Real estate in brief

$115M cleanup planned for Jamaica Bay

The Bloomberg Administration and environmental officials have named the Jamaica Bay as their next cleanup target area. Mayor Michael Bloomberg, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Pete Grannis, and Natural Resources Defense Council Executive Director Peter Lehner were among those who announced today the city’s $115 investment in improving the bay’s water quality and in staunching the deterioration of the adjacent marshland. “Jamaica Bay is without question one of the most bountiful wildlife habitats in the entire Northeast,” Bloomberg said. “It is important to the people who live in the area for its rich biodiversity, the recreation it offers, and the protection the marshlands provide from flooding.”


Two new distressed homeowner centers opened

Chase, the consumer and commercial banking arm of JPMorgan Chase, announced today the opening of two new centers in the tri-state area to help distressed homeowners avoid foreclosure. The centers, located in the Bronx neighborhood of Parkchester and near Brooklyn Heights, will include on-site advisors to help homeowners who are unable to make scheduled payments reevaluate their financial plans. There are now a total of five such centers in the tri-state region, according to Chase, including one in Flushing, one in Jersey City and another in Paramus.