Williamsburg Rezone Begins
The city planning department announced the beginning of the formal public review process for a plan for Greenpoint and Williamsburg that will reclaim the waterfront and create 8,250 units of housing. The rezoning proposal encompasses approximately 184 blocks, including a two-mile stretch of Brooklyn’s East River waterfront.
Red Hook Ikea Gets Early Approval
A City Council panel approved a plan for an Ikea along the Brooklyn waterfront in Red Hook. The approval came despite opposition from some residents to the 350,000 square foot store with a 5.5 acre waterfront esplanade and new ferry terminal. The full Council has not yet voted on the plan.
Gehry Chosen for Ground Zero Theater
The Lower Manhattan Development Corp. selected Frank Gehry as architect of the Ground Zero Theater Center. The center will house the Joyce International Dance Center and the Signature Theater in a 250,000 square foot building scheduled to be completed by 2009.
Congress nixes JFK NYC rail link funds
In a blow to Governor George Pataki, Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Lower Manhattan business leaders, the House of Representatives blocked a measure to convert federal tax credits into $2 billion that would go toward a rail connection between Kennedy Airport and Lower Manhattan.
Hudson Yards Relocation Effort Begins
The city’s Economic Development Corp. has hired a company to help relocate businesses on Manhattan’s far West Side, where the city is planning a massive rezone. Roughly 72 occupants including both residents and businesses would be displaced for parkland or a subway extension, according to the EDC.
High Line Funds Go Higher
The city announced it would pump another $27.5 million into a plan for a park set on the abandoned elevated railroad line on the West Side. City funding for the High Line now totals $43.5 million. A final construction tab is estimated at up to $100 million.
Affordable Housing Plan Making Progress
A $3 billion plan by Mayor Bloomberg to build or renovate 65,000 units of affordable housing over five years is moving along well. Bloomberg recently announced that the city will have started work on 26,000 of those units, or 40 percent of its goal, by the end of this year, the New York Times reported.