A state Supreme Court Judge last week put the final nail in the coffin of the neighborhood opponents plan to halt the planned development of the Pfizer section in Williamsburg’s Broadway Triangle.
That after Justice Arthur F. Engoron dismissed a lawsuit and temporary restraining order against the controversial project, in favor of the developers, Harrison Realty aka the Rabsky Group, to let the redevelopment project move forward as planned.
Engoron ruled, “upon the foregoing papers, the cross-motions to dismiss are granted, the petition is denied and dismissed, the temporary restraining order is vacated, and the request for a preliminary injunction is denied as moot.”
Engoron’s ruling ended with a hopeful message and future for New York City’s affordable housing crisis.
“The City needs more housing…..a lot more. The Pfizer Project has already passed political process muster; today it passes judicial process muster. This Court finds no legal impediment to it and will not stand in its way one more day,” said Engoron in his ruling.
The decision was applauded by the Rabsky Group, who has high hopes for the housing development years in the making.
“We are gratified that the court has affirmed what was already decided through the city’s regulatory process: the need for housing is clear, the required approvals were properly obtained and we intend to fully execute our plan. Site prep continues, and full construction will begin soon on a development that will provide sorely needed housing – including hundreds of units of affordable housing — to the diverse communities in the area,” said Tom Corsillo, spokesperson for the Rabsky Group.
The ruling comes less than a year after the City Council approved the Williamsburg project, in a vote of 38-6-2, in a final tally that pinned City Council members Antonio Reynoso (D-Bushwick, Williamsburg) and Stephen Levin (D-Brooklyn Heights, DUMBO, Williamsburg, Boerum Hill) against each other.
Though the project doesn’t sit in Reynoso’s district, the young Democrat has been very vocal about his concerns regarding the project’s ability to bring much need affordable housing to all communities in the area including black and Latino residents.
Levin has been a strong supporter of the project since its inception, citing the rezonings ability to bring housing and resources to the area.
The current plan is set in a two-block area situated between Harrison and Union Avenues, from Walton Street to Gerry Street known as the Broadway Triangle area and will include eight mixed-use buildings for the site including 1,146 mixed-income residential units of which 287 will be permanently affordable units, 65,000 square feet of neighborhood retail, a half-acre of public open space, and 405 parking spaces.
Both Reynoso and Levin did not respond to request for comment.
