Brooklyn Marine Terminal Plan in Red Hook relies on housing, unspecified until well into "community engagement." Like Atlantic Yards, a bypass of ULURP.
The reason the Atlantic Yards documentary Battle for Brooklyn is screening on Friday (link) is because organizers at Resilient Red Hook are trying to alert neighbors and others about the challenge of responding to a large redevelopment plan with an enormous amount of momentum.
The Brooklyn Marine Terminal plan involves housing, port infrastructure, park space, and more on a 122-acre waterfront site, starting below Atlantic Avenue just beyond the southern border of Brooklyn Bridge Park, stretching through what's known as the Columbia Street Waterfront District well into Red Hook.
Notably, as explained below, it took more than half a year after the BMT project announcement, which was on a very fast track, before it emerged that market-rate housing was needed to cross-subsidize pier reconfiguration, maritime investments, parks, and more.
The deadline for a plan has been extended from end-of-2024, which was unrealistic, to March, which is still very fast, even compared to another state project, Atlantic Yards.
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| From NYC EDC |
Why a state review?
Like Atlantic Yards, would go through a state General Project Plan (GPP), overseen by the gubernatorially controlled Empire State Development (ESD), even though the lead agency is the New York City Economic Development Corporation (EDC).
That would bypass the city's Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP), which includes advisory votes from the local Community Board(s) and Borough President, a vote by the City Planning Commission, and a vote by City Council, leaving the local Council Member with significant sway.
That's because of the not uncontroversial practice of member deference, which is is not always followed, hen projects are seen as meeting larger priorities, and a practice that some housing advocates housing think should be abandoned.
With Atlantic Yards, it was justified because a plurality of the land, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's railyard, was state-owned. However, as Deputy Mayor Dan Doctoroff later acknowledged, it was because it streamlined the process.
With the BMT, what's confusing is that the site, formerly owned by the bi-state Port Authority, was swapped to the city in exchange for property on Staten Island, the Howland Hook Marine Terminal.
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| Presentation Aug. 12, 2024 |
That would argue for the city land use project to prevail, rather than opposite. The explanation, from an Aug. 12, 2024 Q&A from EDC:
As a result of [the swap] agreement, the State and City continue to coordinate on the strategy of utilizing a general project plan (GPP) for the redevelopment of the Red Hook waterfront under the State UDC Act, which provides for working closely with local elected officials and community leaders to consider local needs and desires, as the most effective means of implementing such a project. Given the important and essential role that the Port, the State, and the City will play in this project, a GPP will be the mechanism to coordinate the approval of this complex transaction that involves multiple sites and multiple actions and multiple entities. The Master Plan, which will precede the GPP entitlements, will be developed by NYCEDC in collaboration with the Task Force and the community with the Task Force voting on the plan’s final recommendations, which ensures that the GPP reflects the community’s priorities for the Marine Terminal.(Emphases added)
Well, "most effective" likely means the process with the fewest roadblocks.
Does the Task Force vote ensure that the General Project Plan "reflects the community's priorities"? That's very difficult to guarantee, especially given what we now know.
Because the BMT project is all public land, there's no delay in acquiring land, to avoid eminent domain, nor a use of eminent domain or a potential legal challenge, all of which delayed Atlantic Yards. So the BMT project is on the fast track.
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| Presentation Aug. 12, 2024 |
A warning on predictions
As I said during my WBAI interview with former Council Member Carlos Menchaca, one lesson from Atlantic Yards was that all scenarios should be presented in a range, from best-case to worst-case, rather than dangling overoptimistic visions that get dashed when encountering economic or political cycles.
Because of that, it's risky to rely on market-rate housing to cross-subsidize below-market affordable housing. (The latter also relies on tax breaks, subsidies, or special financing.)
With Atlantic Yards, the surprising--to some--arrival of thousands of units of market-rate housing nearby, thanks to the Downtown Brooklyn rezoning meant new competition, which lacked the costly obligation of cross-subsidization as well as decking the two-block railyard.
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| Presentation Aug. 12, 2024 |
The BMT plan relies on market-rate, a risky bet. Yes, there's a growing market for housing in New York City, and a waterfront site has its attraction, but the BMT site is far from the subway.
The sunken Brooklyn Queens Expressway forms a barrier between the waterfront and Carroll Gardens/Cobble Hill, and there's little public transit as of now. (The B61 bus goes north-south along Columbia Street and Van Brunt Street, but there's no east-west route.)
This doesn't even get to flood protection.
The announcement
The May 14, 2024 press release, Mayor Adams, Governor Hochul, NYCEDC, and Port Authority Announce Plan to Transform Brooklyn Marine Terminal With Investment in 122-Acre Brooklyn Waterfront, Support Future Growth of Howland Hook Marine Terminal.
