROJECT_CONTEXT instead */
-export const FUTURE_FLAGS = Object.fromEntries(Object.entries(NEW_PROJECT_CONTEXT)
+/** @deprecated do not use at all! */
+export const FUTURE_FLAGS = Object.fromEntries(Object.entries(CURRENTLY_RECOMMENDED_FLAGS)
   .filter(([_, v]) => typeof v === 'boolean'));
 
-/** @deprecated use NEW_PROJECT_CONTEXT instead */
-export const NEW_PROJECT_DEFAULT_CONTEXT = Object.fromEntries(Object.entries(NEW_PROJECT_CONTEXT)
+/** @deprecated do not use at all! */
+export const NEW_PROJECT_DEFAULT_CONTEXT = Object.fromEntries(Object.entries(CURRENTLY_RECOMMENDED_FLAGS)
   .filter(([_, v]) => typeof v !== 'boolean'));
diff --git a/packages/aws-cdk-lib/cx-api/lib/private/flag-modeling.ts b/packages/aws-cdk-lib/cx-api/lib/private/flag-modeling.ts
index ba9389cf45a9d..55279650d075e 100644
--- a/packages/aws-cdk-lib/cx-api/lib/private/flag-modeling.ts
+++ b/packages/aws-cdk-lib/cx-api/lib/private/flag-modeling.ts
@@ -30,7 +30,7 @@ export interface FlagInfoBase {
   /** Version number the flag was introduced in each version line. `undefined` means flag does not exist in that line. */
   readonly introducedIn: { v1?: string; v2?: string };
   /** Default value, if flag is unset by user. Adding a flag with a default may not change behavior after GA! */
-  readonly defaults?: { v2?: any };
+  readonly defaults?: { v1?: any; v2?: any };
   /** Default in new projects */
   readonly recommendedValue: any;
 };
diff --git a/packages/aws-cdk-lib/package.json b/packages/aws-cdk-lib/package.json
index 4c31ed54c5056..e6bd442c3bcc4 100644
--- a/packages/aws-cdk-lib/package.json
+++ b/packages/aws-cdk-lib/package.json
@@ -509,6 +509,7 @@
     "./pipelines/.warnings.jsii.js": "./pipelines/.warnings.jsii.js",
     "./pipelines/lib/helpers-internal": "./pipelines/lib/helpers-internal/index.js",
     "./pipelines/package.json": "./pipelines/package.json",
+    "./recommended-feature-flags.json": "./recommended-feature-flags.json",
     "./region-info": "./region-info/index.js",
     "./triggers": "./triggers/index.js"
   },
diff --git a/packages/aws-cdk-lib/recommended-feature-flags.json b/packages/aws-cdk-lib/recommended-feature-flags.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000..30a08f65a928c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/aws-cdk-lib/recommended-feature-flags.json
@@ -0,0 +1,63 @@
+{
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-lambda:recognizeLayerVersion": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/core:checkSecretUsage": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/core:target-partitions": [
+    "aws",
+    "aws-cn"
+  ],
+  "@aws-cdk-containers/ecs-service-extensions:enableDefaultLogDriver": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-ec2:uniqueImdsv2TemplateName": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-ecs:arnFormatIncludesClusterName": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-iam:minimizePolicies": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/core:validateSnapshotRemovalPolicy": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-codepipeline:crossAccountKeyAliasStackSafeResourceName": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-s3:createDefaultLoggingPolicy": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-sns-subscriptions:restrictSqsDescryption": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-apigateway:disableCloudWatchRole": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/core:enablePartitionLiterals": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-events:eventsTargetQueueSameAccount": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-ecs:disableExplicitDeploymentControllerForCircuitBreaker": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-iam:importedRoleStackSafeDefaultPolicyName": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-s3:serverAccessLogsUseBucketPolicy": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-route53-patters:useCertificate": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/customresources:installLatestAwsSdkDefault": false,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-rds:databaseProxyUniqueResourceName": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-codedeploy:removeAlarmsFromDeploymentGroup": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-apigateway:authorizerChangeDeploymentLogicalId": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-ec2:launchTemplateDefaultUserData": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-secretsmanager:useAttachedSecretResourcePolicyForSecretTargetAttachments": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-redshift:columnId": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-stepfunctions-tasks:enableEmrServicePolicyV2": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-ec2:restrictDefaultSecurityGroup": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-apigateway:requestValidatorUniqueId": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-kms:aliasNameRef": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-autoscaling:generateLaunchTemplateInsteadOfLaunchConfig": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/core:includePrefixInUniqueNameGeneration": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-efs:denyAnonymousAccess": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-opensearchservice:enableOpensearchMultiAzWithStandby": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-lambda-nodejs:useLatestRuntimeVersion": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-efs:mountTargetOrderInsensitiveLogicalId": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-rds:auroraClusterChangeScopeOfInstanceParameterGroupWithEachParameters": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-appsync:useArnForSourceApiAssociationIdentifier": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-rds:preventRenderingDeprecatedCredentials": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-codepipeline-actions:useNewDefaultBranchForCodeCommitSource": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-cloudwatch-actions:changeLambdaPermissionLogicalIdForLambdaAction": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-codepipeline:crossAccountKeysDefaultValueToFalse": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-codepipeline:defaultPipelineTypeToV2": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-kms:reduceCrossAccountRegionPolicyScope": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-eks:nodegroupNameAttribute": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-ec2:ebsDefaultGp3Volume": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-ecs:removeDefaultDeploymentAlarm": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/custom-resources:logApiResponseDataPropertyTrueDefault": false,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-s3:keepNotificationInImportedBucket": false,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-ecs:reduceEc2FargateCloudWatchPermissions": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-dynamodb:resourcePolicyPerReplica": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-ec2:ec2SumTImeoutEnabled": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-appsync:appSyncGraphQLAPIScopeLambdaPermission": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-rds:setCorrectValueForDatabaseInstanceReadReplicaInstanceResourceId": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/core:cfnIncludeRejectComplexResourceUpdateCreatePolicyIntrinsics": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-lambda-nodejs:sdkV3ExcludeSmithyPackages": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-stepfunctions-tasks:fixRunEcsTaskPolicy": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-ec2:bastionHostUseAmazonLinux2023ByDefault": true,
+  "@aws-cdk/aws-route53-targets:userPoolDomainNameMethodWithoutCustomResource": true
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/packages/aws-cdk/.gitignore b/packages/aws-cdk/.gitignore
index b4917729cbcb0..d0b5e0796af72 100644
--- a/packages/aws-cdk/.gitignore
+++ b/packages/aws-cdk/.gitignore
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@
 !lib/init-templates/**/javascript/**/*
 lib/init-templates/**/*.hook.js
 lib/init-templates/**/*.hook.d.ts
+lib/init-templates/.*.json
 node_modules
 dist
 
