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May 3, 2005
Supersized Williamsburg on the Way
The Village Voice
by Sarah Ferguson
The Greenpoint-Williamsburg rezoning plan was approved. Concessions of more affordable housing and park land were extracted at the last minute, but neighborhood activists are still concerned that the low-rise charm of the neighborhood will be swept away and fear that the affordable housing provision is not strong enough to motivate developers.
"There is no way that you can say that 40-story towers have anything to do with the existing character of the neighborhood," complained Stephanie Thayer, a member of the North Brooklyn Alliance, which has been battling to scale back the development.
Thayer notes that because the providing of affordable housing is voluntary, developers could still build up to 33 stories high without offering any subsidized units.
"That's our worst nightmare," Thayer said. "That we get these grotesque buildings with no affordable housing."
Also:
The NY Times, City Is Backing Makeover for Decaying Brooklyn Waterfront
Posted by lumi at May 3, 2005 6:06 AM