The report, which was commissioned by the GVSHP and conducted by Gambit Consulting, collected data over the last three months. It analyzed the impact of the proposed NYU expansion in the Village and compared it to alternative locations like the Financial District, Downtown Brooklyn and Long Island City.
The researchers found that though it would be advantageous for local businesses, NYU’s expansion would have a meager impact in Greenwich Village than in Downtown Brooklyn or the Financial District.
The study predicted that NYU 2031 would lead to a gradual 10 percent increase in Downtown Brooklyn in retail spending, compared to a 2.5 percent increase for the Village. It also showed that the Village currently has a 3.4 percent vacant retail space whereas the Financial District has about 26 percent.
GVSHP executive director Andrew Berman said the study gave statistical merit to the reduction of NYU 2031. The group advocates that NYU 2031 would intrude and change historical areas in the village.
“What we’ve been saying from an intuitive and common sense angle, this study looks at with raw data and numbers that really back this up in a substantive way,” Berman said.
Manny Paretsolky, staff member of Bully’s on Broadway and 8th Street, said Midtown has more vacancies because of higher rent.
“The further you go uptown, the more vacancies there are because of the rent prices,” Paretsolky said. “It’s definitely a lot easier down here [in the East Village].”
However, NYU spokesperson Philip Lentz said NYU has just as much historical presence in the Village as other establishments.
“While opponents advocate that NYU build in someone else’s backyard, the fact is that NYU has been in Greenwich Village for almost 200 years,” Lentz said. “This is our home.”
Lentz said NYU needs more space in order to accommodate its growing student and faculty community.
“If we are to continue to grow and provide academic excellence to our students and research opportunities to our faculty, we need to expand near our existing academic core in the Village,” he said.
Jon Ritter, professor of Architecture of Urban Design, said while the study’s findings seem sound, the GVSHP is discounting the overall accessibility of classes for students by recommending the university to expand to other parts of New York City.
“I do believe there is merit to the argument that NYU should consider building downtown, in the Financial District, where numerous leaders have invited NYU to locate,” he said.
However, Ritter said only certain facilities could be developed outside of the main campus.
“Undergraduate class and study space must be located within the ‘core’ for easy access between classes,” he said.
