A proposed high-rise development along Brooklyn’s Greenpoint waterfront is dividing a tight-knit neighborhood.
“It’s not sustainable, and it’s not good for the community, and it’s not good for the environment,” said Scott Fraser, a longtime Greenpoint resident.
“If you live in this neighborhood and you’re able to work on a project in this neighborhood and it’s also affordable housing, it’s a home run,” said Robert Brunotte, a union organizer with Laborers Local 79.
Greenpoint residents rallied Tuesday against the proposed Monitor Point development ahead of a Community Board meeting, where hundreds turned out to voice their opinions.
What You Need To Know
The Monitor Point proposal includes three towers with 1,150 apartments, 40% of them affordable
Buildings would rise up to 600 feet on an MTA-owned site along the East River
Opponents cite environmental and scale concerns near Bushwick Inlet Park
The City Council will decide the project’s future, and construction could start in 2028
Developers are seeking approval to build three mixed-use buildings on an MTA-owned lot along the East River, with towers ranging from roughly 230 to 600 feet tall.
“This development is completely out of scale with the neighborhood,” Fraser said. “It’s going to be incredibly tall — taller than anything else we have in this part of North Brooklyn. It’s going to be incredibly close to one of the most sensitive ecosystems in all of New York City, the Bushwick Inlet.”
Plans for Monitor Point call for three towers containing about 1,150 apartments, 40% of which would be designated as affordable housing. Supporters argue the project would help address the neighborhood’s rising housing costs.
“That’s a win right there for Brooklynites, especially here in the Greenpoint community, because we all know how Greenpoint can be a very expensive neighborhood to live in,” Brunotte said. “It’s time that we have affordable housing here in Greenpoint.”
The proposal also includes about 40,000 square feet of retail space, a new museum and publicly accessible green space. Labor leaders say the development would bring significant job opportunities to the area.
“The creation of jobs, point blank — yes, the creation of jobs, especially for people who live here in the community,” Brunotte said. “We have a lot of members who live here in the community in Local 79. It’s job opportunities. It’s growth.”
Environmental concerns remain a major sticking point.
The development site sits next to Bushwick Inlet Park, a long-awaited waterfront green space that remains incomplete years after planning began. Monitor Point developers say the project would include shoreline upgrades and green infrastructure designed to reduce stormwater runoff.
“This community has looked forward to fully accessing the waterfront, and it’s kind of the last that is left,” said Asenhat Gomez of the nonprofit El Puente. “To see this project being presented is like, what happened? We’ve been fighting long and hard. This is a public park, and this project is going to be on public land that could be used differently.”
The City Council will have the final say on whether Monitor Point moves forward. If approved, construction could begin in 2028, with completion expected by 2031.