New Broadway Triangle judge spurs concerns of biased rulings

A development watchdog group has raised concerns that a new judge overseeing a challenge to The Broadway Triangle apartment complex in Williamsburg will be biased in favor of the project, the New York Daily News reported.

While The Broadway Triangle Coalition has not lodged a formal request for New York State Supreme Court Judge Shlomo Hagler to recuse himself, the group contended that his Jewish religious affiliation will skew his rulings on the project.

The Broadway Triangle development is a rezoned area that allows for the construction of 1,800 housing units.

Groups have fought to halt the construction of the development, claiming the rezoning of the 31-acre area favored Hasidic families as tenants, at the expense of African-American and Latino residents in the area. City Council member Diana Reyna, along with a local community group, has also drawn attention to the supposed discrimination.

Now-retired Judge Emily Jane Goodman, who previously presided over the case, issued an injunction halting construction.

The coalition has not formally moved to kick Judge Hagler off the case because they were worried it would anger him in future proceedings if their motion failed.

Legal experts told the Daily News that a bid to get Hagler off the case solely on the basis of his religion would likely fail. [NYDN] —Zachary Kussin