Fund Raising

A positive step for rezoning Prospect Lefferts Gardens

Dear Neighbors,

Broad support prevails throughout our neighborhood for a contextual rezoning by City Planning to prevent out-of-scale buildings like the 23-story luxury building at 626 Flatbush Avenue. Lack of appropriate zoning in Prospect Lefferts Gardens has lured developers seeking big profits threatening our community, stressing our infrastructure, while failing to preserve affordable rent.  Only community-defined contextual zoning can protect the neighborhood from changing overnight into a place we won’t recognize.

Unfortunately, however, controversies and delays surrounding recent efforts by our Community Board (CB9) to request a zoning study from City Planning have left many of us in PLG without confidence that CB9’s process will result in benefits for our neighborhood. Because the current agenda of City Planning seems to rely more on removing than imposing limits on developers, we feel we would be foolish to deal with the City unprotected by professional expertise.

We therefore propose to take a positive step as a community. And we’re asking for your moral and financial support. 

We feel strongly we must retain a professional planner to develop a zoning plan tailored to our specific needs. Such a plan would serve as a basis for negotiation with City Planning. Given the lethal combination of developers’ aggression and our unique vulnerability, there is no time to lose.

Paul Graziano is a deeply experienced planner with many successes in helping neighborhoods preserve character. (Explore Paul’s background http://www.paulgraziano.com/biography.html.) We want to retain Paul to develop a comprehensive, defensible zoning plan for PLG, taking into account both our desire for preservation of neighborhood character and diversity and the City’s agendas regarding housing and development. We think hiring Paul will not only help us arrive at a clear basis for negotiating with the City but also serve as a means for focusing community discussion on the rezoning issue.

Our immediate goal, therefore, is to raise $6000 to enable Paul Graziano to begin the first of four phases of work on the rezoning study. Concerned Citizens for Community-Based Planning have already raised $3000, and we’re in the process of forming a non-profit organization and establishing a dedicated bank account for the project. We have high hopes that raising many modest contributions toward the goal will empower community action, and we’ll be scheduling an event to further discuss the effort and report progress. In the meantime, no contribution is too small (or too large!).

There are two ways to donate:
(1) Credit or Debit Card - choose an amount and click the donation button on the right
(2) Checks should be made out to Concerned Citizens for Community-Based Planning and mailed to 190 Lincoln Road, Brooklyn, NY 11225.

To learn more about how zoning and other planning issues affect PLG, see the following website:
Concerned Citizens website www.CB9rezoning.org

Thanks for any support that you can give this effort to develop a plan to protect our neighborhood.

Signed,

Bill Hogeland and Gail Brousal, 87 Fenimore Street             
Alan P. Berger, 190 Lincoln Road
Suwen Cheong & Barnabas Wolf, 79 Fenimore Street                    
Sarah and Alex Prud'homme, 219 Lincoln Road
James Betts & Grace Kessler Betts, 227 Lincoln Road                    
Rebecca Burrows & Erik Addington, 246 Midwood
Grahame Conibear & Sandra Skoblar, 47 Sterling Street
J. Milton, Fenimore Street
Denise Dostaly, 55 Sterling Street
Susan Kuralt Smith & Nat Smith, 99 Hawthorne Street


Population Growth

Projected population growth for CD9 by the year 2030 is 2000-5000 people (see link and map below).

Department of City Planning uses an estimate of 2.7 persons per dwelling unit. Therefore, between 740-1850 new units of development should be needed to accommodate projected population growth over the next 15 years. According to the New Development map on our website, we already have 2529 units of new development in the pipeline for the next few years.

In other words, new construction in this district has already exceeded new supply required to accommodate the highest estimates of population growth by nearly 40%. What will be the future of our district if we do not downzone to significantly reduce development?? Years of disruptive construction ending with hundreds of vacant luxury units? Or the Manhattanization of our quiet and stable neighborhoods?

http://www.nyc.gov/html/oem/downloads/pdf/hazard_mitigation/section_3c_population_and_development_trends.pdf




Past population growth trends

Population has been relatively stable in Community District 9 from 1970 to 2000; by comparison Park Slope, Bedford Stuyvesant and North Crown Heights (Board 8) lost significant population density while Flatbush and Midwood gained.



