CB1 Meeting: Finger Fireworks, Sewage and Bike Racks

Plenty of concerns were aired at last night’s Community Board 1 meeting about Williamsburg’s faltering sewer system and the reconstruction of Nassau Avenue, but the most pointed comments of the evening came during discussions about the fate of 144 North 8th Street, aka the much-reviled Finger Building. An attorney for 144 North 8th developer Mendel Brach talked about applying for an extension of construction permits, which expired in May; because the building isn’t complete but is going to rise much higher than allowed by 2005 zoning changes, the project needs to be revested by the BSA. Before the BSA votes on the would-be 16-story building, though, CB1 and Williamsburg residents get to have a say. And what a number of people said last night was that the 10-story Finger should be chopped to half its current size. It’s a rusting, steel hulk that will be trapped in litigation for years, said Scott Spector, who is suing Brach over the build. At the end of the day, it’s not in the community’s interest to have this rusting steel up there. Several speakers also made reference to shady construction tactics at the Finger site. These developers worked through stop-work orders as documented by the D.O.B., worked weekends without permits, and worked all hours of the night on weekdays, so that the development could be grandfathered under the old zoning regulations, said Phil DePaolo, president of the New York Community Council. The Finger fight is far from over: CB1 will revisit the issue when its land-use committee meets later this month.

The meeting wasn’t all Finger all the time, though: There was also talk of a proposal to build out sidewalks and install bicycle racks on a number of corners, including Driggs and North 7th and Bedford and North 8th; a presentation on the DOT’s plan to reconstruct a large stretch of Nassau Avenue; and a call to have the DEP examine Williamsburg’s sewage system, which many residents said needs to be overhauled in light of frequent flooding and property damage.
Amputation in Finger’s Future? [Brownstoner]