A Brooklyn Creek Evolves
By Amanda Becker
When most Brooklynites hear “waterfront development,” they think of a swath of land along the East River, the much debated and contested site of proposed large-scale residential development in North Brooklyn. But waterfront rezoning has also paved the way for luxury high rises at the most unlikely of locations – Greenpoint’s Newtown Creek.
Newtown Creek is a 3.5-mile waterway that flows along the Brooklyn/Queens border before joining the East River. It is one of the most fetid, polluted waterways in the country.
The largest of the development sites is perched right where Newtown Creek empties into the East River. The 20-acre parcel is owned by the Park Tower Group, which this August hired Allen Dzbanek as a senior vice president and director of construction to oversee the project. No stranger to waterfront redevelopment, Dzbanek worked for Hudson Waterfront Associates in developing Trump Place and Riverside Park South on Manhattan’s west side.
Park Tower’s plans include 4,000 apartments in residential towers, lofts, and town homes, with street level retail space and interior parking, a waterfront promenade that would presumably rival the existing esplanade in Brooklyn Heights, a 500-foot pier with amenities and recreation opportunities, and a water taxi. Total construction time will span the next decade, but some completed units will be available as early as January 2008.
Along with the 20-acre Park Tower Group tract, two other parcels along Newtown Creek are under redevelopment for residential use. According to the New York Times, developer Moshe Feller paid $12.75 million for a lot at 77 Commercial Street last October. Initial plans included three buildings of luxury condominiums designed by architect Karl Fisher, who recently converted the Gretsch Building at 60 Broadway. Calls to Fisher’s office, however, indicate the architect is no longer involved with the project and current development plans are unclear.
The final sizeable parcel of waterfront land along Newtown Creek is a strip of lots along 93-99 Commercial Street, currently being sold by sealed bid. The site houses occupied loft spaces, retail space and free-market residential lofts. Calls to Corcoran representative Nick Arnold, who represents the listing, did not reveal whether an offer had been accepted after the October 15th deadline. Current longtime loft tenants of 93-99 Commercial Street are concerned about being displaced to make way for more expensive luxury units.
A more pressing concern for future tenants, however, could be the status of the Newtown Creek cleanup.
The Creek’s sordid past dates back more than 25 years to the initial discovery of petroleum pollution by the Coast Guard in 1978. According to a press release issued by U.S. Representative Anthony Weiner, “the banks are home to the largest oil spill in the United States.”
Though the cleanup of the creek was brought under federal enforcement in 1990, Newtown Creek has continued to evade cleanup partly due to its secluded location. The creek has only one public access point from the shore, while a low-clearance bridge blocks waterway passage for inspection boats.
In January 2004, the environmental organization Riverkeeper put ExxonMobil and other oil companies responsible for the spill on notice of intention to file a citizen lawsuit. The following May, a formal suit was filed against ExxonMobil for violations of the Clean Water Act and the Resource and Conservation Recovery Act. Since then, councilmen David Yassky and Eric Gioia and Brooklyn borough president Marty Markowitz have filed notice letters with intent to join the lawsuit.
Support for the cleanup grew when New York was named as a potential site for the 2012 Olympic Games. The proposed Olympic Village would have been built at the mouth of Newtown Creek, and while the bid proved ultimately unsuccessful, it brought much needed publicity to Newtown’s environmental problems. “The proposal helped the cause and brought attention to Newtown Creek,” says Basil Seggos, a legal investigator with Riverkeeper. “But losing the bid took away the city’s incentive to become involved, and the City is a powerful lever to create change.”
Days after the city council’s May vote to rezone Williamsburg and Greenpoint for residential development, Empire Transit Mix, Inc., pleaded guilty in federal court for violating the Rivers and Harbors Act and agreed to pay a $300,000 fine for dumping waste materials into Newtown Creek. Environmental activists hope that continued public attention on the waterway and the impending residential development would result in additional efforts to clean up the polluted creek.
To date, the developers involved in the residential proposals along the creek have not become active participants. But Seggos is optimistic about the role that developers might play in the efforts to save the contaminated creek. “As a result of the rezoning battle, there may be a defensive posture in place,” he says. “But I view this as an opportunity for us to gain a new perspective to network with the developers and get a wider demographic active in the cleanup.”
Deadbeat Landlords Prompt Investigation
and Tenant Action
On October 19th, the New York Department of Investigation, a law enforcement agency that investigates city employees, agencies and contractors, announced that a multi-agency inspection of 27 apartment buildings owned by Abdur Rahman Farrakhan, President of the nonprofit Ocean-Hill Brownville Tenants Association, yielded 1,300 new citations and violations for blocked and locked emergency exits, massive holes in walls and ceilings, and large-scale water leaks. 23 of the 27 buildings inspected were infested with roaches, mice and rats. Separate reports show that the OBTA owes $6.3 million in back property taxes and $1.25 million in unpaid water bills.
Additionally, City Limits Weekly reports that angry tenants and housing activists stormed a meeting of City Council’s housing committee to demand a hearing on the Healthy Homes Act. The act, detailed in last month’s issue, aims to increase fines and penalties on negligent landlords. The hearing, originally scheduled for September 29th, was postponed by Councilwoman Madeline Provenzano, chair of the Housing Committee. Brooklyn Councilwoman Leticia James is asking that the legislation be transferred to another committee so it can be voted on by the year’s end.
Boutique Hotel Craze Hits Bedford Avenue
The Winick Realty Group is developing a commercial and hotel space on the corner of Bedford Avenue and South 6th Street. The six-story building will contain 4,300 square feet of ground floor retail space and a hotel above. “There isn’t a specific hotel involved in the project just yet,” says Michell Shaykevich, who represents the property. “The landlord is developing the site and will lease to a future tenant.” Plans indicate the building will be ready for occupancy as early as winter 2007.
