TESTIMONY
by Kathryn Wylde
PARTNERSHIP FOR NEW YORK CITY
New York, New York
April 28, 2010
press release (PDF 66K)Testimony Submitted to the Department of City Planning, On Behalf of the City Planning Commission
Public Hearing on The New Domino
The Partnership for New York City represents leadership of international and regional businesses that are headquartered in New York. Partnership members employ 775,000 people in New York City and contribute over $140 billion to the annual Gross City Product.
As a long time supporter of both affordable housing and industrial retention, the Partnership supports the plan for the reuse of the Domino Sugar Refinery site. The Partnership has a history with the neighborhood of Williamsburg, where, through our New York City Housing Partnership subsidiary, we joined with community organizations to sponsor private development of 750 affordable homes and apartments in Williamsburg and Greenpoint. Through our New York City Investment Fund, we also helped finance the nearby Greenpoint Manufacturing and Design Center’s program to preserve viable industrial uses in the community.
The plan put forth by CPC Resources, a subsidiary of the Community Preservation Corporation (CPC), adheres to the goals laid out in the rezoning approved for Greenpoint-Williamsburg in 2005. In addition the plan promises additional commitments in the areas of affordable housing, community facilities, open space and waterfront access. As envisioned, the New Domino will provide 660 housing units affordable to a wide range of the community, as well as 1, 000 new permanent jobs. The Community Preservation Corporationas a 30- year history financing affordable housing in Brooklyn and throughout the city. Just in Williamsburg alone, CPC has been involved in the construction of over 1,600 low-, moderate- and middle-income apartments, reflecting a total investment of over $200 million. Their commitment and track record will help ensure a successful project.
For years, neighborhoods had to stand by while the only sites available for residential development were effectively land-banked for industrial waterfront uses that never materialized. Meanwhile, the most noxious uses – transfer stations, construction equipment storage and sanitation facilities – took over many of our most promising development sites and neighborhoods. In response, the City Administration has made it a priority to reclaim our waterfronts and bring them into the 21st century. Vision 2020: New York City Comprehensive Waterfront Plan will set forth long-range goals for a 21st century waterfront. It will serve as a guide for future land-use decisions along the City’s shoreline, recognizing the diversity of the waterfront and balancing the needs of environmentally sensitive natural areas, public access, housing and commercial activity. The rezoning of the Brooklyn waterfront and projects like the New Domino are critical first steps in creating a new balance in our waterfront neighborhoods in line with the Vision 2020.
Our city’s vitality and growth depend on the creative reuse of land and buildings that are forever being adapted to changing economic conditions. Through this proposal, the Domino Refinery will have a new life. A different life, to be sure, but one that promises good things for local residents.