One Brooklyn
July 21, 2016
IN RESPONSE TO REZONING APPLICATIONS FOR 141 WILLOUGHBY STREET, BOROUGH PRESIDENT DISAPPROVES CALL FOR UNPRECEDENTED FLOOR AREA RATIO IN BOROUGH’S CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT, WHILE SUPPORTING SALE OF MUNICIPAL AIR RIGHTS TO CREATE MIXED-USE BUILDING WITH AFFORABLE HOUSING AND ADDITIONAL COMMUNITY BENEFITS
BROOKLYN, NY, July 21, 2016: Yesterday, Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams submitted a Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP) recommendation to disapprove with conditions a zoning map change application submitted by 385 Gold Property Investors, LLC, approve with conditions a zoning text change application submitted by 385 Gold Property Investors, LLC, and approve with conditions a disposition of City-owned property submitted by the New York City Economic Development Corporation (EDC) and New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD), all related to the facilitation of developing 141 Willoughby Street in Downtown Brooklyn into a 49-story, 372,000 square-foot commercial/residential mixed-use building with space available for office and retail uses. His response was issued after dialogue with local stakeholders and community activists, including a public hearing he held in the community room of Brooklyn Borough Hall on Monday, June 13th. Borough President Adams requested several modifications to the project, including his disapproval of a request for an unprecedented floor area ratio (FAR) in the borough’s central business district as well as the sale of municipal air rights at a New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) building located at 295 Flatbush Avenue Extension to allow for the creation of the proposed development, which he requested be inclusive of cultural space and new school seats as well as affordable housing units able to support families and be reasonably priced for senior citizens.
“Development in Brooklyn, especially projects with a component of community review, must meet a high standard that addresses critical local needs and objectives,” said Borough President Adams. “In Downtown Brooklyn, and indeed across our borough, we face serious affordability concerns for our seniors that remain the foundation of our societal success as well as our families who seek to build the next chapters of our communities’ growth. To ensure that this neighborhood is a safe place to raise healthy children and families, we need to be creative and aggressive in pursuing affordable housing for them alongside places to work, shop, learn, and play. Holistic development can and should be the standard our City meets at every opportunity we have to shape the future of the five boroughs.”
Concerned that the project’s proposed 18 FAR “has the potential to set a precedent that could have unintended consequences,” including the risk of losing much-needed office space in the Special Downtown Brooklyn District (SDBD) created in 2004 to encourage greater commercial development, Borough President Adams recommended capping any change in zoning at 141 Willoughby Street to the maximum standard established by the SDBD. He called for the utilization of unused development rights from 295 Flatbush Avenue Extension as an alternative means of completing the project. Additionally, through a series of zoning text amendments that he proposed, Borough President Adams laid out a vision for the site to contain cultural facilities, public school space, and affordable housing units suitable for both families and very low-income seniors, all of which are needs for the area that he has outlined in recent policy reports.
Borough President Adams’ recommendations, which can be accessed online by visiting brooklyn-usa.org/ulurp, will be considered by the City Planning Commission (CPC) as part of their public meeting on Wednesday, July 27th.
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