BY ROSE ADAMS
Councilman Carlos Menchaca
fl ed a town hall meeting Monday
in the face of outraged constituents,
who booed the legislator
for offering to support
a controversial zcheme to rezone
Industry City if executives
bowed to a list of demands, and
the Mayor’s offi ce promised to
invest in the community.
Industry City is seeking city
permission to embark on a 12-
year, $1 billion redevelopment
of its sprawling manufacturing
and retail campus. The expansion
would add 1.45 million
square feet of space, two hotels,
department stores, and educational
buildings to the 35-acre
complex, but is currently prohibited
under existing zoning
regulations.
Local activists strongly oppose
the project, which they
fear would spur gentrifi cation
and displacement of the surrounding
Latino and Asian
communities, while supporters
claim that the move could bring
needed jobs and economic renewal.
Menchaca — whose vote as
the local representative will
sway City Council to either approve
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or reject Industry City’s
application — tried to strike
a middle ground during Monday’s
meeting at Sunset Park
High School. The Councilman
argued that, while Industry
City’s redevelopment may displace
locals, the land-use-approval
process gives residents
an opportunity to set rules for
the manufacturing complex.
But the legislator’s argument
soundly failed to sway
his constituents, who waved
signs saying ‘No concessions!”
and repeatedly drowned out
Menchaca’s calls for compromise
in a chorus of boos and
chants, which prompted the
legislator to fl ee the packed auditorium.
And so, Menchaca released
his list of demands in a statement
after the meeting. They
include:
• Eliminating hotels from
the application
• Reducing the amount of
new retail space
• Providing space for a nonprofi
t manufacturing business
• Creating a public technical
high school
• Providing job training programs
for locals
• Offering educational programs
on tenants’ rights
• Funding for affordable
housing
• Providing free lawyers for
residents in Housing Court
Menchaca added that he
would pass the rezoning only
if the Mayor’s offi ce commits
in writing to provide funding
for the high school, affordable
housing, and tenant programs,
in addition to forming
a community association
to oversee spending and sign
a contract that would cement
the agreement.
The councilman unveiled
his list of demands after rejecting
a rezoning application Industry
City submitted in February,
only to later pull it after
Menchaca promised to kill the
proposal if executives didn’t
give him six months to mull it
over. He now wants Industry
City to conform their next application
to refl ect his demands,
as opposed to working them in
during the city’s roughly yearlong
public-review process.
Activists responded to
FIERY: Hundreds of residents attended Councilman Menchaca’s meeting
Monday night, where he planned to announce his vote on Industry City’s
rezoning. Photo by Rose Adams
the legislator’s tacit support
with outrage, claiming that
Menchaca’s conditional acceptance
of the rezoning goes
against the will of his constituents,
who want him to reject the
proposal outright.
“Tonight, Menchaca confi
rmed he doesn’t stand with
the more than 4,000 residents
who signed our petition demanding
he reject the rezoning
with no concessions,” said
Colleen Peabody-Diez, a local
activist. “The Council Member
has aligned himself with
rich developers rather than the
community.”
Menchaca claimed that he
understands the activists’ concerns,
and decided to leave the
Monday’s meeting so that he
didn’t have to speak over them.
“I was not able to fi nish the
presentation, and that is okay,”
he said in a statement. “It was
completely understandable that
many of my neighbors who are
anxious, excited, fearful, or angry
about what Industry City
has and hasn’t done would want
to make me aware of those feelings
and make sure I got it.”
The future of the rezoning
application, he added, is now in
its developers’ hands.
“The ball is in Industry
City’s court about whether we
can partner in a way that benefi
ts everyone,” said Mechaca,
who added that he plans to send
a letter about his recommendation
on Tuesday, and he expects
a response by Thursday.
Menchaca fl ees town hall
Angry locals boo councilman for offering tacit rezoning support
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