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December 12, 2006
The Big Apple, Getting Bigger, Sets New Goals
The Big Apple, Getting Bigger, Sets New Goals
The Wall St. Journal
By Alex Frangos
Mayor Bloomberg is about to unveil a new initiative to handle a projected population growth in NYC of about 1.3 million additional residents during the next 25 years. This means increased density and smart growth.
How the mayor goes about it could mean the difference between reaching the City's goals or not:
Some infrastructure dream projects are closer to breaking ground than ever, including new rail tunnels connecting Long Island and New Jersey to Manhattan and a new subway line for Manhattan's East Side. A rebuilt Pennsylvania Station project could include the construction of two rail terminals, a new Madison Square Garden arena and five million square feet of office and retail space. The so-called Atlantic Yards development in Brooklyn, though mired in controversy, would include a basketball arena and over a dozen skyscrapers filled with apartments and offices.
Mayor Bloomberg's goals will emphasize building infrastructure such as tunnels, power plants, schools and affordable housing, while sustaining drinking water supplies, reducing congestion and commute times, increasing sewage-treatment capacity and tackling air quality and greenhouse-gas emissions in a time of rising electrical demand.
...
To be sure, New York City's plans could run into problems. Mr. Bloomberg's quest for a massive stadium in Manhattan failed, after opponents argued they would alter the city's character and encroach on existing businesses. Redevelopment at the World Trade Center site has only recently begun amid considerable uncertainty, more than five years after the Sept. 11 attacks. Efforts to attract businesses to secondary centers such as Long Island City, Jamaica, and Brooklyn, have met mixed results.The Atlantic Yards development in Brooklyn, run by Forest City Ratner Cos., a division of Forest City Enterprises Inc., could be a preview for those fights. It is slated to use eminent domain, a hot button topic with residents. A vocal opponent of the plan, Daniel Goldstein of Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn, hopes the mayor's long-term vision changes the way the city approaches megaprojects. He says the city needs to plan projects from the ground up, rather than to follow those that are "developer driven."
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Posted by lumi at December 12, 2006 10:18 AM