Third Board Of Standards And Appeals Hearing On Rock And Roll Playhouse In Gowanus Scheduled For June 17th

280 Bond Street

View of residential homes abutting the building on Degraw Street

On Tuesday, June 17, the Board of Sandards and Appeals (BSA) once again will be hearing the case of 280 Bond Street, a non-conforming use abutting six residential townhouses that developer Peter Shapiro hopes to turn into the Rock And Roll Playhouse. This will be the third hearing on the matter.

Here is a bit of background on the matter:

Since 1961, when NYC Zoning districts were mapped, 280 Bond Street has housed a non-conforming use in a residential zone (R6 from 1961 - 2009, and R6-B since 2009) which only permits residential or community facility use.

Although the previous non-conforming uses in the residential zone are grandfathered and allowed continuing use, the R6-B zone has to be enforced when the non-conforming use is discontinued for two years.

We Are Gowanus (WAG), the group of residents who have been fighting to keep the proposed Rock And Roll Playhouse at 280 Bond Street from impacting their quality of life, claim that "Excellence in Plumbing", the business that was based at this location previously, had ceased operation long ago.


WAG reached out to the NYC Department of Buildings to point out that the new music venue should not be allowed under the existing R6B zoning and to make the agency aware of the discontinued use.
But DOB issued building permits for the Rock And Roll Playhouse nonetheless.

The group ultimately sued the Buildings Department to force DOB to issue its decision and the basis for it. In a final NYC DOB determination issued on October 2, 2013, the agency was in opposition to WAG.

With the help of lawyer Jack Lester, We Are Gowanus has appealed this decision to the Board Of Standards and Appeals.

Below is a press release on the upcoming hearing from We Are Gowanus:

Please join us on Tuesday, JUNE 17 at 10am for our next Board of Standards and Appeals (BSA) hearing regarding 280 Bond Street (the proposed site of Rock and Roll Playhouse).

The hearing will take place at 22 Reade Street, Spector Hall (ground floor). It is critical for WAG to demonstrate community support with a strong turnout at this upcoming hearing.

Here's an update about 280 Bond Street and the two previous BSA Hearings:

First Hearing: January 2014
The first hearing revealed no evidence of an actual business at 280 Bond St. The BSA Chair instructed the attorney for the owner of 280 Bond Street to produce evidence for the next hearing.

Second Hearing: March 2014
The second hearing offered minimal supporting evidence of an ongoing business from the early 1980s to the present. The BSA Chair highlighted this omission, and gave the owner of 280 Bond another opportunity to demonstrate that business actually occurred at that site.

At the same time, WAG provided evidence that the building owner had been convicted of federal tax evasion, and in the course of that proceeding he swore under oath to the Manhattan DA that he had had no active business at the location from 2008-2011.

Third Hearing - originally May 2014; postponed until June 17
This hearing was postponed to allow a new DOB attorney to get up to speed on the case.

We’ve received fantastic letters of support from State Senator Velmanette Montgomery and Joan Millman.

We look forward to seeing you on June 17!

All the best,

We Are Gowanus
http://wearegowanus.org/
https://www.facebook.com/pages/We-Are-Gowanus/146583272193503

Both State Assemblywoman Joan Millman as well as State Senator Velmanette Montgomery have recently written letters to members of the Board Of Standards and Appeal in support of We Are Gowanus.  Please see letters below.

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"Bridging Gowanus": Real Community Planning Or Dog And Pony Show?

Congresswoman Nydia Velázquez

Councilman Brad Lander

Councilman Stephen Levin

This past Thursday evening, I attended the second Bridging Gowanus community planning meeting about the future of the Gowanus area. About 150 local residents and business owners participated in this latest session, which was held at the Wyckoff Gardens Community Center.
Bridging Gowanus has been convened jointly by Congresswoman Nydia Velázquez, State Senator Velmanette Montgomery, Assemblywoman Joan Millman, Council Member Stephen Levin, and Council Member Brad Lander. It has been promoted as "an inclusive community-driven planning process to develop a long-term vision for a safe, vibrant, and sustainable Gowanus."

