Friday, October 12, 2012, by Jessica Dailey
When talk starts about rezoning a neighborhood, it usually means that the fabric of the area will be changed in big waythink Hudson Yards, Williamsburg and Greenpoint, Long Island City, now Midtown East. But in Bushwick, local leaders want a rezoning to ensure that the neighborhood does not become the “Williamsburg of the 21st century.” The Journal reports that councilwoman Diana Reyna wants a rezoning that will preserve local jobs, encourage low-rise development, and include substantial affordable housing. “We don’t need the speculation that Bushwick is the next Williamsburg,” says Reyna.
The industrial neighborhood is already seeing a lot of development. A 12-story rental building is going up at Wilson and Willoughby Avenues; Cayuga Capital Management is turning an old church and school at 626 Bushwick Avenue into 99 apartments; a former office building at Broadway and Ellery Street is being converted into a 6-story rental building with one-bedrooms starting at $2,000 a month; and a public review process will soon begin for a 10-building project on a lot that used to hold the Rheingold Beer company. A lot of people say that even with efforts to stop big developments, what happened in Williamsburg is likely to be repeated in Bushwick. One real estate attorney notes, “A lot of this stuff that’s happening in Bushwick is jumping on a bandwagon that’s already moving.”
· Rezoning Bid Starts Rolling in Bushwick [WSJ]
Photo by Diego Cupolo/Curbed Flickr pool