The subheadings suggested copacetic progress:
Agreement Between City and Port Authority of New York & New Jersey Will Advance Efforts at Brooklyn Marine Terminal and Howland Hook Marine Terminal
City to Develop Modern Maritime Port Focused on Freight Bound for the Five Boroughs, Blue Highway and Micro-Mobility Strategies that Reduce Truck Traffic
City, State Make Joint $95 Million Initial Investment in 122-Acre Brooklyn Waterfront That Will Ultimately Generate Significant Economic Impact, Potentially Create Thousands of Jobs
City to Launch Community Visioning Process to Unlock Full Mixed-Use Potential of Brooklyn Waterfront as Part of New “Harbor of the Future”
Port Authority Will Efficiently and Effectively Expand Cargo Operations and Generate Economic Growth on Staten Island(Emphases added)
When I see words like "potentially," that provokes skepticism, since that implies significant risk.
Also, a "Community Visioning Process" rarely--and unsurprisingly--leads to a truly community-inspired process, because 1) "community" is hard to define and 2) rarely would government embark on a project without having some outcomes pre-cooked. Rather, such a process might tweak a plan at the edges.
Meanwhile, as explained below, the Brooklyn Marine Terminal Neighbors Alliance is arguing for the process to slow down.
The city's focus
The city announced an initial $80 million investment and repair Piers 7, 8, and 10 of the terminal, and to fund planning for the 122-acre waterfront's future, including up to $15 million for a modern, electrified container crane for terminal operations Governor Kathy Hochul also announced $15 for a cold storage facility for perishable merchandise, thus reducing truck traffic.
The city announced a Brooklyn Marine Terminal Taskforce — chaired by U.S. Representative Dan Goldman with New York State Senator Andrew Gounardes and New York City Councilmember Alexa Aviles as vice chairs — to co-lead the engagement process.
The city also applied for $350 million in federal funds to replace defunct Piers 9a and 9b
with a new marginal pier for greater capacity to handle international
containers and micro-freight, plus traffic improvements around the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal and in Red Hook. That was under the Biden administration.
The priority, as stated in the press release and at the press conference by a range of elected officials, state officials, and business representatives, was jobs, economic revitalization, waterfront redevelopment and community transformation--not so much housing.
Jobs plus housing?
Though the press release cited "thousands of jobs," it was vague regarding housing, with a sole reference to an opportunity to "explore a multitude of mixed-use development options, including housing and community amenities; prioritize workforce development; potential to help create thousands of jobs; and build a modernized 21st-century maritime port."
Gov. Kathy Hochul, at about 15:26 of the video, indicated that they wanted to explore "mixed-use development opportunities, including housing." At 44:40, Deputy Mayor Maria Torres-Springer said, "We know for sure that at the core of this project and of these 120 acres will be a working waterfront."
After mentioning a hub of micromobility, growing jobs, and reducing emissions, she added, "and then all of the other community uses from open space to housing will be considered."
One supporter quoted was Cortney Koenig Worrall, president and CEO, Waterfront Alliance, who said it was important to use the terminal, not trucks, for freight. In November, the Waterfront Alliance warned, "for any redevelopment to occur, it is critical that it be informed by a comprehensive analysis of the city’s long-term needs for the maritime industry and working waterfront."
The local Red Hook Star-Revue, in June 12, 2024 coverage headlined Plan To Transform Brooklyn Marine Terminal, quoted Robert Gottheim, Rep. Jerry Nadler’s chief of staff, as warning that "the devil is in the details and the details are not public. Mr. Nadler doesn’t believe that housing is appropriate for this site. We need an active maritime and we need every available acre for it.”
As stated in one of the presentations, Red Hook Container Terminal (RHCT) in Brooklyn Marine Terminal handles a very small share (1.4%) of the Port’s container traffic and of that, over half (52%) is barged across NY Harbor to New Jersey.
Here comes housing
The plans for housing emerged slowly. From the Aug. 12, 2024 Q&A:
Is housing part of the plan? If it is being considered what type of housing (affordable versus luxury), how much, and where on the site?
The BMT site spans over 120 acres, with a significant portion dedicated to maritime uses. The goal of this project is to engage, plan, and invest to ensure the continuation of these key maritime activities. However, there are also existing areas of the site currently used for non-maritime purposes that could be repurposed to address additional community priorities, such as housing, open space, or other uses.
“This is a historic opportunity to reimagine 122 acres of outdated waterfront into a key stretch of New York City’s ‘Harbor of the Future,’” said New York City Mayor Eric Adams. "Everything is on the table—from a modernized maritime port to housing, resilient infrastructure, open space, and, of course, good-paying jobs.”
Long before the land swap this year, Related Companies, a developer, and Aecom, a design and engineering firm, had sketched out ideas for the area as they lobbied local and state officials to open it up to redevelopment.
In 2016, Related drafted a confidential 14-page brochure outlining its vision: “New York’s Next Big Thing.” The proposal, obtained by The New York Times, featured a rendering with dozens of high rises that held 40,000 housing units, including some offered at below-market rates.
