NYU Plan Gets First Official NO Vote; Next Stop, Borough President Stringer!
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Hundreds joined rally calling on CB2 and city officials to reject NYU plan |
Last night several hundred people - New Yorkers from the Village and all over the city, NYU faculty, and NYU students -- showed up for a rally and a public hearing, calling for NYU's massive proposed Village expansion plan to be rejected. At the Community Board public hearing, 115 people testified AND NOT A SINGLE PERSON SPOKE IN FAVOR OF THE NYU PLAN! Read GVSHP's statement to the Board HERE, GVSHP's report to the board on the true impact of the NYU plan on open space HERE, and pictures of the rally and hearing HERE.
After multiple public hearings at which thousands of people urged rejection of the NYU plan, the Community Board heard us loud and clear - last night they voted unanimously to turn down the plan - thank you to the many board members who have stood up over the years against NYU's overdevelopment of the neighborhood. This is great progress; not long ago, a majority of the board voted over strong community objections to approve the first part of NYU's 2031 plan, the demolition of the historic Provincetown Playhouse and Apartments.
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Read GVSHP's report on the true impact of the NYU plan on open space |
While the board's vote is only advisory, this is incredibly important, as it is the first official step in the public review and approval process which will determine if NYU's massive expansion plan can move ahead. That is because the plan is impossible under current zoning rules for the area, and can only happen if neighborhood zoning protections, open space preservation requirements, and urban renewal deed restrictions are lifted, and publicly-owned green space is given to NYU for development.
The next stop: Borough President Stringer. He will get to vote on the plan, and we have been urging him to flat out reject it as well. While his vote is also only advisory, it will have an important impact upon the process as we move to the City Planning Commission and City Council, which will ultimately decide if the plan is approved or not.
Borough President Stringer must vote within 30 days. He has already received thousands of letters, e-mails, and phone calls urging him to vote NO on the plan, and today, GVSHP will be delivering to him our on-line petition with more than 2,000 signatures calling for him and other city officials to reject the plan. IT'S CRITICAL THAT THE BOROUGH PRESIDENT HEAR FROM US OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS THAT WE WANT HIM TO REJECT THE NYU PLAN. 
HOW TO HELP:
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Write and call Borough President Stringer TODAY urging him to vote NO on the NYU plan (note: the Borough President can vote yes, yes, with conditions, no unless certain conditions are met, or no - we urge him to vote NO); click HERE for letters and HERE to call.
Thanks to YOUR participation and advocacy, we have made great progress and have great momentum on our side. Please help us keep up the fight!
Next: 02/27/12
Previous: 02/22/12 |
