More on the project here. This is not hyperbole, or exaggeration, or hypothesis, or scare tactics. This is a plan, a legal "as of right" structure. Elected officials are in agreement that this is not appropriate for streets of low-rise buildings. Let's start looking at the reality, not the fear-mongering, of what it means to walk away from a legitimate working relationship with the City over land use.
10 comments:
When something is "as of right" it isn't up to elected officials.
I don't see anything wrong with this.
For the life of me I still can't understand why CB9 did not see through MTOPP, and, even more, I can't understand how they felt like it was fair to obsess over two blocks at the expense of everyone else. At this point, I wouldn't mind a BP led effort with a developer to start the ULURP process. Would be more efficient, and I think there's a good chance that the outcome would be reasonable.
So many not fancy but quite charming old houses in Crown Heights just east of PLG are being torn down to build these cement condos - they're going up all over. I love the non-Manor blocks of PLG, the ones that are still all houses and with such eclectic ones at that. If and when those blocks start getting these ugly condo buildings it will all be on Alicia Boyd's fault, 100%, however disorganized CB9 was. All because SHE didn't want a tall building in HER backyard. NIMBYism at its worst. A close second are those who won't allow their neighbors, people who are students and work at home and really need fast and functional internet, to get FIOS because they don't want to see poles from THEIR backyards. These types never get their (impossible) consensus either, they just bully and exhaust everyone into giving up and walking away, giving the appearance of consensus.
Just a heads up, the 3 Victorians on Bedford Avenue between Lenox and Linden are coming down right now. Two roofs are already off...
Please note that not there are now three historic districts in PLG, with two of them not in the Manor at all - Ocean on the Park, on Ocean Ave between Lincoln and Parkside and (most recently) Chester Court. The original PLG Historic District included several non-Manor blocks, including Sterling St and Lefferts Ave between Bedford and Nostrand. Also, unfortunately, a lot of cute houses on non-landmark blocks have been replaced by hideous Fedders dreck - I'd almost prefer high-rise condos, but I'd really like to see many of then landmarked to keep out all of that.
Ahhhh, here's what you get when you tear down old houses for shoddy new construction:
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/08/realestate/construction-defects-follow-a-brooklyn-building-boom.html
i saw the victorians on lenox coming down too. it's a shame. the green one with the little pointy tower in the middle was especially nice. i took some photos of it over the weekend
Mr CF: For better or worse, the defintion of "low-rise" would seem to be changing. Pretty hard to imagine given the current climate and demand that 3-story, bow-front townhouses are Brooklyn's future.
John Mark: The article in the Times about shoddy new construction was very informative though nobody should be surprised. However the buildings featured in the story are condos, meaning when the building starts falling apart the sponsors are pretty much long gone. Around here, new rentals seem to be the rule and with a rental it's the landlord who's stuck with the repairs. So maybe—maybe—they have an incentive not to cut corners so drastically.
Babs: I agree—if the choice is between something like what's pictured in this post and a repulsive Fedders crapbox, it's no contest, even if the crapbox has the same roofline as it's neighbors.
As far as landmarking these blocks, wouldn't we expect howls of protest from homeowners who know their properties are worth far far more as a development site than as a two-family in need of rehab.
I'm actually pretty realistic about what can and can't be achieved. But before we lose low-rise character of "inner" blocks outside of the Manor, I'd like to see what can be done. There are plenty of examples of "downzoning" when it's balanced with the ability to create new housing elsewhere. There are many blocks in CB9 that deserve to be kept in context. If you like the way Delirious Williamsburg has developed, with every 20' x 10' lot going as tall as possible, then I guess it's okay. But in a neighborhood with tons of old world character, I'd love to have the conversation about how we can preserve some 'semblance of sanity. We'll see. But as Mike F says, there will be dozens of projects like the one in this picture before any rezoning takes place anyway. It's not realistic to expect anything than whatever can maximize profits.
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