(no subject)

[labrujah]

The NYC Department of City Planning is trying to sell the residents of Williamsburg and Greenpoint on its Waterfront Rezoning Plan. This plan will allow huge towers along the waterfront, forever blocking a view to the West, and casting cold shadows over our neighborhood. This plan is, in my opinion, a terrible idea.

Please come and form your own opinion, tonight at 6 P.M. at the Polish and Slavic Center at 176 Java Street, between Manhattan Avenue and McGuinness Boulevard. Please come. This proposal is a disaster.

I found this on missed connections today! I have been trying to find out about this issue coincidentally. I would go if I weren't already booked up. If any of you go, please let me know how it goes...

Comments

[doctorpopsicle.livejournal.com]

I really don't understand what future the neighborhood has if that plan is approved. If it is, i'm going to take it as one of those 'new york going down the crapper' signs and throw up my hands.

[melt212.livejournal.com]

I lived in Dumbo for a while when I first moved here. It is an amazing neighborhood, and rich people have not failed to notice that. I don't think there's any stopping them. I don't think any army of concerned residents have ever stopped a bit of "progress" in New York. For example, Bloomburg gave Trump one of the exits off the West Side Highway because he needed that space for a development. The residents were hopping mad because the community can't support another gigantic Trump monstrosity anyway, but then to just give him a piece of the public highway which our tax dollars built and pay for without any compensation is just outrageous. But stuff like that happens all the time. You can register your outrage, but that's as far as it goes.

[labrujah.livejournal.com]

I am reserving a tiny bit of hope that the stadium won't go up in Prospect Heights. I think even if we can delay the luxury high-risification of Williamsburg/Greenpoint for 5 years, that would be something. Ideally we could get some city-designated middle-income housing in there. There are a few good laws which help, the loft law for instance.

[labrujah.livejournal.com]

I want to find out who this group is and throw some weight behind them. Posters, lobbying whoever the representative etc.

[cheesetoast.livejournal.com]

you don't see the irony here. you and i (when i lived in greenpoint 10 years ago) pushed out poorer people. our presence created the bars and restaurants that attracted people to the hood causing prices to go up, pricing out others. the same thing will happen with people richer than us etc. you just have to hope that the development happens in a decent way. hopefully it will be mixed income etc.

i struggle with development in my mind. on one hand i like empty/ugly areas like the west side 30's and 40's and the old meatpacking district. but it's silly of me to say they should keep it the way it is. city's are organic, real estate is valuable. oh well.

[labrujah.livejournal.com]

I think if people speak up and make a big stink, maybe we can get rent controls and get the waterfront protected and have some effect on the current plans, which are shitty, by saying that no building can be taller than 15 stories for example.

I think there's room for all income levels in these neighborhoods, if we get controls in place limiting the expansion and number of luxury buildings.

As someone who was actually pushed out of Williamsburg several years ago, and someone who until about 3 months ago, made 20k less per year than the neighborhood average (which is 30k, by the way), I personally don't feel like my presence has pushed anybody out of the neighborhood. I think it's a fallacy to say that just because an area has become popular, rich people are going to take over and there's nothing we can do about it. The improvement shouldn't mean a profit free-for-all for landlords and developers. With plenty of attention to mixed-use laws and controls, it should be possible to maintain a range of income levels like what we have now.

I'm really idealistic about this, I know. There is something we can do.