Levin Sticks It To Rose Plaza Again
Man, Council Member Steve Levin really doesn’t like Rose Plaza. With the City Planning Commission having already approved the 801-unit complex at 470 Kent Avenue and the full City Council vote just weeks away, Levin appears poised to sink the project—a rare occurrence at the final stage of ULURP. Developer Isack Rosenberg recently decreased the…
Man, Council Member Steve Levin really doesn’t like Rose Plaza. With the City Planning Commission having already approved the 801-unit complex at 470 Kent Avenue and the full City Council vote just weeks away, Levin appears poised to sink the project—a rare occurrence at the final stage of ULURP. Developer Isack Rosenberg recently decreased the total number of proposed units to 776 while upping the percentage of affordable housing to 28 percent from 20 percent in response to vigorous opposition to the project by Levin, but it was not enough to avoid getting excoriated again at a City Council Land Use Hearing on Wednesday night. According to the Brooklyn Paper, Levin “hammered Rosenberg’s representatives over the proposal’s omission of four-bedroom units and chastised them for not getting the affordable housing level above 30 percent.” The Land Use Committee is expected to vote on April 14; the project’s fate likely rests with Levin, as Council Members are loath to vote against the local member’s position.
Levin Still Has Thorns From Rose Plaza [Brooklyn Paper]
Satmar Feud Sinking Rose Plaza? [Brownstoner] GMAP
City Planning Commission Greenlights Rose Plaza [Brownstoner]
Big in the Burg: Rose Plaza on the River [Brownstoner]
the issue here is that isaac rosenberg is an influential force in the portion of the satmar community that did not support levin. the zalmanites want this project killed and, after delivering 3000 votes to the newly elected councilman, he is respecting their wishes.
It seems that one of the local factions has Levin in their pocket, and his only interest is ensuring that they get the subsidized 4-bedroom units they want. If this kills a worthy project, this is something Levin and his masters are willing to live with.
This is the extremely ugly side of real estate/land-use politics:
“Hammered Rosenberg’s representatives over the proposal’s omission of four-bedroom units and chastised them for not getting the affordable housing level above 30 percent.”
None of the approved projects in the area have ANY of this. What an unreasonable request! The decision-maker’s job is to approve of projects that don’t have egregious externalities for residents. This project will fit right in with the rest of the area’s glassy condos while offering the standard amount of inclusionary housing.