Brooklyn Bridge Park Meeting Tonight

The Brooklyn Bridge Park development is one of those projects about which controversy continues, even though it was approved by the Empire State Development Corporation during the reign of Chair Charles Gargano. Yesterday, there was a report that the park's cost could actually balloon to double the original estimate of $150 million. That report, actually, is connected to tonight's Town Hall Meeting, which will take place at 7PM at Founders Hall of St. Francis College, which is located at 180 Remsen Street. The meeting will focus on a host of topics, including a "fight to restore the ice rink, the swimming pool (a permanent pool, not a barge to be floated in and out according the latest public relations needs), a performance venue, stores, and restaurants). Organizers of the meeting write:

As it has done at Atlantic Yards, the ESDC and its satellites have run a relentless, well-orchestrated and financed campaign to make their plan look and feel like a foregone conclusion. A big and enthusiastic turnout on Tuesday will effectively contradict that perception. The press, the public and the new administration in Albany will be watching...Our panel of parks advocates, community organizers and traffic experts will answer your questions about how we can get a real park.

In particular, organizers say the want "restoration of the seasonal, year-round, indoor and outdoor recreation that's been systematically removed from the community's plan and replaced with frivilous, elitist features designed to discourage public use."

Designs and a new budget are supposed to be coming next month.


Related Posts:
Brooklyn Bridge Park, Part III: Where Will the Tall Buildings Go?
Brooklyn Bridge Park, Part II: The Sweetheart Deal Building