Gowanus by Design Discusses Rezoning Framework Before Big Meeting

Gowanus by Design, a local non-profit urban design advocacy, made a presentation at Community Board 6’s Landmarks & Land Use committee meeting held on Jan. 24. Team leader David Briggs talked about some of the goals and impacts of NYC Department of City Planning (DCP)’s Gowanus Rezoning Framework.

“What we’re trying to do is give the community a tool and some information, so that when information comes to us we can evaluate it with some simple metrics,” he said.

“Gowanus: A Framework for a Sustainable, Inclusive, Mixed-Use Neighborhood,” which has seven chapters for different community priorities, was published by City Planning (DCP) in June 2018. It outlines the community’s and DCP’s goals and offers ideas about policies and investments to “achieve a thriving, more resilient neighborhood.”

Briggs began with the advocacy’s mission statement, which is: whatever urban growth happens in the community should be sustainable and inclusive. He noted that the pros to the framework were affordable housing, public open space, mixed use, increased resiliency and improved mobility. Some risks, however, included loss of the neighborhood’s historical character, overcrowding, and insufficient capacity to existing infrastructure (particularly transportation and schools).

Four schools were over capacity by 300 students as of Oct. 2017. Briggs determined that, if schools get built within the proposed framework, 6,000 and 7,600 seats will be needed, based on low-density and high-density dwelling unit predictions respectively. In terms of subway transportation, Gowanus by Design also projected that 12,300 additional riders could be expected.

“This is a starting point and we want to have more conversations about [the framework],” Briggs later added.

DCP, who was invited to this committee meeting by Briggs, did not attend.

The next chapter in this elongated planning process, which will end up with walls of 17 story luxury residential towers, will release the follow-up Draft Zoning Proposal at the “Next Steps in Planning for Gowanus” meeting this Wednesday, Feb. 6. It will be held at P.S. 32 (317 Hoyt Street), 6-8 pm. The public is invited.