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February 11, 2007
City Council Candidate Questionnaire
DFNYC asked the candidates for the February 20th election in the 40th district in Central Brooklyn about their positions on Atlantic Yards. Moe Razvi, Harry Schiffman and Leithland "Rickie" Tulloch counted themselves "in favor." Here are the responses from the remaining three candidates:
Karlene Gordon: Now that the Atlantic Yard Project has been approved, my concern was affordable housing and affordable to whom. According to ACORN, 50% of the housing will be set aside for low and moderate income families. How much of that 50% will be designated for victims of domestic violence? Holding the developers accountable will be something I will pay particular attention to.Jennifer James: Traffic and environmental issues are already of great concern, not only for those who reside in the immediate area, but for those wishing to travel in and out of Manhattan, throughout Central Brooklyn and beyond. With the arrival of the stadium, these problems will only be compounded. We must hold the developers accountable to high environmental standards to ensure that this project does not cause a decrease in the quality of life for our residents. The only people who benefit from taxpayer subsidies to real estate developers are the real estate developers, themselves, unless we hold the developers accountable to the residents of the community in terms of the amount of affordable housing that they provide. It is the job of the City Council representatives to work closely with other elected officials to ensure that the Community Benefit Agreement is upheld and that people have the right to afford to live and do business in the areas in which they have for so long been stakeholders. The Atlantic Yards project has the potential to affect the area and all of its neighbors. We must be sure to address all of these issues aggressively.
Zenobia McNally: I am gravely concerned about several of the issues raised by the project, including the lack of transparency of the project.
• Eminent domain was misused to promote private development, not for the public good.
• There is an apparent lack of concern about the environmental impact on Downtown Brooklyn, specifically, and Brooklyn, generally, especially as it relates to air quality and asthma rates.
• Traffic in the area surrounding Atlantic and Flatbush Avenues ranges from heavy during the day to snarled during the morning and evening rush hours; yet, the community has been told that the project will not negatively impact driving and parking in the area.
• Given how “hot” the New York City real estate market is right now, taxpayer subsidies to real estate developers is corporate welfare.
• Job growth and commercial office space are among the “carrots” dangled before the community by the developer. Subsidy payments to the developer should be delayed until after the promised job growth/commercial office space rentals are maintained for at least ten years. I want to emphasize that I am not against development, only irresponsible development.
Posted by amy at February 11, 2007 3:01 PM