CITY CLUB OF NEW YORK ENTERS THE FIGHT TO DEFEND THE SOUTH STREET SEAPORT HISTORIC DISTRICT
- 06/19/2014 by David Sheldon
In a letter dated May 30, attorney Michael Gerrard of the firm Arnold & Porter LLP: “I am writing on behalf of The City Club of New York and Save Our Seaport to demand that the City of New York prepare a full environmental impact statement (EIS) under the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) and City Environmental Quality Review (CEQR) for the Mixed Use Project proposed by Howard Hughes Corporation (HHC) in and near South Street Seaport, and to demand that this project also undergo the full Uniform Land Use Review Process (ULURP).”
The letter, addressed to both Grant Herlitz, president of the South Street Seaport Limited Partnership/The Howard Hughes Corporation and to Kyle Kimball, President of the New York City Economic Development Corporation, was also copied to many of the City’s elected officials and agency heads, as well as to members of the Seaport Working Group.
Save Our Seaport has been critical of the negotiating process carried out by EDC with the private developer Howard Hughes Corp. Robert Rustchak, speaking for Save Our Seaport, said “Howard Hughes Corporation told the community that they were going to rebuild Pier 17, not demolish it and start all over. We are still only finding out about the out-of-scale HHC Mixed Use development plans in bits and pieces. Shouldn’t the City revisit the approval process to study the significant impacts of this revised project despite the original approval?"
Michael Gruen, President of the City Club of New York, stated ”The City Club of New York (CCNY) and Save our Seaport (SOS) are both concerned about the impact of the proposed tower and surrounding alterations of the South Street Seaport Historic District by the EDC and Howard Hughes Corporation, as well as, and above all by, the decision-making processes leading up to its premature and incomplete approval.”
Gruen was also quoted in the Downtown Post NYC (6/9/14) saying, "We hope to activate people thoughout the city to recognize how important this is from a citywide point of view. The planning needs to be undertaken with an understanding of how this historic place impacts on the entire city."
The letter, addressed to both Grant Herlitz, president of the South Street Seaport Limited Partnership/The Howard Hughes Corporation and to Kyle Kimball, President of the New York City Economic Development Corporation, was also copied to many of the City’s elected officials and agency heads, as well as to members of the Seaport Working Group.
Save Our Seaport has been critical of the negotiating process carried out by EDC with the private developer Howard Hughes Corp. Robert Rustchak, speaking for Save Our Seaport, said “Howard Hughes Corporation told the community that they were going to rebuild Pier 17, not demolish it and start all over. We are still only finding out about the out-of-scale HHC Mixed Use development plans in bits and pieces. Shouldn’t the City revisit the approval process to study the significant impacts of this revised project despite the original approval?"
Michael Gruen, President of the City Club of New York, stated ”The City Club of New York (CCNY) and Save our Seaport (SOS) are both concerned about the impact of the proposed tower and surrounding alterations of the South Street Seaport Historic District by the EDC and Howard Hughes Corporation, as well as, and above all by, the decision-making processes leading up to its premature and incomplete approval.”
Gruen was also quoted in the Downtown Post NYC (6/9/14) saying, "We hope to activate people thoughout the city to recognize how important this is from a citywide point of view. The planning needs to be undertaken with an understanding of how this historic place impacts on the entire city."