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June 15, 2010
Bites of Heights
BQE could chomp posh B'klyn nabe
NY Post
by Rich Calder
The abject unpopularity of Bruce Ratner's Atlantic Yards land grab will apparently make the use of eminent domain harder in New York, even for traditional purposes like roads.
It’s highway robbery!
Some 30 to 50 buildings along the pricey Brooklyn waterfront -- including multimillion-dollar historic brownstones in Brooklyn Heights -- could be demolished by the state to modernize and revamp the crumbling Brooklyn-Queens Expressway, officials confirmed yesterday.
The state Department of Transportation is reviewing many ways to widen lanes, lengthen ramps and renovate a section of the decrepit roadway between Atlantic Avenue and Sands Street, including the two-level portion that runs under the Brooklyn Heights Promenade -- and one controversial possibility would use eminent domain to seize property.
...DOT Spokesman Adam Levin said the plan is among many being considered – including one calling for less extensive renovations and another to run a tunnel under Brooklyn Heights. He said the agency plans to take a hard look at all these options before resorting to a “worst-case scenario” of taking people’s homes.
“We are well aware of all the controversy caused by Atlantic Yards in Brooklyn,” he said.
Posted by eric at June 15, 2010 10:00 AM