BY JESSICA PARKS
The City Council voted
unanimously on April 22 to
approve a 14-story mixed-use
building in Greenwood Heights
that would bring 134 housing
units to Fourth Avenue.
The site between 24th and
25th streets currently features a
one-story building that houses
a Dunkin’ Donuts, but will now
soon feature retail space and
the apartments — 33 units of
which will be earmarked as
“below market rate” under the
city’s affordable housing program.
The green light comes
as Councilmember Carlos
Menchaca — who holds outsized
infl uence on the matter
as the area’s city representative
— gave his approval, citing the
local community board’s 25-to-
16 vote in favor of the project in
November.
“From the start, Community
COURIER L 16 IFE, APR. 30-MAY 6, 2021
Board 7 took control. CB7
forced the developer to redo
their proposal several times
before considering it,” said
Menchaca.
The developer behind the
project, Totem, adjusted their
plans several times to meet the
conditions set by the Greenwood
Heights civic panel, and
Menchaca commended the
builders for binding themselves
to the community’s demands
by signing a Community
Benefi ts Agreement.
“The developer, Totem,
agreed to a CBA… that codifi ed
all the community board’s conditions,
and it executed a CBA
before the council held its fi rst
public hearing.”
Under the CBA, the 33 affordable
housing units will be
earmarked for those making
between 30 and 60 percent of
the area’s annual median income,
and will not include any
studios.
One-bedroom affordable
units — targeting household
incomes between $23,881 and
$95,520 annually — will price
between $503 and $1,143, rising
for two- and three-bedrooms.
In addition to the discounted
units, Totem also promised
not to transform the building
into a homeless shelter, and to
reserve the ground-fl oor retail
space for local businesses,
while making “a reasonable
efforts to include public art”
within the development site,
and to provide an easement to
the MTA to “facilitate a future
ADA elevator access at the 25th
Street R Train station.”
The building’s approval
came after a months-long campaign
by activists against the
building, who demanded that
the developer earmark 100 percent
of the units as affordable.
While Menchaca said he
GOING UP: The rezoning will allow a 14-story, 134-unit building on a site
currently occupied by a Dunkin’ Donuts. Dencityworks
would have liked to see a building
that adhered to those demands,
he said the proposal
was enough amid the ongoing
pandemic to warrant approval.
“I would have preferred 100
percent affordable for example,”
he said. “But it is what we
need right now to recover from
the pandemic.”
Members of the activist
group Protect Sunset Park
argue that Menchaca should
have continued to advocate for
100-percent affordable housing
in return for allowing Totem to
rezone in order to build higher.
“It’s disappointing that Carlos
Menchaca instead of choosing
to fi ght for 100-percent
affordable housing in the upcoming
city budget,” Jorge Muñiz
Reyes said. “Instead he’s really
choosing to leave us with a
deal that is going to bring about
100 additional market-rate
units for mostly Park Slope income
levels.”
Totem’s chief principal offi
cer previously told Brooklyn
Paper they could not feasibly
make all of the units belowmarket
rate, as the economics
of purchasing the land would
not add up to profi tability, thus
rendering their hands tied.
“If there were a city program
that we were allowed to
enter that would foresee 100
percent affordable, we would
love to,” Tucker Reed told
Brooklyn Paper. “But this land
is not for free. It cost signifi cant
dollars to put together.”
GREEN LIGHT
City Council votes to approve Fourth Avenue
development, activists explore lawsuit
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