How City Government Failed the People of West Harlem by Tony Avella
February 12th, 2008
While some are rejoicing at the City Council’s approval of the Columbia expansion with the Manhattanville rezoning applications, many others, including myself, are astonished by the failure of the land use approval process to protect the West Harlem neighborhood, and afford the community true input on the project.
Despite seven hours of public testimony on this application and the 197-a plan submitted by Manhattan Community Board 9, not a single change was made by the City Council on the Columbia proposal. Think about it—Columbia’s idea to forever change 17 acres in West Harlem was not amended in any way shape or form at the City Council level.
Without question, Columbia wields significant political influence extending into the mayoral administration and the City Council. The presence of former mayor, David Dinkins, sitting alongside Columbia’s president, Lee Bollinger, during Columbia’s presentation before my Zoning and Franchises sub-committee public hearing clearly demonstrates the power they enjoy.
Under the Uniformed Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP), a specific timetable for approval is spelled out. The City Council had until January to vote, yet we voted within a week after the public hearing, hardly enough time to consider the seven hours of testimony. Why? Because it was politically advantageous for some to dispose of this controversial project quickly, at a time when most people are focused on the holiday season, so as not to negatively affect future political aspirations.
Let’s not forget the other glaring failure of the land use process. Under the City Charter, neighborhood organizations, such as community boards, can create a planning document for their area, known as a 197-a plan. Unfortunately, neighborhoods can often take years, sometimes decades, to develop a 197-a plan and obtain city approval only to learn that the plan carries no force of law. In other words, no one has to pay any attention to it.
This absurdity was brought to the forefront during the application process.
Community Board 9, beginning in 1991, sought and developed such a plan. To the dismay of the community, their plan finally underwent the ULURP public review process at the same time as the Columbia expansion application. In a move that defies all logic, the City Council approved both, despite the Columbia plan’s obvious inconsistency with the community 197-a plan.
In addition, under ULURP, the local community board has authority to conduct a public hearing on land use items and make recommendations. As such, they are part of the official approval process, although their recommendation is not mandatory.
In the case of the Columbia project, Community Board 9 was shut out of any negotiations, because the city set up a local development corporation (LDC).
It was the LDC that negotiated directly with Columbia, arranging the Community Benefits Agreement. As a result, legitimate community issues and concerns presented by Community Board 9 were not addressed. In my opinion, not only does this violate the land use approval process, but it makes a mockery of community input.
The failure of the process allowed such important issues as the misuse of eminent domain, the preservation of important historic buildings within the designated development area, and the construction of a level 3 biological laboratory in the midst of a seismically active flood plain in Manhattan, to go unanswered.
The City Council and the administration have now set a dangerous precedent for the use of eminent domain. In the future, any powerful developer or politically connected institution, such as Columbia, can tell the city they have a better use for your property. As a result, no property owner in the city should feel safe.
Indeed, this policy is already being considered or employed in other parts of the city, such as downtown Brooklyn (the Atlantic Yards project) and Willets Point, Queens.
Institutions such as Columbia serve a vital purpose in our city, but they cannot be allowed to destroy the very fabric of the community they serve. The time has come to revisit how we conduct planning in this city. It’s about time we give the citizens of this city a true voice in the planning process.
Let us hope that the Columbia approval will serve as a rallying cry from New Yorkers that this can never happen again.
Government is here to serve the people, not the powerful and influential institutions.
Despite seven hours of public testimony on this application and the 197-a plan submitted by Manhattan Community Board 9, not a single change was made by the City Council on the Columbia proposal. Think about it—Columbia’s idea to forever change 17 acres in West Harlem was not amended in any way shape or form at the City Council level.
Without question, Columbia wields significant political influence extending into the mayoral administration and the City Council. The presence of former mayor, David Dinkins, sitting alongside Columbia’s president, Lee Bollinger, during Columbia’s presentation before my Zoning and Franchises sub-committee public hearing clearly demonstrates the power they enjoy.
Under the Uniformed Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP), a specific timetable for approval is spelled out. The City Council had until January to vote, yet we voted within a week after the public hearing, hardly enough time to consider the seven hours of testimony. Why? Because it was politically advantageous for some to dispose of this controversial project quickly, at a time when most people are focused on the holiday season, so as not to negatively affect future political aspirations.
Let’s not forget the other glaring failure of the land use process. Under the City Charter, neighborhood organizations, such as community boards, can create a planning document for their area, known as a 197-a plan. Unfortunately, neighborhoods can often take years, sometimes decades, to develop a 197-a plan and obtain city approval only to learn that the plan carries no force of law. In other words, no one has to pay any attention to it.
This absurdity was brought to the forefront during the application process.
Community Board 9, beginning in 1991, sought and developed such a plan. To the dismay of the community, their plan finally underwent the ULURP public review process at the same time as the Columbia expansion application. In a move that defies all logic, the City Council approved both, despite the Columbia plan’s obvious inconsistency with the community 197-a plan.
In addition, under ULURP, the local community board has authority to conduct a public hearing on land use items and make recommendations. As such, they are part of the official approval process, although their recommendation is not mandatory.
In the case of the Columbia project, Community Board 9 was shut out of any negotiations, because the city set up a local development corporation (LDC).
It was the LDC that negotiated directly with Columbia, arranging the Community Benefits Agreement. As a result, legitimate community issues and concerns presented by Community Board 9 were not addressed. In my opinion, not only does this violate the land use approval process, but it makes a mockery of community input.
The failure of the process allowed such important issues as the misuse of eminent domain, the preservation of important historic buildings within the designated development area, and the construction of a level 3 biological laboratory in the midst of a seismically active flood plain in Manhattan, to go unanswered.
The City Council and the administration have now set a dangerous precedent for the use of eminent domain. In the future, any powerful developer or politically connected institution, such as Columbia, can tell the city they have a better use for your property. As a result, no property owner in the city should feel safe.
Indeed, this policy is already being considered or employed in other parts of the city, such as downtown Brooklyn (the Atlantic Yards project) and Willets Point, Queens.
Institutions such as Columbia serve a vital purpose in our city, but they cannot be allowed to destroy the very fabric of the community they serve. The time has come to revisit how we conduct planning in this city. It’s about time we give the citizens of this city a true voice in the planning process.
Let us hope that the Columbia approval will serve as a rallying cry from New Yorkers that this can never happen again.
Government is here to serve the people, not the powerful and influential institutions.