@@ -40,5 +41,6 @@ test/integ/cli/*.d.ts
 
 junit.xml
 
+
 lib/**/*.wasm
 db.json.gz
diff --git a/packages/aws-cdk/generate.sh b/packages/aws-cdk/generate.sh
index 4d9d43a954b6b..9a74b49240b88 100755
--- a/packages/aws-cdk/generate.sh
+++ b/packages/aws-cdk/generate.sh
@@ -14,3 +14,12 @@ cat > build-info.json <<HERE
   "commit": "${commit:0:7}"
 }
 HERE
+
+# Copy the current 'aws-cdk-lib' version out from the monorepo.
+cdk_version=$(node -p 'require("aws-cdk-lib/package.json").version')
+constructs_range=$(node -p 'require("aws-cdk-lib/package.json").peerDependencies.constructs')
+echo '{"aws-cdk-lib": "'"$cdk_version"'", "constructs": "'"$constructs_range"'"}' > lib/init-templates/.init-version.json
+
+# Copy the recommended-feature-flags.json file out from aws-cdk-lib.
+path=$(node -p 'require.resolve("aws-cdk-lib/recommended-feature-flags.json")')
+cp $path lib/init-templates/.recommended-feature-flags.json
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/packages/aws-cdk/lib/init-templates/lib/typescript/tsconfig.json b/packages/aws-cdk/lib/init-templates/lib/typescript/tsconfig.json
index aaa7dc510f1d2..1fa2eb4d6dbf9 100644
--- a/packages/aws-cdk/lib/init-templates/lib/typescript/tsconfig.json
+++ b/packages/aws-cdk/lib/init-templates/lib/typescript/tsconfig.json
@@ -26,6 +26,6 @@
   },
   "exclude": [
     "node_modules",
-    "cdk.out"
+    "cdk.out",
   ]
 }
diff --git a/packages/aws-cdk/lib/init.ts b/packages/aws-cdk/lib/init.ts
index d119f3b78cc0a..c6801b0229554 100644
--- a/packages/aws-cdk/lib/init.ts
+++ b/packages/aws-cdk/lib/init.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,5 @@
 import * as childProcess from 'child_process';
 import * as path from 'path';
-import * as cxapi from '@aws-cdk/cx-api';
 import * as chalk from 'chalk';
 import * as fs from 'fs-extra';
 import { invokeBuiltinHooks } from './init-hooks';
@@ -126,6 +125,7 @@ export class InitTemplate {
     const projectInfo: ProjectInfo = {
       name: decamelize(path.basename(path.resolve(targetDirectory))),
       stackName,
+      versions: await loadInitVersions(),
     };
 