The process started last August. Since then, several meetings have been held with community stakeholders to identify broadly shared goals and "build consensus around a neighborhood framework for the infrastructure and land use regulations needed in the Gowanus Canal area."

To facilitate the conversation Pratt Center for Community Development (not to be confused with Pratt Institute) has been hired as consultant in charge of running the process.

The goal of Bridging Gowanus, as it has been explained to participants, is a community supported blueprint to help shape the De Blasio Administration's thinking about the Gowanus Canal.  

At this latest planning meeting, participants were encouraged to explore an "idea expo" which had been prepared by Pratt Center.  The expo consisted of twelve poster boards that represented some of the shared commonalities that had come out of previous sessions.  Some of these common goals included:

*strengthening and coming up with a true mixed-use zoning that will maintain a true mix of industrial and residential use.

*creating a diverse residential community by preserving and creating affordable housing.

*strengthening industry by investing in infrastructure and putting in place financial mechanisms to support industry.

*coordinating job and workforce developments with planned resiliency and environmental remediation initiatives

*flexible new school buildings that could be used by the community during the evenings and week-ends

*undertake a hydrology study to investigate the effects of elevating building sites along the Gowanus corridor to meet new building codes in flood zones.

Each participant was given twelve red stickers to distribute on the twelve 'idea boards' to indicate importance or preference.
By far, the board that got the most stickers was the Hydrology Study/ Flood Management board.

The second part of the meeting involved dividing participants into groups for an exercise that was moderated by representatives of Pratt Center at each table.
Stakeholders were presented with a map of the Gowanus corridor.  They were encouraged to discuss future land use in the Gowanus.
Each table was shown a map that had been divided into three parts:
*Number One was labeled "Industrial Buisness Zone"
*Number Two was labeled "Ombudsman Area"
*Number Three was unlabeled.

The map somehow looked eerily like the one presented to the Gowanus community back in 2009, when Amanda Burden,  then-Commissioner of City Planning presented her agency's proposed re-zoning for the Gowanus Corridor.  The map presented by Burden at that time had also divided the neighborhood into three parts. Click here for the 2009 re-zoning proposal.

At my table, the Pratt Center moderator seemed to want to steer the conversation into a very specific direction. She began by asking my group if the area labeled "Industrial Buisness Zone" on the map should or should not stay manufacturing.  Most everyone agreed that it should.  If that were the case, the moderator wanted to know, where would we put housing?
The moderator then appeared to be strongly suggesting that perhaps, area number 3 could be zoned to allow residential development.  After all, the 700-unit Lighstone Group residential development had already been green lighted by the city and Gowanus Green at Public Place, with its 770 units was sure to follow.

I pointed out that dividing the Gowanus into three distinct areas went against everything that I had personally heard the community say: that there should be a fluid mix of uses everywhere in Gowanus.
Not only did the exercise remind me of playing Monopoly, the map and the direction of the conversation seemed specifically designed to support the City's 2009 proposed re-zoning.

I have now attended all except one of the Bridging Gowanus sessions.  I have tried to put aside my cynicism and hoped that, as promised, the outcome of the process would allow the Gowanus community to plan for its own future.
But make no mistake, Gowanus has already been divided amongst developers who are ready to build residential development on the shores of the canal with the blessing of newly-elected Mayor De Blasio. The Bridging Gowanus process is, in my humble opinion, a carefully orchestrated process that gives the appearance of community input.
At the end, we will most likely just end up with what New York City has planned for the area since 2009.

NYCity proposed rezoning for Gowanus presented to the community in 2009

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IMPORTANT MEETING TONIGHT: Have A Say On The Future Of The Gowanus Neighborhood At Public Meeting

***TONIGHT***

Your involvement and participation are needed.

Please make every effort to attend this important meeting

Bridging Gowanus

Monday December 9th, 2013

from 6:30 to 8:30 pm

at PS 372 – The Children’s School at 512 Carroll Street.

"First in a series of public meetings to develop a neighborhood framework for the infrastructure and land uses needed for a safe, vibrant and sustainable Gowanus."

