WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES SEPTEMBER 17, 2020 7
luxury developer’s home in protest of 17-story tower
introduced in 2015 but has been
stalled since 2019.
In an interview with The Stoler
Report, Babaev said they are looking
to lease the ground fl oor to a
national chain (30,000 square feet
of the tower’s retail space) and more
retail or offi ce space in the remaining
four fl oors (about 67,000 square feet
of the remaining retail space).
RTU argues the tower will “exacerbate
gentrifi cation” and worsen an already
dire situation for Ridgewood’s
working-class residents who were
rent-burdened before the pandemic
and have been unable to pay rent
during the months of the COVID-19
pandemic.
Additionally, the tenant group
said the developers’ negligence
of the property present qualityof
life issues for the surrounding
community.
“Since announcing their plans in
2015, AB Capstone has received numerous
complaints from commercial
tenants on the lots they purchased for
work without permits, unsafe scaffolding
and water leaks as a result of
demolition work at their construction
site,” RTU stated. “The lack of
maintenance at the site creates piles
of garbage that accumulate on a daily
basis and has created an eyesore in
the neighborhood. Further, the
scaff olding and the wooden planks
surrounding the site have created
unsafe conditions for pedestrians
who are forced to walk in the streets
next to moving cars in a high traffi c
area to get to their destinations.”
Rendering courtesy of AB Capstone
/WWW.QNS.COM
