Beyond the political implications of Brooklyn Assemblyman Vito Lopez’s censure for sexual harassment allegations, Brownstoner says the politician’s problems could have implications for real estate development and land use in the borough he represents.
Lopez was a major advocate for affordable housing in the borough, as well as the 421a tax-abatement program and the loft law, a 1982 legislation that allowed for roughly 900 commercial and manufacturing buildings to be rented to residential tenants.
And What About Broadway Triangle? As The Real Deal previously reported, Lopez was involved in the Broadway Triangle rezoning in Brooklyn. A 2009 lawsuit alleged that half of the affordable housing in the South Williamsburg neighborhood went to Hasidic Jewish allies of Lopez and other whites, even as 90 percent of the waiting list for affordable housing at the time were black and Hispanic. [Brownstoner]