Recently, I wrote about a series of 'Gowanus Planning' kick-off meetings that had been held jointly by State Senator Velmanette Montgomery, Congresswoman Nydia Velázquez, State Assemblywoman Joan Millman, Councilmember Steven Levin and Councilmember Lander.
Pratt Center for Community Development (not to be confused with the Pratt Institute) has been hired by the elected officials as the facilitator and consultant in charge of running the planning process.
According to an overview prepared by Pratt, the goal is to:
*Develop the outlines of a comprehensive, community‐based infrastructure and land‐use plan for a safe, vibrant, and sustainable Gowanus area
*Bring community stakeholders together to build as much consensus as we can around a long‐term vision for the Gowanus Canal area
*Shape the next NYC mayoral administration’s thinking about the Gowanus Canal
*Create a space for honest conversation about different viewpoints.

The first such meeting had been convened this past August. On the list of invited stakeholders were representatives from local organizations and neighborhood associations. Those same stakeholders met again in October for a series of small group interviews.
Pratt Center compiled the information from these interviews and will present the findings at the first in a series of public meetings to be held on Monday December 9th, 2013.

The end result of these meetings, according to a press release "will be a community supported blueprint for an environmentally safe, vibrant, and sustainable Gowanus to inform de Blasio Administration."

Personally, I remain very skeptical of this entire 'Gowanus planning' process and doubt that at its conclusion, the community will be able to truly influence the outcome.
Mayor-elect Bill De Blasio, who once served as our Councilman, not only supported the Toll Brothers Gowanus spot-rezoning back in '08, he fought hard to drive away the EPA when the agency proposed to list the Gowanus as a Superfund. I have no doubt that he is itching to hand over the Gowanus corridor to developers.

However, as I wrote previously, I do believe that the community needs to take the planning process back. We owe it to ourselves and to all who will come after us to take our seat at the table, and to push for a true, transparent, democratic process. We need to tell our politicians that before any new development is envisioned, we need to first find out what the Gowanus can sustain. We need to first invest in infrastructure to strengthen the businesses and the residential areas that are already there, and we need to demand new tools in City Planning's tool box.
As a community, we need to remind our politicians that before moving ahead with any re-zoning, we need a health study to gage the effects of exposure to the environmental hazards in Gowanus. Secondly, we need a hydrological study to evaluate the effect of new development in this flood prone area.
Most importantly, we need assurances from Mayor-elect De Balsio that the City Of New York will pay and follow through on the EPA-mandated retention basins that will help reduce the Combined Sewer Overflows and improve water quality in the canal. Without these studies and without the retention basins, planning more housing in Gowanus seemed "recklessly premature."

Whether you live or work in Gowanus, Carroll Gardens, Boerum Hill, or Park Slope, whatever your vision for the future, we will all be affected by how the Gowanus corridor will be re-zoned.
Please stay involved. You can visit BridgingGowanus.org for upcoming meeting announcements and information about the process.



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Your Participation Is Needed: Have A Say On The Future Of The Gowanus Neighborhood At Public Meeting On December 9th

Your involvement and participation are needed. 
Please make every effort to attend this important meeting.

Bridging Gowanus

Monday December 9th, 2013 

from 6:30 to 8:30 pm 

at PS 372 – The Children’s School at 512 Carroll Street. 

"First in a series of public meetings to develop a neighborhood framework for the infrastructure and land uses needed for a safe, vibrant and sustainable Gowanus." 

Recently, I wrote about a series of 'Gowanus Planning' kick-off meetings that had been held jointly by State Senator Velmanette Montgomery, Congresswoman Nydia Velázquez, State Assemblywoman Joan Millman, Councilmember Steven Levin and Councilmember Lander.

Pratt Center for Community Development (not to be confused with the Pratt Institute) has been hired by the elected officials as the facilitator and consultant in charge of running the planning process.
According to an overview prepared by Pratt, the goal is to:
*Develop the outlines of a comprehensive, community‐based infrastructure and land‐use plan for a safe, vibrant, and sustainable Gowanus area
*Bring community stakeholders together to build as much consensus as we can around a long‐term vision for the Gowanus Canal area
*Shape the next NYC mayoral administration’s thinking about the Gowanus Canal
*Create a space for honest conversation about different viewpoints.

