![]() This black, viscous liquid has been found at the proposed development site at depths of up to 153 feet. The city-owned lot where developers seek to build their affordable housing complex and public school has a dirty history: an ocean of coal tar – a toxic byproduct of gas production found all over Gowanus. ![]() ![]() It also includes a plan to improve shoreline resiliency and a greener urban canopy – which would make the waterfront more accessible.īut a growing group of activists, residents and legislators say the development’s stylish packaging amounts to “greenwashing” – the practice of touting superficial environmental upgrades to cover up a continued commitment to pollution. On the surface, the proposal to rezone the neighborhood’s industrial past sounds like a win: the plan’s main attraction is Gowanus Green, a six-building campus that would include 950 affordable housing units, a public park and a school. View image in fullscreen Workers ride down the Gowanus Canal in front of the former Citizens manufactured gas plant in Brooklyn. Despite community pushback, Mayor Bill de Blasio is plunging ahead with the controversial plan before the sun sets on his administration at the end of the year. If the city council approves the plan to rezone an 82-block swath of the Gowanus Canal waterfront, developers would get the green light to construct thousands of residential apartments, as well as shops, restaurants and other businesses, along the Superfund site. “The remedy is designed to protect future occupants of the site, the community, and to prevent further releases of contamination to the Gowanus Canal,” it said. In a statement provided to the Guardian, the New York state department of environmental conservation said the agency is providing “strict oversight” of the cleanup of the site in order “to ensure for the strongest protections possible for public health and the environment”. Many residents are fed up with the pace and scope of the cleanup plan, calling it ineffective. “It’s disconcerting that public officials are so hellbent on building housing on this very dangerous site, instead of finding creative ways to meet affordable housing goals elsewhere in the area,” said Brad Vogel, a member of the neighborhood coalition Voice of Gowanus and one of the rezoning’s most vocal opponents. City officials say the Gowanus neighborhood plan would bring much-needed affordable housing and other public amenities to an area that has rapidly gentrified over the years.īut activists are concerned that development along the flood-prone, polluted waterfront could threaten the ongoing cleanup of the canal – as well as the health and safety of the people who live there. The project pits residents and city leaders with competing visions for the future of the neighborhood against each other.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |