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February 21, 2008
City’s Sweeping Rezoning Plan for 125th Street Has Many in Harlem Concerned
The New York Times
by Timothy Williams
The Bloomberg Administration has proposed a sweeping re-zoning for Harlem's iconic 125th Street, which has neighborhood residents worried. If recent re-zonings around the city are any indication, they should be.
Amanda M. Burden, chairwoman of the Planning Commission, who since her appointment in 2002 has presided over some of the most extensive rezoning undertaken for two generations, said she was not intent on making 125th Street another generic boulevard.
Ms. Burden said she had spent more time studying the 125th Street proposal — including attending 30 to 40 meetings and walking the street on several occasions — than she had on any other project, including Atlantic Yards in Brooklyn and Columbia University’s expansion in western Harlem.
NoLandGrab: If Amanda Burden had done nothing more than a drive-by while glancing at a map, she would have "spent more time studying the 125th Street proposal" than she spent studying Atlantic Yards. But no, she immersed herself, even conducting her own primary research:
The idea that the street needed development hit her, she said, when she attended a recent Roberta Flack concert at the Apollo with a friend who works on the street.
After the concert ended, Ms. Burden said, she asked her friend where they should eat. “Downtown,” the friend replied.
“There should be a million different eateries around there, and this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to frame and control growth on 125th Street,” Ms. Burden said. “The energy on the street is just remarkable, and it’s got to stay that way.”
NLG: We're dying to comment on Amanda's dining quandary, but it's better that we just bite our tongue.
Posted by eric at February 21, 2008 11:02 AM