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New York

Fighting Gowanus gentrification is futile: OPINION

Critics of development ignore benefits, development supporters say

From left: Whole Foods, Brooklyn Boulders and Royal Palms Shuffleboard
From left: Whole Foods, Brooklyn Boulders and Royal Palms Shuffleboard

Artisanal ice cream parlors, rock gyms and shuffleboard clubs. All signs point to a losing battle for the enemies of Gowanus gentrification.

The New York Daily News editorial board is heralding the transformation of the canal-side community and calling on opponents to stand out of the way. The paper says critics of City Council member Brad Lander’s efforts to spur residential and mixed-use development are overlooking the benefits that those initiatives could bring, including affordable housing and improved amenities.

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The Daily News points out a number of businesses that have made the neighborhood, home to a Super Fund site, a more habitable place: a 56,000-square-foot Whole Foods, the Brooklyn Boulders rock gym, the Bell House event space and the recently opened Royal Palms Shuffleboard Club and Ample Hills Creamery. More families, strollers and dogs are inevitable, the editorial board says.

In May, the state Historic Preservation Office shot down plans to create a historic district in Gowanus that would have protected 422 buildings. [NYDN] – Tom DiChristopher

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GentrificationGowanus