     const sourceDirectory = path.join(this.basePath, language);
@@ -173,11 +173,9 @@ export class InitTemplate {
   }
 
   private expand(template: string, language: string, project: ProjectInfo) {
-    // eslint-disable-next-line @typescript-eslint/no-require-imports
-    const manifest = require(path.join(rootDir(), 'package.json'));
-    const MATCH_VER_BUILD = /\+[a-f0-9]+$/; // Matches "+BUILD" in "x.y.z-beta+BUILD"
-    const cdkVersion = manifest.version.replace(MATCH_VER_BUILD, '');
-    let constructsVersion = manifest.devDependencies.constructs.replace(MATCH_VER_BUILD, '');
+    const cdkVersion = project.versions['aws-cdk-lib'];
+    let constructsVersion = project.versions.constructs;
+
     switch (language) {
       case 'java':
       case 'csharp':
@@ -222,7 +220,7 @@ export class InitTemplate {
     const config = await fs.readJson(cdkJson);
     config.context = {
       ...config.context,
-      ...cxapi.NEW_PROJECT_CONTEXT,
+      ...await currentlyRecommendedAwsCdkLibFlags(),
     };
 
     await fs.writeJson(cdkJson, config, { spaces: 2 });
@@ -248,6 +246,8 @@ interface ProjectInfo {
   /** The value used for %name% */
   readonly name: string;
   readonly stackName?: string;
+
+  readonly versions: Versions;
 }
 
 export async function availableInitTemplates(): Promise<InitTemplate[]> {
@@ -471,3 +471,41 @@ async function execute(cmd: string, args: string[], { cwd }: { cwd: string }) {
     });
   });
 }
+
+interface Versions {
+  ['aws-cdk-lib']: string;
+  constructs: string;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Return the 'aws-cdk-lib' version we will init
+ *
+ * This has been built into the CLI at build time.
+ */
+async function loadInitVersions(): Promise<Versions> {
+  const recommendedFlagsFile = path.join(__dirname, './init-templates/.init-version.json');
+  const contents = JSON.parse(await fs.readFile(recommendedFlagsFile, { encoding: 'utf-8' }));
+
+  const ret = {
+    'aws-cdk-lib': contents['aws-cdk-lib'],
+    'constructs': contents.constructs,
+  };
+  for (const [key, value] of Object.entries(ret)) {
+    /* istanbul ignore next */
+    if (!value) {
+      throw new Error(`Missing init version from ${recommendedFlagsFile}: ${key}`);
+    }
+  }
+
+  return ret;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Return the currently recommended flags for `aws-cdk-lib`.
+ *
+ * These have been built into the CLI at build time.
+ */
+export async function currentlyRecommendedAwsCdkLibFlags() {
+  const recommendedFlagsFile = path.join(__dirname, './init-templates/.recommended-feature-flags.json');
+  return JSON.parse(await fs.readFile(recommendedFlagsFile, { encoding: 'utf-8' }));
+}
diff --git a/packages/aws-cdk/test/init.test.ts b/packages/aws-cdk/test/init.test.ts
index 02a94f4addf70..2ef2582f1b63c 100644
--- a/packages/aws-cdk/test/init.test.ts
+++ b/packages/aws-cdk/test/init.test.ts
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@ import * as os from 'os';
 import * as path from 'path';
 import * as cxapi from '@aws-cdk/cx-api';
 import * as fs from 'fs-extra';
-import { availableInitLanguages, availableInitTemplates, cliInit, printAvailableTemplates } from '../lib/init';
+import { availableInitLanguages, availableInitTemplates, cliInit, currentlyRecommendedAwsCdkLibFlags, printAvailableTemplates } from '../lib/init';
 
 describe('constructs version', () => {
   cliTest('create a TypeScript library project', async (workDir) => {
@@ -211,8 +211,36 @@ describe('constructs version', () => {
     expect(await fs.pathExists(path.join(workDir, 'bin'))).toBeTruthy();
   });
 
