Hearing re Alternatives to Housing in Brooklyn Bridge Park

Our neighborhood is growing, there are more young families every year and there is enormous demand for recreational space for all ages and in all seasons.

The Columbia Waterfront Neighborhood looks forward to the completion of the park, which will become a cherished amenity.

We appreciate the challenges in getting the park built and maintaining it going forward. However, we fear that fundamental principles are being compromised by the proposal to locate private housing in the park in order to generate income for maintenance.

We oppose the development of housing and hotels in the park. We feel that the park should contain only such uses as can be utilized by all visitors. Our communities need recreation and relaxation space - the Brooklyn Bridge Park is a unique opportunity and we look forward to working with all stakeholders to identify sources of revenue that will sustain the park's ongoing operations as an alternative to the proposed housing.

Please come to the hearing tomorrow night and express opposition to housing and support for recreation in Brooklyn Bridge Park. 

Tuesday, November 30, 2010, 6pm – 8pm
Long Island College Hospital, 339 Hicks Street Avram Conference Center, 1st floor

Public Hearing Re Developer Housing in Brooklyn Bridge Park

One of the hottest debates around concerns the dedication of land within Brooklyn Bridge Park to private development for housing and other uses in order to generate money to maintain the park.  In response to sustained opposition to such development, the Brooklyn Bridge Park Corp. has created a Committee on Alternatives to Housing to address the matter.

There are two meetings coming up at which the public can express their opinions and offer alternatives:

Tuesday, November 30, 2010, 6pm – 8pm
Long Island College Hospital, 339 Hicks Street Avram Conference Center, 1st floor

Thursday, December 9, 2010, 6pm – 8pm
St. Francis College, 180 Remsen Street,
Founders Hall Auditorium, 1st floor

We encourage everyone in the Columbia Waterfront to weigh in on this crucial issue. The eventual outcome of this effort will influence the future of our waterfront for decades.  Let's make sure the BBPC does what is best for the city and the community of park users, and not what is expedient for financial reasons and to satisfy narrow interests.

For background, see some of the information here.

BQE Enhancement Study Final Presentation

Please have a look at the final presentation for the BQE Enhancement Study at the EDC's website here.

Workshop 3 (the final presentation) is available as a downloadable PDF file - it includes a brief background of the project, conclusions, proposals which build one upon the other, and cost estimates.  The presentation is thorough and clear, and the cost estimates are presented in a very graphic manner which makes them very easy to absorb.

After reviewing the material, take the survey.  The more feedback, the better.  Next steps will be to find a way of making one of these plans a reality.

Final Community Workshop for BEQ Enhancement Project

The third and final community workshop for the BQE Enhancement project has been scheduled!

When: Monday, November 15th from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Where: Long Island College Hospital (LICH), Avram Conference Center, Rooms A & B, 339 Hicks Street, Brooklyn, N.Y. 11201

What: The project team will present finalized alternatives and preliminary cost estimates, and discuss next steps for the project.

More information on the project available at EDC website, including prior presentations. Hope to see you there.

Brooklyn Streetcar Feasibility Study

New York City DOT's Chris Hrones hosted the first meeting of the Community Advisory Committee (CAC) for the Study last night. The meeting was attended by representatives of various community groups in the Cobble Hill to Red Hook area, other government agencies and a number of people who have been active for years in trying to bring streetcar service to Brooklyn. Funding for the study was obtained from the federal government by our congresswoman Nydia Velazquez.

While you might think that provision of streetcar service would be the responsibility of the MTA, Hrones noted that DOT is taking the lead in addressing transportation policy on many fronts including improvements to bus service, the very noticeable expansion of bicycle lanes throughout the city as well as a host of other initiatives.

The presentation made to the group is available at the DOT website devoted to the study and also contains a brief overview of streetcars.

The question and answer period produced some interesting information:

• Although the MTA is a member of the CAC, they had no representatives at the meeting. Hrones noted that MTA operates the buses and subways but would not necessarily be the operator of streetcars. However, the MTA will be a necessary partner in the study and implementation of a streetcar system in order to coordinate services. An attendee observed that inter-agency coordination/rivalry was a critical issue and would could potentially delay or kill the project.

• The study will include a ridership demand projection based on census data, data from other cities with streetcars, bus ridership data, and information from the Ikea shuttle.

• While the study area encompasses a broad range of neighborhoods including Downtown and Vinegar hill, the primary objective is providing service to/from Red Hook. Proposed routes will always have portions in Red Hook and will extend variously to other locations in the study area such as subway stations or other destinations.

• Other cities that have installed streetcars have experienced increased economic development along the streetcar route. The feasibility study will address potential economic impact and the required coordination with agencies such as Dept of City Planning and EDC which may have programs in progress for the affected areas. Several attendees noted the importance of reliable transit for store and business owners in Red Hook. Given the large public investment required for a streetcar service there would surely follow a desire to secure the viability of this system by promoting development along the route.

You can contribute your thoughts at two Community Board meetings: CB2 Transportation Committee on 11/16 and CB6 Transportation Committee on 11/18 . There will be a public meeting early in 2011 and there will eventually be an interactive map on the DOT project website where you can record your own suggested route.

See also the timely and fascinating information at the Brooklyn Historic Railway Association website.

VISION 2020 NYC Comprehensive Waterfront Plan

City Planning has produced draft recommendations for the current round of planning for the future of our waterfront. There will be a presentation on Tuesday, October 12 at 6:00p at NYU Kimmel Center 60 Washington Square South, 10th Floor.

The draft recommendations can be viewed at the Vision 2020 website and can be downloaded from here.

Of special interest to the Columbia Waterfront community is the section on "Reach 14S" which includes recommendations on Piers 7 -12. It is gratifying to see the recommendations include references to improving environmental conditions by supporting cold ironing, but there are some real throw-aways here like 'minimizing conflict between trucks and pedestrians' and the 'waterfront interpretive center'.

Given the generally somnolent nature of piers 7 - 12 and the relative 'thinness' of the industrial buffer between the waterfront and the very lively adjacent communities, it is desirable to press for a far more accessible waterfront. Such access could include better links to Governor's Island and Manhattan via ferry and water taxi, spaces for small businesses, and use of the large areas for events.

You can make your opinion known to City Planning on line here.

Brooklyn Greenway Community Planning Workshop

Next week the Brooklyn Greenway Inititative hosts their second community planning workshop concerning the section of the Greenway in the Columbia Waterfront and Redhook. Please attend and help make this important project a reality. This workshop will build upon the results of the first session held earlier this year.

Date: October 14, 2010
Time: 6:30p - 8:30p
Location: Red Hook Recreation Center, 155 Bay Street
RSVP: brooklynwaterfrontgreenway@dot.nyc.gov and specify the Red Hook workshop