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Following a major victory on a controversial plan to rezone 125th Street in Harlem, the Bloomberg administration is about to seek approval for two signature Queens redevelopment projects—a move sure to stir further debate.
The city intends to certify the Willets Point and Hunters Point South plans into the land-use process on Monday, setting the stage for a seven-month battle as the projects are scrutinized by the communities, the City Planning Commission and the City Council.
Willets Point business owners have been simmering since last May, when Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced a $3 billion plan that would displace them and remake the hardscrabble blocks near the Mets' new Citi Field. There, the city would build 5,500 housing units, a hotel, a convention center and 2.2 million square feet of office and retail space.
The Hunters Point project—which calls for 5,000 units of housing along the East River in Long Island City—has been less controversial, because it does not involve relocations. But since 60% of the residential units would be reserved for middle-income New Yorkers and the rest would be sold at market rates, the plan has drawn the ire of activists who say low-income Queens residents will be priced out.
The Bloomberg administration has already won approval for 80 rezonings, and last week's win on a key vote concerning the Harlem project means that another authorization could soon be on the way. But the mayor, whose time in office is winding down, is far from finished with an ambitious development agenda that also includes Coney Island, Moynihan Station and a two-block stretch of East 125th Street.
Local councilman opposed
The mayor's economic development team has decided to press forward on Willets Point, despite many unresolved issues. The 61-acre redevelopment had been scheduled for certification in February, but the city temporarily backed off when City Councilman Hiram Monserrate, D-Queens, withdrew his support. He remains opposed, saying he wants the administration to guarantee the inclusion of middle- and low-income housing units, require livable-wage jobs and agree not to use eminent domain to take over properties.
“They have now put a real short-term clock on this project,” says Mr. Monserrate. “And that clock begins to tick on Monday.”
The city's decision to kick-start the land review is sure to intensify the opposition, which will focus on the relocation of 275 Willets Point businesses and their nearly 2,000 workers. Earlier this month, business owners filed a lawsuit charging the city with intentionally neglecting Willets Point in order to make it easier to take property via eminent domain.
Another potential obstacle emerged Friday, when Queens Borough President Helen Marshall got an advance copy of the environmental impact statement. Ms. Marshall, who had been a staunch supporter of the project, was “very disappointed.” She says a plan for developing the land if negotiations with owners stall could eliminate the convention center and compromise the environmental remediation of the site.
The city's Economic Development Corp. has a large group assigned to the Willets Point project, including staffers who are working full-time on business relocation.
“Our intention is to compensate everyone fairly,” says President Seth Pinsky.
Business owners say the city has not provided them with viable relocation options.
“I don't intend to uproot and move and be put in the middle of nowhere,” says Danny Sambucci Jr., whose father opened Sambucci Bros. Auto Salvage 57 years ago.
By law, to maintain the possibility of seizing property, the city will hold off on designating a developer until after the land-use process plays out.
The Hunters Point redevelopment has been less contentious, but the project does have its detractors.
“If the mayor wants to help our communities, he has to make affordable housing affordable to the people in that neighborhood,” says the Rev. Lancelot Waldron, president of Queens Congregations United for Action.
The bigger hurdle with this plan could be financing. The city can't issue bonds for residential developments because it isn't setting aside 20% of units for low-income families.
The Department of Housing Preservation and Development applied for federal approval to create a nonprofit organization that would issue tax-free bonds to build middle-income housing, but a decision isn't expected for months.
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