ACORN Protesters Storm The Beacon Tower
The anti-gentrification movement stepped it up a notch yesterday with ACORN protesters storming the open house at the Beacon Tower, Shaya Boymelgreen’s 23-story condo development at 85 Adams in Dumbo. What a shame! What a pity! We can’t live in New York City, the 50-odd protesters chanted while blanketing the sales office with flyers that…
The anti-gentrification movement stepped it up a notch yesterday with ACORN protesters storming the open house at the Beacon Tower, Shaya Boymelgreen’s 23-story condo development at 85 Adams in Dumbo. What a shame! What a pity! We can’t live in New York City, the 50-odd protesters chanted while blanketing the sales office with flyers that read, Beacon Tower developers get rich off the backs of working families.” The protesters main gripe? That luxury projects like the Beacon still receive tax breaks in a holdover from a program started in the 1970s to stimulated development. The ambushed Corcoran agents manning the open house called in the cops who removed the protesters. Prospective buyers didn’t appear to be too sympathetic to the cause. “Tell them to get jobs and go live in the projects,” said Jenny Malone, who was there checking out apartments. “People just want something for nothing.”
Activists Protest Dumbo Condos [Metro]
More coverage in the print edition.
So Santa Claus, what’s up with the Newark remark? By the way, I highly doubt that CrownHeightsProud (couldn’t even get that right) needs the likes of you to tell her what work is. If anything, she could tell you.
Sorry newyorker- it’s not Jamal who made this a racial issue. It’s clowns like Santa.
‘And please spare me the comments about moving out of the city, like it’s an option for most people, no matter what your income.’
People move all the time in response economic stimulus. Cheaper housing, better jobs, etc…
Aside from that there are huge swaths of brooklyn that no one is protesting about not being able to afford.
And no I don’t support the developer subsidy.
Crown House Pride,
Moving is not such a big deal. Call some friends, rent a UHAUL, load the truck, drive to Newark.
What’s the big deal? Hundreds of thousands of poor people move every day in this country. It’s neither difficult nor expensive.
It just takes a little work.
jamal, please dont turn this into a “racist” issue because it would be a shame. the ACORN people didnt say “What a shame! What a pity! We white middle-class folks can’t live in New York Cityâ€
please please please
anon 9:58 guy sucks- great post!!! and the same for CHP. You put it so well.. Unfortunately I have to say that Jamal is not far from the truth. Although I would like to give people the benefit of the doubt and say it’s all about economics and class, it’s a fact that too many people associate that with skin color or culture. ANd far too often without having any first hand experience.
And anon 1:05- arts, theater, social programs- the rich benefactors who give to those charities are most certainly liberals.
CHP – 421a was not meant to provide affordable housing. It was simply to persuade developers to build in areas that they would normally avoid. Of course there is no need to give builders incentives to build now but that does not mean that it was ever meant for affordable housing. Even though I think that that kind of program should exist.
“To say that this helps the masses because the rich are moving on up and leaving housing for the rest of us is absolutely absurd… Housing is not passed down the social strata like old clothes.”
That’s 100% wrong. That is how housing moves. New housing frees up the old housing, creating more supply. When legal hurdles are high enough to limit development as they are in NYC (thanks to countless organizations like ACORN), then the limited supply of housing gets bid up and the previously affordable housing becomes unaffordable. (See DUMBO.)
And yeah, anon 1:29, most poor people work hard, harder than you’ll ever know. It’s just that it’s rather difficult to move on up, hell – break even, on a minimum wage or just above minimum wage job in one of the most expensive cities in the country. Try paying rent, and raising a family on around $300 take home a week.
And please spare me the comments about moving out of the city, like it’s an option for most people, no matter what your income.
David, I did not say that xfr tax (and mortgage tax) makes up for “lost” tax revenue. I was trying to say that the higher prices that these abatements allow the developer to get away with contributes to more city revenues because xfr tax is based on selling price.
I did say that the benefit to the buyer of rebate will effectively be nullified about half way through the 10 year abatement period due to the biannual increases. This means that the city wins again by year 6 due to the much higher tax rates levied on new condos.
Ppl are attacking a program that does not take away taxes in the medium term let alone the long term. In fact tax revenues have increases substantially and $2Billion of that has been planned to be used for low income housing.