That, however, relied on a expansion of 1 train service from Manhattan, with a stop on Governors Island. Note that the 2016 AECOM study that (I suspect) spurred that brochure assumed construction in a much larger area, stretching farther south and east in Red Hook, as shown below.
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| From AECOM Red Hook study, 2016 |
The Red Hook-based organization PortSide New York warned against bypassing ULURP, which an EDC executive in a 2005 article said would be used when transferring this Port Authority property to the City.
Despite claims of “deep community engagement,” PortSide New York noted that in the Aug. 12, 2024 Zoom webinar attendees could not see the other attendees, chat was disabled, and questions/comments from attendees were not automatically shared.
That's not participatory planning. It's also reminiscent of the online Atlantic Yards Quality of Life meetings, which, while they allow people to participate from afar, lack the engagement of in-person meetings.
The Brooklyn Marine Terminal Neighbors Alliance "feels the BMT Redevelopment is a once a century opportunity to improve quality of life for everyone in our neighborhoods. It should be well thought out and not rushed.
Its request to EDC: "RESET, SLOW DOWN, LISTEN, be forthcoming with information, and respect the communities input and desires during the extended period before any construction is commenced."
Moving toward housing
The BMT Neighbors Alliance It explains that a Dec. 16, 2024 public workshop hosted by NYC EDC and WXY " acknowledged the community’s strong desire for more parks and opposition to luxury housing, [but] no concrete plans were shared."
However, two days later, at "a closed-door meeting" of the BMT task force, "EDC presented a proposal indicating that 7,000 to 9,000 housing units may be required to subsidize maritime businesses and redevelopment efforts—an important detail conspicuously absent from the public meeting."
Those slides later were released in January--see below.
"Trying to plan a multi-use 120 acre development in just a few months is not acceptable," the Alliance states, arguing for ULURP. "The GPP was used in the Atlantic Yards redevelopment & that was a colossal failure." (Well, not for the arena operators.)
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Only later, in a January 2025 presentation, excerpted above and below, did it become clear that housing was expected to finance the large majority of site acquisition, pier reconfiguration, site prep, parks and public realm, and maritime investments.
That means 7,000 to 9,000 "homes." (That's the preferred phrasing, rather than apartments, to overcome pesky doubts.) See skeptical coverage in the Star-Revue.
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| From EDC presentation |
On Feb. 12, the BMT Neighbors Alliance revealed that a new task force presentation envisioned a potential 12,924 units of housing. See screenshot below.
That's a significant change from the initial statement.
The NYC EDC page
The BMT web site from the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYC EDC) is headlined "Transforming the Brooklyn Marine Terminal into an asset for modern maritime jobs and vibrant mixed-use community hub" and states:
The City is committing an initial $80 million investment in the Brooklyn Marine Terminal to stabilize and repair Piers 7, 8, and 10, and to fund planning for the 100+ acre waterfront's future; along with an additional investment up to $15 million to fund a new container crane for operations at the terminal.Here are resources from Council Member Alexa Avilés.
As part of the agreement, NYCEDC is assuming responsibility for operations and maintenance of Piers 7-12, while supporting existing tenants. Over the past two decades, as part of the City’s lease and operation of the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal, NYCEDC has invested over $162 million into Piers 11 and 12. NYCEDC is also assuming the recent five-year extension of Red Hook Container Terminal’s operating agreement.
A reimagined waterfront can deliver a modern maritime port with a focus on micro-distribution strategies that remove trucks from our streets and increase union working waterfront jobs, as well as provide important community-facing amenities.
Others question it
On Jan. 8, 2025, The CITY reported, Thousands of New Apartments on Brooklyn’s Waterfront? Not So Fast, Say Some Local Leaders:
But one of the biggest emerging tensions is over the prospect of shrinking and repurposing some of the last remaining working waterfront — the only port serving New York City east of the Hudson River. Many observers and those on the task force remembered how other working waterfronts around the city disappeared to make room for housing.
...Walter Kemmsies, managing partner of port consultancy firm The Kemmsies Group, said financial sustainability for the small port area could be possible without residential uses.
Interestingly, as The CITY pointed out, "Some generally pro-development politicians who want to maintain full industrial use of Brooklyn Marine Terminal for economic reasons find themselves in delicate political territory." Those include Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso and Council Member Avilés.
That's a solid, skeptical article. No publication has followed up on the new total of expected housing,.
Will it go to court?
Wrote George Fiala, editor of the Star-Revenue, Feb. 19:The only thing that can stop the EDC runaway train will be the courts. It’s kind of ironic that the most analogous situation to this is the redevelopment of the Atlantic Terminal, which is best known for the Barclay Center—ironic because the Mary Whelan sits in the similarly named Atlantic Basin.
That plan was held up for over a decade by Daniel Goldstein and his Develop Don’t Destroy movement.
That's not precise, as the project is Atlantic Yards, with the Barclays Center. It was announced in Dec. 2003, approved in 2006 and 2009. The key legal case ended in November 2009, and the arena groundbreaking was in March 2010.
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