Hello from CORD!
Please read this wonderful response to the Gowanus Canal Preservation Controversy and respond to the mayor - and send to your circle of friends and other organizations that will support FROGG and the Historic Designation for Gowanus.
See sample letter (yellow highlights) at the bottom.
CORD!
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March 2014, Volume 11, Number 2
Property Owners Agitate to Prevent Economic Development in Gowanus
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National Packing Box Facotry 543 Union Street
In
an almost unprecedented move, two groups - the Gowanus Alliance and the
Gowanus Canal Community Development Corporation - are protesting
the proposed listing of the Gowanus Canal Historic District on the New
York State and National Register of Historic Places. The community-driven campaign to place the area on the Register in recognition of its importance
to the history and development of New York City, its archaeological
resources and its distinctive collection of vernacular commercial and
residential architecture. The Friends and Residents of Greater Gowanus (FROGG)
began their campaign to have the area recognized for its historic
importance almost ten years ago and, as part of the environmental
investigation around the proposed clean-up of the Canal, the NYS Office
of Historic Preservation declared the area eligible for National
Register listing in 2006. In 2011, HDC chose Gowanus as one of our "Six to Celebrate" and supported their successful application for a $7,500 grant from the Preservation League of New York Stateto
help pay for the necessary research for the nomination. The research
led to a nomination which was scheduled to be voted upon by the State
Review Board on March 13. However, the State Historic Preservation
Office was contacted by New York City's Law Department which requested a
postponement of the vote for 60 days while city officials evaluated the
proposal. Under state law, the City has a right to request this delay,
but only has limited authority to modify the details of the proposal. We
were alerted to the City's request earlier this week with the rationale
that notice of the listing worked its way very slowly to the various
city agencies who deal with the area, so they needed additional time -
an excuse made somewhat plausible by the change in administration but
still disturbing given the outreach and broad public awareness of this proposal.
Much more disturbing is the push against the listing by the two organizations. As quoted in the Daily News:
"We
don't think it's a progressive way of looking at Gowanus," said Paul
Basile, the founder of the Gowanus Alliance, who owns several one-story
commercial warehouses on Baltic and Seventh Sts. that fall within the
proposed district lines. "This would severely limit future development
and kill job growth," said Bill Appel of the Gowanus Canal Community
Development Corp., which delivered a joint letter to hundreds of area
property owners earlier this month urging them to reject the proposal. On the Gowanus Alliance's website, a letter is posted
which
states "this proposed district could impose significant costs,
complications, and restrictions on development, construction,
renovation, maintenance and the operation of our properties". It goes on
to state that SHPO approval will be required for permits such as
shoreline stabilization permits, NYS Housing financing or HUD funding,
which will "inflict costly, undue burdens on the affected property
owners".
These
comments do not make sense. The area was declared eligible for the
National Register in 2006, which means that for the past 8 years, the
State Historic Preservation Office has been reviewing and commenting on
any permits which involve state or federal government actions or funds.
The regulatory "burden" - what little there is - has been in place for 8
years. The sole change that listing the district on the Register would
be to make it possible for projects in the district to apply for NY
State and Federal tax credits for rehabilitative work. That's it. It is
entirely voluntary - listing on the Register does not place private
development under any kind of regulation. It encourages investment and
economic development with tax incentives. But that is only a by-product
of the listing. The real purpose of listing on the National Register is
to acknowledge and raise awareness of the importance of a site to the
history of our country, to change the conversation from "the notoriously
polluted Gowanus" to "the canal which built Brooklyn". It seems that
some people are happier with deriding and demeaning the neighborhood
than celebrating it. Let's not let their bleak vision triumph.
Please contact Mayor Bill de Blasio and tell him to let the State Review Board vote on the Gowanus Canal Historic District.
http://www.nyc.gov/html/static/pages/officeofthemayor/contact.shtml
Tell him to:
Please
permit the NYS Review Board to vote on the Gowanus Canal Historic
District. Listing the area on the National Register of Historic Places
will only encourage economic development and investment in the
neighborhood. This is a community-driven plan which is business and
development friendly, and lifts the community up by acknowledging the
Canal's importance in the development of our city. There are no new
regulations or requirements which will be triggered by this designation,
only the possibility of incentives to development.
(you have a maximum of 300 words)
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