Residents of Windsor Terrace and South Slope were divided on whether the community should support a rezoning proposal of a commercial lot on Prospect Avenue that could bring in two high-rise residential buildings.
Tensions ran high at Monday's Community Board 7 meeting, which addressed the rezoning proposal at 441 and 467 Prospect Ave., a site currently owned by Arrow Linen & Uniform Supply Company.
The owner of Arrow Linen would like to rezone the lot and then sell it to Apex Development, a company that wants to construct two 13-story residential buildings on the site, according to Brownstoner. The rezoning would require the developer to make 20% to 30% of the total units into affordable apartments.
As architect Gerald. J Caliendo made his presentation during the meeting, members of community group called Housing, Not Highrises (HNH), booed and one community member shouted, “Stop lying to us!”
Assembly Member Robert Carroll spoke against the rezoning.
“Gentrification and displacement are real and powerful, and they can be spurred by profit-driven rezoning changes," Carroll said. "Arrow Linen's application is not what is best for this neighborhood.”
His comment was met with cheers and a standing ovation from some people.
HNH said they had found a developer that was willing to finance a building with 100% affordable units with fewer stories. However, at Monday's meeting, CB7 Chairperson Julio Peña III read a letter from the proposed developer, the Catholic Charities Progress of People's Development Corporation (CCPOP), that said their offer to buy the lot did not garner interest from Arrow Linen.
Rachel Fee, a neighborhood resident supporting the rezoning, spoke about the need for increased housing.
“I've worked in affordable housing policy for almost 20 years. Our neighborhood, like many others in NYC, has not been producing enough housing. This site is exactly where NYC needs new housing built," she said.
Fee also addressed that the neighborhood needs as many affordable units that it can get.
“This site is also a great place for the city's Mandatory Inclusionary Housing program to create more affordable housing. I know opponents are seeking 100% affordable housing, and that would be great, but we just heard that there is no such deal being entertained by the site owner," she said.
Luz Torres, a resident of Brooklyn for 70 years, refuted Fee's claim that the building will be beneficial to the area.
"It will tower over our neighborhood. Are we going to see our trees? Are we going to see the sunlight?" she asked.
Jack Walsh, an active HNH member, also alluded to the current legal action the group is pursuing to halt the rezoning review process until after City Hall's City of Yes initiative is instated.
“The fact is, no one knows what the Arrow zoning will actually become. We're now here discussing what would likely be two 19-story towers,” Walsh said.
Courtney Adrian, a local resident in favor of the rezoning, remarked that she "can't help but notice the age gap between the people who support me," noting that the older residents who attended the meeting were against the rezoning, while Millennial locals were in support.
Community Board 7 will continue to hear public testimony at a Zoom meeting on Thursday.
