Williamsburg, NY – A Manhattan judge has scheduled a hearing next month to determine whether the city’s plan to develop public housing in a rundown patch of Williamsburg, Brooklyn, would essentially foster segregation.
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In a 22-page decision issued on Thursday, the judge, Emily Jane Goodman of State Supreme Court, indicated that there might be some merit in claims that the city’s plan to construct public housing in what is known as the Broadway Triangle could have a discriminatory effect.
“The court cannot discount the circumstantial evidence which may allow reasonable people to infer a purposefulness in the manner in which the entire enterprise has proceeded,” Justice Goodman wrote.
A coalition of community groups in Williamsburg said the city and its allies charged forward with the plan without a competitive bidding process and without including a largely nonwhite group that would be affected by the project. The city awarded development bids to two nonprofit groups, the United Jewish Organizations of Williamsburg, which represents part of the fast-growing Hasidic community, and the Ridgewood Bushwick Senior Citizens Council.
Although units in the housing projects would be awarded in a lottery, the Broadway Triangle Community Coalition, which filed a lawsuit to stop the project, said the project was zoned to allow primarily white and Hasidic residents to obtain units.
For example, residents of the predominantly white Community Board 1 area would be given first choice on half of the units, according to Justice Goodman’s decision. (The entire development would be within the Community Board 1 boundaries, but part of the Broadway Triangle lies in the mostly nonwhite Community Board 2 area, the judge wrote.)
The zoning calls for buildings that are six or seven stories high, a move opponents said was intended to accommodate Hasidics, who cannot use elevators on the Sabbath for religious reasons. The plans also call for large apartments, which opponents said would also accommodate Hasidics, who typically have large families.
Justice Goodman noted that more than 90 percent of those on the city’s public housing wait lists are nonwhite and request one- and two-bedroom apartments, and wrote that it was “questionable” why there was such a strong commitment to build large apartments instead of a greater number of smaller units.
Justice Goodman said she would listen to arguments in the lawsuit at a hearing on June 14.
They seem to be right with regard to “large apartments”. why do they need anything larger than 2 bedroooms if these are going to be subsidized units that are open to everyone? If they are specifically meant for chassideshe families with 10-15 children than adding an extra bedrooom will still not work.
They have already all projects in williamsburg, small apartments, 20 floors. They can’t “fargin” one project for the yidden?
when nothing else works then play the race game.
Your honor let me inform you the following, the Chassidim wore limited from getting apartments in the Williamsburg project for years, you don’t see any discrimination in the public housing system? Furthermore, the reason why 90% applications for public housing is for 1-2 bedroom is because there are very few 3-4 bedroom apartments therefore we proposed the Broadway triangle with larger apartments to accommodate the Chassidim, we are limited to this area unfortunately. And please, get out of the way.
You read something like this and it just twists the inside of my gut. I can live with the complaint that a project that stadles two community boards should have equal lottery access to both community boards, but this quote turns my damn stomach:
The zoning calls for buildings that are six or seven stories high, a move opponents said was intended to accommodate Hasidics, who cannot use elevators on the Sabbath for religious reasons. The plans also call for large apartments, which opponents said would also accommodate Hasidics, who typically have large families.
Justice … See MoreGoodman noted that more than 90 percent of those on the city’s public housing wait lists are nonwhite and request one- and two-bedroom apartments, and wrote that it was “questionable” why there was such a strong commitment to build large apartments instead of a greater number of smaller units.
According to that rational the only housing units to be built in Williamsburg for the poor should be 20 story single occupancy units for crack heads? Screw that. This project is in WILLIAMSBURG and deserves to accommodated THAT community.
May I make a suggestion? Why not move to Detroit where you can buy a 4-5 bedroom house on a big lot for
The details in the suit don’t matter!
The bottom line is thanks god the project is stolled for now,
Never in history did a jewish org. Supprted housing that will take awa land of other jewish brothers,
Atleast they have some more time to sit on there lots before the city confiscates it for this public housing.
Hopefully this whole project will be throwen out the window,
So no jews take an loses on the eminent domain.
A shme on the so called jewish org. That support it, instaed of helping there fellow jewish brothers.
Why cant they build taller buildings, and the lower floors can be predominantly chassidic (Orthodox), and the upper floors can be pre-dominantly Hispanic and African American (non-Chassidic/non-Orthodox). Apartments on higher floors are generally more desirable anyway, in normal real estate valuations, so the Hispanics and African Americans shouldnt have a problem with this. This is more or less the arrangement across the Willy Bridge on the Lower East Side and seems to work pretty well. I suspect that the buildings were planned smaller to specifically keep the non Chassidic out entirely. If this is the case than shame on them.
Tall projects in the city ended up to be the worse option for public housing, look at the Marcy projects, for years it was a crime infested area now it is 60 percent empty because the city want to clean out the druggies.
What’s wrong if it serves the community? The city has build developments throughout the city to benefit different groups, now its the chasidim so what???
Ok build small units and give for chasidim or large families 2-3 units instead of 1
if anyone knows how the nostrand projects look across from flushing ave that is 7 stories tall will understand how these projects will be. the police wont just be scared to go there they will also not come here they can call it an addtion to the nostand zoo where shooting and killing goes on daily
To all fellows who “appear” so concerned ppl about “taking away property”, the issue is not taking away or not taking away, the properties will be taken away anyway, no matter what the proposal on the land is, the current approval is for more variety of all sizes of apartments, and the suit wants only small apartments so the chassidics will automatically fall out of it, they also propose bars and similar facilities that would also push away the chassidim.
Stop complaining about taking away land, because that’s gonna happen anyway no matter the proposal, this land annexing was approved back in 1988.