The first such meeting had been convened this past August. On the list of invited stakeholders were representatives from local organizations and neighborhood associations. Those same stakeholders met again in October for a series of small group interviews.

Pratt Center compiled the information from these interviews and will present the findings at the first in a series of public meetings to be held on Monday December 9th, 2013.

The end result of these meetings, according to a press release "will be a community supported blueprint for an environmentally safe, vibrant, and sustainable Gowanus to inform de Blasio Administration."

Personally, I remain very skeptical of this entire 'Gowanus planning' process and doubt that at its conclusion, the community will be able to truly influence the outcome.
Mayor-elect Bill De Blasio, who once served as our Councilman, not only supported the Toll Brothers Gowanus spot-rezoning back in '08, he fought hard to drive away the EPA when the agency proposed to list the Gowanus as a Superfund. I have no doubt that he is itching to hand over the Gowanus corridor to developers.

However, as I wrote previously, I do believe that the community needs to take the planning process back. We owe it to ourselves and to all who will come after us to take our seat at the table, and to push for a true, transparent, democratic process. We need to tell our politicians that before any new development is envisioned, we need to first find out what the Gowanus can sustain. We need to first invest in infrastructure to strengthen the businesses and the residential areas that are already there, and we need to demand new tools in City Planning's tool box.
As a community, we need to remind our politicians that before moving ahead with any re-zoning, we need a health study to gage the effects of exposure to the environmental hazards in Gowanus. Secondly, we need a hydrological study to evaluate the effect of new development in this flood prone area.
Most importantly, we need assurances from Mayor-elect De Balsio that the City Of New York will pay and follow through on the EPA-mandated retention basins that will help reduce the Combined Sewer Overflows and improve water quality in the canal. Without these studies and without the retention basins, planning more housing in Gowanus seemed "recklessly premature."

Whether you live or work in Gowanus, Carroll Gardens, Boerum Hill, or Park Slope, whatever your vision for the future, we will all be affected by how the Gowanus corridor will be re-zoned.

Please stay involved.   You can visit BridgingGowanus.org for upcoming meeting announcements and information about the process. 

Read more

UPDATE: After Monday Night's Incidents, A Police Officer Will Be Stationed In Carroll Park Starting This Afternoon

Here is the news that many have been waiting for since Monday's fight that involves as many as twenty teen-agers in Carroll Park and shots fired close to the park later the same day.
Assemblywoman Millman's office just sent out the following press release:
Over the last few days, Assemblywoman Millman has spoken multiple times with Deputy Inspector Schiff of the 76th Precinct regarding the incidents that happened Monday in and around Carroll Park. Starting today (Thursday), there will be an officer stationed in Carroll Park from 3pm-6pm. 

Deputy Inspector Schiff will be in the park as well this afternoon. 

Finally, the next meeting of the Precinct Community Council has been rescheduled to Tuesday October 1st at the Miccio Center at 110 West 9th Street in Red Hook, 7:30pm. The precinct will provide transportation to anyone that needs it to the center.

This will certainly reassure many in the neighborhood. However, I must admit that I am still surprised that the 76th Precinct has not issued its own statement or update to the community.

***Update***

Assemblywoman Joan Millman with Deputy Inspector Schiff 

of the 76th Precinct in Carroll Park this afternoon

(photo courtesy of the Assemblywoman's office)

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PS 58 First Graders Celebrate Carroll Gardens

Sunny Bettles, Age 6, First Grade Class 213

"Fun in PS58th School Yard

Laura DePaolo, Age 6,  First Grade Class 211

"Ice Cream At 16 Handles"

Dylan Scott, Age 7,  First Grade Class 209

"Smith Canteen"

Ulan Velayoyan, Age 7, First Grade Class 213

"Sliding In Carroll Park"

Zayan Adame, First Grade Class 213

"On the swings"

Edith Harrington, Age 6, First Grade Class 213

"Painted Pot"

Dylan Marotta, Age 7, First Grade Class 227

"Skateboarding on my block"

Jacob Sheldon, Age 7, First Grade Class 209

"Spring"

If you happen to walk by Assemblywoman Joan Millman's district office at 341 Smith Street, make sure to take a look at the very sweet drawings made by first grade students of P.S. 58., which are hanging in the window.    The drawings all share one theme: "Celebrating our neighborhood."
A volunteer who helps out in the Assemblywoman's office organized this special art project with PS 58's art teacher. The result is super adorable.  It is also interesting to see what the students love most about Carroll Gardens.  Obviously, Carroll Park plays a big part in the children's lives, but so do the Painted Pot, 16 Handles and Smith Canteen.



