420 42nd Street: This One Could Get Ugly
It looks like Sunset Park is not immune from the kind of neighborhood wrecking developers who’ve been plaguing the South Slope and Greenwood Heights. First brought to our attention in Monday’s Sterling Place thread, a section of Sunset Park that heretofore has been composed almost uniformly of 3-story houses is about to get its first…
It looks like Sunset Park is not immune from the kind of neighborhood wrecking developers who’ve been plaguing the South Slope and Greenwood Heights. First brought to our attention in Monday’s Sterling Place thread, a section of Sunset Park that heretofore has been composed almost uniformly of 3-story houses is about to get its first non-contextual sore thumb in the form of a full lot-line (or almost 85X100′) 10-story, 31-unit building with underground parking and a 29′-high first floor daycare facility. The pile-driving started last Friday, which was a surprise to the neighbors who had never received advanced noticed that is required to be given to owners of adjacent properties. From the correspondence we’ve been privy to, there’s a groundswell of opposition building in the community. Once word gets out that this building, if built, will ruin the park view of historic St. Michael’s Church on 4th Avenue and seriously compromise the harbor vista, the whole nabe is likely to be up in arms. Given the scale, this fight could be the ugliest one we’ve seen yet. Check out the first salvo on YouTube below.
420 42nd Photo Gallery [CCGH] GMAP P*Shark DOB
Goodbye Sunset Park Views [YouTube]
Sunset Park Vista Photos [Bridge & Tunnel Club]
actually, on a lot like that, which more or less abuts fourth avenue, ten stories is not obscenely tall (though anything higher should be forbidden). I would welcome an attractive, architecturally imaginative building building that people with normal incomes could afford to live in. But the fact that it would obstruct the harbor view from the park hould be enough to halt contruction altogether. I really hope the good people of sunset park can figure out a way to stand up to this sort of greed.
12:45,
Don’t be dumb.
What people are angry about is that rules are broken, adjacent buildings are damaged and the DOB just shrugs and says “we’re at a loss to exlplain how THAT happened.”
If most of these guys did their jobs right and respected their neighbors and their neighbor’s properties, then probably no one really would give a shit about a 10 story building.
The view is important, but I think it’s the free pass(es) from the DOB and the ridiculous tax breaks and the “fuck you” attitudes from most of the contractors that make this problem a real problem.
10 stories just off a wide avenue with a subway line? In New York City? You must be joking! Buildings must be shorter than 3 stories, so we can suburbanize the city!
Come ON. So a part of the view will be gone. Views come and go in this city…it’s been that way since the first skyscraper rose downtown. Suck it up and get on with your life….ever hear of a hobby?
Build more I say.
Anonymous 10:04 AM
Sorry to not have posted on this further. Reality, nothing.
In oder to pull permits, the contractor/developer needs to show DOB proof that they have contacted adjacent properties, normally return receipt letters. In this case, they lied to DOB (big surprise) as none of the adjacent properties on 42nd/43rd St., including the Community Board, received such a letter.
Will DOB do anything? Prob not. Could they hypothetically issue a SWO or fine them, yep.
Will they, again prob not. Hope that helps…
Good luck fighting this. With Bloomberg and Marty in command (and ultimately also in command of an out-of-control DOB that has its own rules), I am sorry to say that stopping this project (and 99% of all the new high-rises to come afterwards on 4th avenue from the slope to sunset park) will be like stopping a freight train.
Bloomberg and Markowitz don’t care about preservation or context. They don’t care about views from beautiful parks or exquisite architecture. They only care about acccomodating growth and a booming construction industry that has little pride it what it creates in the new brooklyn.
And I’ll bet the community facility / daycare portion never gets built, and the developer will probably not have to pay any taxes, ever.
If the new building looked good it would make a big difference. but of course it will look like shit. Bummer.
Eryximachus, are you and crawford room mates?
Contextual or non-contextual zoning will ultimately be decided by the community, Community Board 7, City Planning and City Council.
Not you, crawford nor I.
Here’s to a healthy, if not odd at times, debate.
I especially love the rich home owners remarks you throw around. I’ll betcha you make more than I do 🙂
FIGHT OPPRESSIVE CONTEXUAL ZONING!
Once, Sunset Park was farmed – yet someone was brave enough to build in the face of an oudated context. So it is in this case. The good out of the people outweights the selfish desires of a few homeowners who wish to restrict what their neighbors do with their private property.
Say NO to rich homeowners who trample on property rights for their own personal gain, all the while forcing the rest of us who aren’t so lucky to live in substandard and crowded homes.
Anon 12:04 pm was me. Guess I should have gone to Brown.
Anon 11:55
Or Pratt grads in GWH. (Brown? “What you talking ’bout Willis?”)
I believe any community will (and is, quite frankly) become active and rally around causes that effect them.
Speaking with folks on 42nd/43rd St and through-out the district, they are very concerend about OVER DEVELOPMENT not just development.
Agreed with some of the folks, housing is needed in the area, just not at the expense of the community, the ‘nabes character and potentially threats to a beautiful view from the Park.
And let’s remember one thing, not all of SSP are new immigrants. There’s quite a strong hold of old Brooklynites and 3-4th generation Latinos.
And no one’s fighting “the Man” or “Big Brother” here, anon 11:55pm. Just ONE man and his 10 story building.