The Lightstone Group’s Gowanus development faces legal scrutiny

A rendering of Lightstone Group's Gowanus Canal project
A rendering of Lightstone Group's Gowanus Canal project

The Lightstone Group is facing further efforts to halt its massive mixed-use project on the Gowanus Canal. The Brooklyn Law School Community Development Clinic has asked the Department of City Planning not to consider the developer’s application to modify the project because of concerns over the review process, Pardon Me For Asking reported.

Lightstone has asked City Planning to approve modifications to its previously approved permit for the project, located at 363-365 Bond Street between Carroll and 2nd streets. The changes include bumping up the number of apartments from 447 to 700 units, relocation of parking entrances, and changes to the project’s base height, building heights and building footprints, the blog said.

In an Oct. 26 letter to City Planning Chair Amanda Burden, the law school clinic argued that the modifications were extreme enough to warrant a full seven-month review from the city, under the Uniform Land Use Review Process, rather than the limited review by City Planning required for minor modifications. The clinic made the request on behalf of the Friends and Residents of Greater Gowanus.

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City Planning was scheduled to hear Lightstone’s application on Oct. 29—the day Hurricane Sandy hit the city with a 14-foot storm surge. The meeting has yet to be rescheduled, the blog said.

Other parties urged Lightstone to drop its plan to build the project in light of Sandy, as previously reported. However, Gowanus residents have had mixed feelings about the effects the development could have on the changing neighborhood. –-Hayley Kaplan