-  test('verify "future flags" are added to cdk.json', async () => {
+  cliTest('CLI uses recommended feature flags from data file to initialize context', async (workDir) => {
+    const recommendedFlagsFile = path.join(__dirname, '..', 'lib', 'init-templates', '.recommended-feature-flags.json');
+    await withReplacedFile(recommendedFlagsFile, JSON.stringify({ banana: 'yellow' }), () => cliInit({
+      type: 'app',
+      language: 'typescript',
+      canUseNetwork: false,
+      generateOnly: true,
+      workDir,
+    }));
+
+    const cdkFile = await fs.readJson(path.join(workDir, 'cdk.json'));
+    expect(cdkFile.context).toEqual({ banana: 'yellow' });
+  });
+
+  cliTest('CLI uses init versions file to initialize template', async (workDir) => {
+    const recommendedFlagsFile = path.join(__dirname, '..', 'lib', 'init-templates', '.init-version.json');
+    await withReplacedFile(recommendedFlagsFile, JSON.stringify({ 'aws-cdk-lib': '100.1.1', 'constructs': '^200.2.2' }), () => cliInit({
+      type: 'app',
+      language: 'typescript',
+      canUseNetwork: false,
+      generateOnly: true,
+      workDir,
+    }));
 
+    const packageJson = await fs.readJson(path.join(workDir, 'package.json'));
+    expect(packageJson.dependencies['aws-cdk-lib']).toEqual('100.1.1');
+    expect(packageJson.dependencies.constructs).toEqual('^200.2.2');
+  });
+
+  test('verify "future flags" are added to cdk.json', async () => {
     for (const templ of await availableInitTemplates()) {
       for (const lang of templ.languages) {
         await withTempDir(async tmpDir => {
@@ -231,9 +259,10 @@ describe('constructs version', () => {
 
           const config = await fs.readJson(path.join(tmpDir, 'cdk.json'));
           const context = config.context || {};
+          const recommendedFlags = await currentlyRecommendedAwsCdkLibFlags();
           for (const [key, actual] of Object.entries(context)) {
-            expect(key in cxapi.NEW_PROJECT_CONTEXT).toBeTruthy();
-            expect(cxapi.NEW_PROJECT_CONTEXT[key]).toEqual(actual);
+            expect(key in recommendedFlags).toBeTruthy();
+            expect(recommendedFlags[key]).toEqual(actual);
           }
 
           // assert that expired future flags are not part of the cdk.json
@@ -307,3 +336,13 @@ async function recursiveListFiles(rdir: string): Promise<string[]> {
     }
   }
 }
+
+async function withReplacedFile(fileName: string, contents: any, cb: () => Promise<void>): Promise<void> {
+  const oldContents = await fs.readFile(fileName, 'utf8');
+  await fs.writeFile(fileName, contents);
+  try {
+    await cb();
+  } finally {
+    await fs.writeFile(fileName, oldContents);
+  }
+}
diff --git a/tools/@aws-cdk/pkglint/lib/rules.ts b/tools/@aws-cdk/pkglint/lib/rules.ts
index 531dd1d18cc95..849c17f4ce067 100644
--- a/tools/@aws-cdk/pkglint/lib/rules.ts
+++ b/tools/@aws-cdk/pkglint/lib/rules.ts
@@ -1411,7 +1411,7 @@ export class PackageInJsiiPackageNoRuntimeDeps extends ValidationRule {
   public readonly name = 'lambda-packages-no-runtime-deps';
 
   public validate(pkg: PackageJson) {
-    if (!isJSII(pkg)) { return; }
+    if (!isJSII(pkg) || pkg.packageName === '@aws-cdk/cli-lib-alpha') { return; }
 
     for (const inner of findInnerPackages(pkg.packageRoot)) {
       const innerPkg = PackageJson.fromDirectory(inner);