New York Times Reporter Stefanos Chen brings readers “The People vs. Big Development” ticking off a litany of grass-roots efforts to curb inappropriate development in their respective communities. LANDMARK WEST! is featured for our involvement with 50 West 66th Street as are other colleague and neighbor organizations citywide.
According to the article: Now, with a glut of empty luxury apartments and the industry’s waning influence in Albany, momentum is building for neighborhood groups that are pushing back against new building projects because they believe such plans offer little community benefit. And they’re winning.
This was not always the case and it does reflect a systemic shift. Why build more $5-10M apartments when more than half the supply created since 2012 remains unwanted is a good question. The article tracks issues in different boroughs (including our colleague’s fight against 200 Amsterdam) and from multiple angles–even citing a local restaurant owner who fears the discussion of re-zoning alone will impact his rent and the viability of his business. In the case of 50 West 66th Street, the developer declined to comment, and the site remains idle.
LW! will be sharing updates of our next steps in the coming days. Stay tuned!