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Contact: Frank Sobrino
O: (212) 669-4193
Testimony of Public Advocate Betsy
Gotbaum for
City Planning Commission Hearing Regarding
Rezoning of The Far East Side
Thank you, Chair Burden.
I am here today to urge the City Planning
Commission and its staff to give the 197a plan proposed by Community
Board 6 its due consideration and incorporate its recommendations
into the planning process for the East Side. The 197a process
is required by the City Charter and is a part of the Planning
Commission’s role in comprehensive planning for New York
City. The redevelopment of the East Side is a golden opportunity
for the Commission to support community-based planning. I also
urge the Commission to vote on this plan now so that proposed
zoning changes for the former Con Edison site can be evaluated
in the context of an approved 197a plan.
The community board’s plan addresses
the need for any new development in the area to include a substantial
percentage of affordable housing, key infrastructure improvements
such as a new school, waterfront access, and continuous storefronts
along First Avenue to stimulate commercial activity in the neighborhood.
This plan represents exactly the type of informed, substantive,
civic-minded participation in the development process that the
Planning Commission should be doing everything in its power to
encourage.
In March, in testimony concerning
the controversial proposal for the Con Ed waterside site, I noted
that the community has not dug in its heels and refused to accept
any sort of large-scale development in its neighborhood. Instead,
it has offered a serious, well-reasoned alternative that allows
for significant housing and commercial development while at the
same time preserving access to the waterfront and protecting neighborhood
character. It is in the best interests of all concerned that the
Planning Commission to consider the community’s recommendations
for the site on their merits and move forward accordingly.
By maintaining and supporting a truly
participatory planning process, the Planning Commission can avoid
the community dissatisfaction that has tainted other recent rezonings.
The people of the East Side will have to live with the results
of the Planning Commission’s decision and the ultimate development
for generations to come. The Commission must continue to give
the community a meaningful role in planning the future of their
neighborhood.
Thank you.
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