How do you feel about development?

i can't vote without a middle option... for example, i would love to have some of the empty storefronts filled on washington, but let's not kick out the stuff that has kept washington ave alive for so long -- even if some of these places i might not frequent or others might find less fancy or even undesirable for whatever reason. grow & build some without pushing out... perhaps more ideal than realistic, but that's my vote!

Yeah, there was definitely a middle ground option missing. I don't mind world class developments as long as its got some character and is in scale and I'm definitely not overly attached to dirty vacant lots.

Subject: We need to keep a racial and economic mix

I like ammenties but I also like the feel of our neighborhood as it is right now. I wish that people of all colors---not just white people---were moving into the neighborhood. I also wish there were more opportunities for people of all socioeconomic backgrounds to purchase and rent apts. in the hood---as much of an nuisance as some of you think certain buildings in the neighborhood are, its still important to keep a racial and economic mix. Like some people on this listserv, my property value has escalated to the point where I can actually live somewhere else, BUT, I stay in Prospect Heights because I've been here for 12 years and I feel like its important to maintain an African-American presence in the neighborhood. Young people of African descent need to know that they still belong here, too. That being said, I'd appreciate a coffee place that we all feel comfortable in and I'd also like to see a salon where new people in the 'hood feel comfortable going to get their hair done. The trash all over St. Johns place disgusts me as does the building at the corner of Washington and St. Johns (squatter building.) All of that aside, I've been here for a very long time, invested in the neighborhood, and can't imagine living anywhere else besides Montclair, NJ.

If you don't want it, how about throwing some development towards CH?
Just a little, we have nothing like Soda or Gen or even Geno's, I would really just like a place to have a beer or coffee in the 'hood. Compared to CH, PH, is like the L.E.S. .

I also declined to vote, need some "grey" options, not just all or nothing. :?

escap wrote: [quote=PHeightsGirl]
If I wanted to live amongst huge, modern glass buildings, I'd move to the City.

I'm sure you're sincere about this, but to me this kind of comment would carry a lot more legitimacy but for all those Manhattanites who protest every tall building that goes up as well. Did anyone hear the recent furor over a 15-20 story building going up in Tribeca, or the outrage over the building at Astor Place, or over any type of construction whatsoever in the UWS? For them, I guess it's, "If I wanted to live amongst huge, modern glass bulidings, I'd move to midtown...." or something like that.

I could just as easily say, "If you wanted to live without tall buildings around, you could move to the suburbs." Brooklyn IS the City!!!


Hey, thanks for calling my opinion illegitimate! That's just great.

I don't have any engery to defend my point. If you got it, you got it. FYI --- by saying 'the City' I meant Manhattan.

Done.

alfairnadia said: "I'm having trouble fathoming how someone who *wants* to be in PH will be able to afford an apartment in the glass house."

This says a mouthful about real estate/neighborhood market dynamics. Do the people who have moved (renters or buyers) to PH over the last 5 years come here out of CHOICE (they considered several different neighbhoods before choosing this one) or NECESSITY (this was the only option for reasons of cost, work, amenities)? I'd love to see a poll on this issue....

I am down for positive Development. Civic Development: bike trails, parks, pedestrian bridges and walks, people type gathering places that do not generate income but are good places to be...we need more of those in all cities.

That is, Development the helps the entire community and not just one segment or demographic. While the Atlantic Terminal Mall design is hideous and almost thoughtless in its urban setting ( I'll give them a little credit for that weak-ass infinitely unfinished outdoor "plaza")- we all go to 'Tar-jhay' - as do people from Crown Heights and Bed-Stuy and Park Slope alike. The Benefits to the community outweigh the bad design and uncomfortable, pedstrian, suburban-like street crossing adventures.

We also do need more mixed use: 4-8 storey residentials with retail on the bottom floors to keep the streets alive and urban past 6pm (with non criminal activities that is).

We also need to increase the street tree planting and green space initiatives. Eastern Parkway doesn't look like much of a PARKway ( like in the old turn of the century photographs). How about some trees on Vanderbilt too!?

IMHO: Brooklyn is a "better" place to live than Harlem for several reasons but one is that it has more green spaces and 'sit down' restaurants that aren't McDonalds ( of course central park is immediately south and there are good restaurants but I am tllkking about trees in general and the BK ratio is better for eating choices). But we need more, of course.

The new BK Library Plaza will be a nice addition to the mix - when is it going to open anyway? Its almost spring. But that type of development, I like the best.