This weekend the Times looked into how some Red Hook residents are still protesting the impending opening of a new concrete plant in the neighborhood. According to the article, the plant’s foes have mainly attacked the business over concerns about dust particles settling on next-door IKEA, nearby ball fields, and the Added Value farm. However, a spokesman for the plant, which is set to open later this month in an area zoned for heavy industry, says, “All these type of devices are state-of-the-art technology for a ready-mix plant…We don’t feel we will have an issue of dust.” At root, opposition to the plant appears to stem from residents who want more of Red Hook zoned for residential use: John McGettrick, a co-president of the Red Hook Civic Association, argues that more buildings in the neighborhood should be made into apartments because the area “has all the charm of a waterfront village in the midst of the country’s most powerful city.” Update: This post from A View from The Hook points out that both the Brooklyn Greenway and Xavier High School would also be negatively impacted by the plant.
Dust Has Yet to Settle Over New Concrete Plant [NY Times]
Red Hook Protests Concrete Plant [Brownstoner]
US Concrete, Red Hook’s New Resident [Brownstoner]