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Elected Officials Find Dept. Of Homeless Services' Response to Questions Regarding Proposed Shelter In Carroll Gardens "Inadequate And Unresponsive"

Last week, Councilmember Brad Lander, Borough President Marty Markowitz, State Senator Daniel Squadron, and Assemblywoman Joan Millman wrote a joint letter to Seth Diamond, Commissioner of NYC Department of Homeless Services, in regards to the proposed homeless shelter at 165 West 9th Street. In the letter, our elected officials cited the lack of public process, the tight space for 170 men in the 10-unit building as well as the absence of a plan to provide social services for them.

Yesterday afternoon, Markowitz, Lander, Squadron and Millman received a response from Commissioner Diamond.
In the letter, Diamond states that:
-use of the building for 170 single adults is compliant with Part 491 and all applicable code and occupancy requirements.
-recent complaints to NYC's Department of Buildings were found unwarranted after inspections.
-Housing Solutions USA/Aguila Inc,, the non-profit organization that will be managing the shelter will have a service rich team consisting of 47 staff members that "will coordinate services to identify clients' barriers to permanency, establish a service plan and assist residents in obtaining permanent housing as quickly as possible."
-the building will be secured 24/7 and security cameras will be installed.
-extensive background information about Aguila and the provider's officers will be conducted.

According to Councilman Lander, who posted Diamond's response on his website:

My colleagues and I find this letter to be inadequate and unresponsive to our questions and the community’s appropriate and reasonable concerns. DHS failed to provide building plans, describe the construction work that is underway, or address the Certificate of Occupancy issues; failed to provide the service plan proposed by Housing Solutions USA; failed to provide sufficient information about the security program proposed by Housing Solutions USA; failed to address the use of the City’s emergency contracting rules to rush through this proposal without community input or good public process; and failed to address the potential conflicts-of-interests identified (concerns which have been amplified in the past week, as the result of additional information that has come to light, first in New York Times here, and then covered in detail by Capital New York here and here).

Representatives of   NYC Department of Homeless Services and Housing Solutions USA/Aguila Inc will be available at the community informational meeting tonight, October 24h, 6:30 PM in PS 58's auditorium.

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Bidding A Fond Farewell To Barbara Brookhart, Long-Time Carroll Gardens Resident

Barbara Brookhart and Colleen Giunta

Belinda Cape, Barbara Brookhart and  Tony Manheim

Maria Pagano, Coleen Giunta

Bette Stoltz

Linda Blyer

Gary Reilly and John Hatheway

Glenn Kelly and Maryann Young

Celia Cacace

Salvatore (Buddy) Scotto

Buddy and Celia

Roy Sloane and Maria Favuzzi

Barbara Brookhart and State Senator Daniel Squadron

Assemblywoman Joan Millman

Councilman Steve Levin

It's hard to image Carroll Gardens without Barbara Brookhart.  For more than 31years, she has helped shape this community through her civic involvement and tireless volunteering.  She is one of the founding members of the Carroll Gardens Neighborhood Association, a long-time volunteer with Friends Of Carroll Park, served on the Brooklyn Bridge Park Community Advisory Council as an advocate for the park and was a member of Community Board 6 for twelve years.  She is also a chronicler of Carroll Gardens history and fellow blogger.

For the last twelve years, she has worked for the Bryant Park Corporation / 34th Street Partnership / Chelsea Improvement Company as Assistant to the President.

Barbara recently retired and will be moving to Arizona in the next few weeks, leaving behind Carroll Gardens.  To give her the send-off she deserves, many of her neighborhood friends and fellow activists gathered last week to bid her a fond farewell.

We will all miss you, Barbara.  Thanks for all you have done for the neighborhood and for this city. We will miss you very much.



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