You are currently browsing the daily archive for May 2nd, 2008.
The mixed industrial/residential neighborhood of Red Hook, Brooklyn has a beautiful Manhattan view - but actually getting to and from that other borough can be problematic. The closest subway stop to the neighborhood, the Smith/9th St. F/G, is a mile away.
Now, the Forum for Urban Design is hoping to brand the neighborhood with a new identity - a haven for cyclists and a model for sustainable development. The Forum’s Red Hook Bicycle Master Plan and Design Competition has three components: 1) a bike garage/loft at the Smith/9th St. F/G stop; dedicated bike lanes to connect the neighborhood to this stop; and of course, the all-important identification of a funding source for the project.
Brooklyn Community Board 6 will consider the competition at its full board meeting on May 14. Those interested in competing must register by June 2. Check out the site for more info.
As you have no doubt heard by now, the City Council approved the hotly-contested rezoning of 125th Street this week. This article from yesterday’s Times details a few of the many issues: gentrification, the increased law enforcement presence at the hearing, and of course, the Council’s negotiations on affordable housing. Toward the end of the story is this bit of interesting info:
“The Bloomberg administration and Ms. Dickens have said that an agreement they negotiated reserves 46 percent, or 1,758, of the 3,858 total new residential units that would be permitted to be built in the rezoned area as moderately priced housing.
But according to the formal agreement, signed on April 15 by Deputy Mayor Robert C. Lieber, only about 5 percent of the housing — or about 200 units — would be affordable for families earning $30,750 or less.”
Considering that, also according to the Times, the median income of Harlem/Morningside Heights is $23,429/year, the question remains: to whom is this new “affordable housing” affordable?
