Closing Bell: Gowanus Community Group Files Suit Over Planned Parole Building
Community group Gowanus United today filed a lawsuit to halt the construction of a three-story, 61,000-square-foot parole reporting facility at 15 2nd Avenue, between 5th Street and the Gowanus Canal, just behind Whole Foods. The suit claims the state’s Department of Corrections didn’t perform an environmental review to examine how the building and its day-to-day operations would affect the community. A press…
Community group Gowanus United today filed a lawsuit to halt the construction of a three-story, 61,000-square-foot parole reporting facility at 15 2nd Avenue, between 5th Street and the Gowanus Canal, just behind Whole Foods. The suit claims the state’s Department of Corrections didn’t perform an environmental review to examine how the building and its day-to-day operations would affect the community. A press release sent out by the group did not say in which court the suit was filed.
As previously reported, the state department lost its previous headquarters downtown several years ago to development and has been housed in three different downtown locations since then. The offices serve about 5,000 parolees, or 400 a day. The state signed a contract over a year ago and construction is well under way (we took the above photo in August). Construction is supposed to finish in January, and the building is supposed to open in April.
The lawsuit also seeks to overturn a zoning waiver granted by the Bloomberg administration late last year, which allows the state to build fewer parking spaces than the site’s zoning requires. The group’s press release argues that the site isn’t served well by public transportation, and a lack of off-street parking would only make nearby traffic and parking worse.
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boeringhill,
The Department of Corrections did conduct an environmental assessment which specifically mentions the lack of sidewalks. That along with other documents are available at community board 6.
DOCCS also began their public search for a suitable site three years ago so this did not happen overnight.
This has nothing to do with safety and everything to do with race. This “community group” doesn’t want young black males walking around its (affluent, white) streets. Plain and simple…. and ugly.
I agree boeringhill.
Meanwhile, Gowanus United has retained Lightstone’s law and PR firms. Make of that what you will.
Yes, newsflash, Gowanus is affluent. Have you looked at real estate prices lately? All the artists (and industries) leaving or have already left. . . . Gowanusdog, what is Lightstone Law firm?
Lightstone is the 700 unit luxury development between Bond and the canal and will go from 2nd to Carroll Streets. It is the former Toll Brothers project.
Their law firm is Greenberg, Traurig and the PR firm is Geto & de Milly. According to an article in dna they are both representing Gowanus United.
Okay, now I get it. So it’s not just about race, it’s about property values too. (Though those too are racially coded.) Development will sell for more if no young black males on sidewalks–though, come to think of it, Gowanus has no sidewalks so street.
Gowanus is affluent??