Brooklyn Borough President (and congressional candidate) Antonio Reynoso has signaled his approval of the controversial Monitor Point project—with conditions.
Reynoso shared the decision shortly after his office hosted a hearing on March 11, which heard from project supporters and detractors alike.
Though Reynoso acknowledged the community’s natural skepticism toward massive development projects, he also noted Monitor Point’s potential to create more genuinely affordable housing opportunities and to finally build the Greenpoint Monitor Museum.
He directed the developer, Gotham Organization, to make a few adjustments to the plan. Those adjustments include ensuring at least 50% of units are affordable, increasing floor area to accommodate more units, and converting some market-rate units to affordable ones designated for moderate-income households.
Rendering courtesy of Gotham Organization.
The Borough President also encouraged Gotham Organization to take Brooklyn Community Board 1’s recommendations into account; the board recently voted to approve the project, on the condition that they double their annual funding for Bushwick Inlet Park and ensure a 50% local preference in the housing lottery.
Reynoso also cautioned the project’s critics that the site’s circumstances limited its development options. Gotham Organization will construct Monitor Point on land leased from the MTA. In exchange, they must relocate the MTA facility currently housed there. Reynoso claimed that these high upfront costs, plus the annual contribution to the Parks Department, must be offset by some market-rate units.
“The Borough President received testimony from some members of the community suggesting that the proposal should be rejected, with the MTA site instead being developed as an expansion of Bushwick Inlet Park or developed fully as affordable housing,” the report reads.
“These are not viable development alternatives for the site given the site constraints, development costs, and the need to relocate the MTA facility.”
“We are grateful for Borough President Reynoso’s recommendation in support of Monitor Point, following Community Board 1’s vote of support last month,” a Gotham Organization spokesperson told Greenpointers.
“We take seriously the conditions outlined in both recommendations and are committed to working collaboratively to address them as the project moves forward through the City Planning Commission and City Council review.”
The decision is just one step in the longer zoning process, known as the Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP). Like the Community Board, the vote is advisory, not binding. Next, the project moves to the City Planning Commission before going to the City Council. The council’s vote is final, unless the mayor vetoes it, but that has historically been rare.
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