By Kim Velsey 5/29 10:33am

Procrastination

Is affordable housing too hard for developers to handle?

Megaproject Developers Promise To Get Around To Affordable Housing Someday

In a move that should shock no one, the developers of Atlantic Yards and Willets Point are dragging their feet when it comes to building the affordable housing components of their projects, The Wall Street Journal reports.

Atlantic Yards, crying “bad market,” has repeatedly delayed breaking ground on the 2,250 low- and middle-income units that were a major part of pushing the project through.

And Willets Point, promising another 1,750 affordable units, may finally have a development deal, but it will be a long time before any housing goes up. Housing is scheduled for the third stage of construction, long after the large retail center and hotel are finished. Read More

By Matt Chaban 5/28 11:01am

Anchors Away

All aboard for the new Pier 17. (SHoP)

Pier 17 Sets Sail: Landmarks Commission Approves New Designs by SHoP, Still Not Sold on Another Mall

Does a developer have any obligation to undo the ills of the past?

That was the rather existential debate that took place at the Landmarks Preservation Commission earlier this month, as commissioners debated the merits of a proposal to transform Pier 17 at the South Street Seaport. While the designs by SHoP Architects were roundly applauded, and ultimately won unanimous approval, many commissioners lamented the fact that the current mall was being replaced with a new one, rather than something less commercial or even nothing at all, just a wide-open public pier.

“There’s lots of proof in Manhattan that a shopping mall never works, but nevertheless, there’s a developer who insists they have the right formula for this shopping mall to finally work, so I guess within the context of that, then the question really is—is the architecture appropriate for the Seaport?” commissioner Margery Perlmutter said.

Commissioner Fred Bland felt so strongly about the issue, including the destruction of the notable-for-its-time Ben Thompson-designed mall, that he had composed his comments earlier that day, something he said had only happened twice before in his four years on the commission (for St. Vincent’s and “for the infamous mosque”). Read More

By Matt Chaban 5/17 6:09pm

manifest destiny east

Disconcertingly disconnected. (Bing Maps)

The Real Problem With Willets Point

A reader sends along this thoughtful critique of the problems inherent in the latest plans for Willets Point:

What a horrible idea. A parking lot and a mall? That neighborhood is a mess already, though. Just a few hundred feet from the bay in one direction and Flushing Meadows in the other, and they’re both nearly impossible to access. It should be a wonderful spot to hang out before a ballgame, and instead it’s just a tangle of highways. Thank you, Robert Moses.

It’s a very interesting point, and perhaps points to a better way forward for this forlorn corner of the city. Read More

By Eddie Small 5/11 5:48pm

Developing Situations

Mega Times Square. (Getty)

Putting the Mega in Megaprojects: Megamen and Women (Ross, Pinsky, Yaro, Weisbrod) Debate Why Building Big Matters

According to notable English language scholar Homer Simpson, “mega” means “good.”However, the speakers and panelists at the Center for Urban Real Estate’s  conference on New York City megaprojects took a slightly more detailed approach when attempting to define the term.

“I think it’s scale,” said Robert Yaro, president of the Regional Plan Association. “I think it’s a project that’s large enough to essentially transform an entire district of the city.

“To me, what makes a project a megaproject is not to much the size of the project but the size of the impact,” said Seth Pinksy, president of the city’s Economic Development Corporation partially agreeing with Yaro.

Stephen Ross, Related Companies chief, weighed in as well, saying that he thought “The most important thing is it’s transformative.” Read More

By Eddie Small 4/26 3:50pm

Harlem Shuffle

Harlem still has plenty of work to do. (Getty)

Can Old Harlem Be a Part of the Changes Sweeping the Neighborhood?

Martha Brown has worked in Harlem for more than three decades and has lived in the neighborhood for even longer. Over the last 15 years, she said she has seen a tremendous amount of change come to the area, some of which she characterized using that word that catches in the throats of so many New Yorkers: gentrification.

“People that were here, they’re not going to be able to stay,” she said. “They’re not going to be able to afford it.”

While developers of all stripes, from the institutional to the entrepreneurial, continue to beset Harlem with their developments, on Tuesday night, a group of them attempted to assuage the community’s concerns at a townhall meeting hosted by the Greater Harlem Chamber of Commerce. Change will not stop coming to the alternately famous and infamous New York neighborhood anytime soon.

But the presenters from five separate projects tried to convince the crowd of one things: these changes were going to include them. Even if those in attendance might never occupy one of these projects, they might at least hope to work at or otherwise benefit from one of them. Read More

By Jennifer Maas 3/26 11:12am

NYU 2031

The Lorax.

Washington Square Park Champion Deborah Glick Squares Off Against NYU’s Expansion Plans

NYU has a plan – a big plan to establish an even greater presence in and around Washington Square Park. And while there is no Lorax in Greenwich Village to protect the parks, gardens, and playgrounds from these expansive construction plans, or NYU 2031 as it has come to be known, there is a woman fighting to keep the towering buildings from casting their gloomy shadows over Washington Square Park. She is Deborah Glick. And while she may not speak for the trees, she is doing her darndest to speak for the community.

In February Ms. Glick held a rally at Judson Memorial Church just off Washington Square Park. Residents of Greenwich Village, volunteers of the LaGuardia Corner Gardens, and members of the Community Action Alliance on NYU 2031 made up a restless crowd, one ready to take a stand. The outpouring of support was asked to write to their district delegates, letters with real emotions and real opinions instead rather than form ones. They were asked to ban together and fight for what they believe in, for the community they want to save. “We are a neighborhood. We are a community. We intend to stay that way. Future generations depend on each successive generation to fight. NYU is part of our community but we can’t let them barrel through with their Village swallowing plans. They need to respect the Village,” said a vehement Ms. Glick. Read More

By Matt Chaban 3/06 1:17pm

on the waterfront

9 Photos

Dermot/FXFowle/Hyatt/St. Anne's

Vacancies at Brooklyn Bridge Park: Hotel Requirement Sinks Developers

Brooklyn Bridge Park has transformed the borough’s waterfront, replacing derelict warehouses with yuppie-packed lawns and playgrounds. The project would not be possible without the controversial private development surrounding it, a handful of apartment buildings, retail outlets, even a hotel. After all, who wouldn’t want to spend the night in New York overlooking the Brooklyn Bridge?

The developers vying for the right to develop Pier 1, that’s who. Read More

By Elise Knutsen 12/27/11 12:26pm

Tales of Retail

Shop local... at Target. Mother New York

Target Goes “Local” for Harlem, Corporate Style

In a transparent effort to combat the bad publicity accrued in the wake of the shopping-cart incident, Harlem’s Target store is hellbent on making sure New Yorkers know it truly, deeply, honestly and sincerely cares about the community. A Daily News article , which reads suspiciously like a PR statement, reports that the 117th Street Target is working to have a more “local feel.” Read More