COMMUNITY DISTRICTS
Total Population Change 1970-2010
1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 Number Percent
M 1 Battery Park City, Tribeca 7,706 15,918 25,366 34,420 60,978 53,272 691.30%
S 3 Tottenville, Woodrow, Great Kills 72,815 108,249 126,956 152,908 160,209 87,394 120.00%
M 5 Midtown Business District 31,076 39,544 43,507 44,028 51,673 20,597 66.30%
Q 4 Elmhurst, South Corona 108,233 118,430 137,023 167,005 172,598 64,365 59.50%
S 2 New Springville, South Beach 85,985 105,128 113,944 127,071 132,003 46,018 53.50%
BX 10 Throgs Nk., Co-op City, Pelham Bay 84,948 106,516 108,093 115,948 120,392 35,444 41.70%
Q 3 Jackson Heights, North Corona 123,635 122,090 128,924 169,083 171,576 47,941 38.80%
Q 9 Woodhaven, Richmond Hill 110,367 109,505 112,151 141,608 143,317 32,950 29.90%
S 1 Stapleton, Port Richmond 135,875 138,489 137,806 162,609 175,756 39,881 29.40%
M 4 Chelsea, Clinton 83,601 82,164 84,431 87,479 103,245 19,644 23.50%
BX 7 Bedford Park, Norwood, Fordham 113,764 116,827 128,588 141,411 139,286 25,522 22.40%
Q 7 Flushing, Bay Terrace 207,589 204,785 220,508 242,952 247,354 39,765 19.20%
Q 2 Sunnyside, Woodside 95,073 88,927 94,845 109,920 113,200 18,127 19.10%
BK 14 Flatbush, Midwood 137,041 143,859 159,825 168,806 160,664 23,623 17.20%
Q 14 The Rockaways, Broad Channel 98,228 100,592 100,596 106,686 114,978 16,750 17.10%
M 6 Stuyvesant Town, Turtle Bay 122,465 127,554 133,748 136,152 142,745 20,280 16.60%
BK 12 Borough Park, Ocean Parkway 166,301 155,899 160,018 185,046 191,382 25,081 15.10%
BK 7 Sunset Park, Windsor Terrace 111,607 98,567 102,553 120,063 126,230 14,623 13.10%
BX 12 Wakefield, Williamsbridge 135,010 128,226 129,620 149,077 152,344 17,334 12.80%
M 8 Upper East Side 200,851 204,305 210,880 217,063 219,920 19,069 9.50%
Q 12 Jamaica, St. Albans, Hollis 206,639 189,383 201,293 223,602 225,919 19,280 9.30%
Q 10 Ozone Park, Howard Beach 113,857 105,651 107,768 127,274 122,396 8,539 7.50%
BK 5 East New York, Starrett City 170,791 154,931 161,350 173,198 182,896 12,105 7.10%
BK 11 Bensonhurst, Bath Beach 170,119 155,072 149,994 172,129 181,981 11,862 7.00%
BX 11 Pelham Pkwy, Morris Park, Laconia 105,980 99,080 97,842 110,706 113,232 7,252 6.80%
M 2 Greenwich Village, Soho 84,337 87,069 94,105 93,119 90,016 5,679 6.70%
BK 13 Coney Island, Brighton Beach 97,750 100,030 102,596 106,120 104,278 6,528 6.70%
Q 8 Fresh Meadows, Briarwood 142,468 125,312 132,101 146,594 151,107 8,639 6.10%
BX 5 University Hts., Fordham, Mt. Hope 121,807 107,995 118,435 128,313 128,200 6,393 5.20%
M 12 Washington Heights, Inwood 180,561 179,941 198,192 208,414 190,020 9,459 5.20%
Q 5 Ridgewood, Glendale, Maspeth 161,022 150,142 149,126 165,911 169,190 8,168 5.10%
BK 17 East Flatbush, Rugby, Farragut 149,496 154,596 161,261 165,753 155,252 5,756 3.90%
BX 9 Soundview, Parkchester 166,442 167,627 155,970 167,859 172,298 5,856 3.50%
Q 1 Astoria, Long Island City 185,925 185,198 188,549 211,220 191,105 5,180 2.80%
BK 18 Canarsie, Flatlands 188,643 169,092 162,428 194,653 193,543 4,900 2.60%
Q 13 Queens Village, Rosedale 184,647 173,178 177,535 196,284 188,593 3,946 2.10%
BX 4 Highbridge, Concourse Village 144,207 114,312 119,962 139,563 146,441 2,234 1.50%
M 7 West Side, Upper West Side 212,422 206,669 210,993 207,699 209,084 -3,338 -1.60%
BX 8 Riverdale, Kingsbridge, Marble Hill 103,543 98,275 97,030 101,332 101,731 -1,812 -1.70%
BK 9 Crown Heights South, PLG, Wingate 101,047 96,669 110,715 104,014 98,429 -2,618 -2.60%
M 9 Manhattanville, Hamilton Heights 113,606 103,038 106,978 111,724 110,193 -3,413 -3.00%
BK 15 Sheepshead Bay, Gerritsen Beach 164,815 149,572 143,477 160,319 159,650 -5,165 -3.10%
BK 1 Williamsburg, Greenpoint 179,390 142,942 155,972 160,338 173,083 -6,307 -3.50%
BK 10 Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights 129,822 118,187 110,612 122,542 124,491 -5,331 -4.10%
Q 6 Forest Hills, Rego Park 120,429 112,245 106,996 115,967 113,257 -7,172 -6.00%
Q 11 Bayside, Douglaston, Little Neck 127,883 110,963 108,056 116,404 116,431 -11,452 -9.00%
BK 2 Brooklyn Heights, Fort Greene 110,221 92,732 94,534 98,620 99,617 -10,604 -9.60%
M 3 Lower East Side, Chinatown 181,845 154,848 161,617 164,407 163,277 -18,568 -10.20%
BK 4 Bushwick 137,902 92,497 102,572 104,358 112,634 -25,268 -18.30%
BK 8 Crown Heights North 121,821 88,796 96,400 96,076 96,317 -25,504 -20.90%
M 11 East Harlem 154,662 114,569 110,508 117,743 120,511 -34,151 -22.10%
BK 6 Park Slope, Carroll Gardens 138,933 110,228 102,724 104,054 104,709 -34,224 -24.60%
BK 3 Bedford Stuyvesant 203,380 133,379 138,696 143,867 152,985 -50,395 -24.80%
BX 6 East Tremont, Belmont 114,137 65,016 68,061 75,688 83,268 -30,869 -27.00%
M 10 Central Harlem 159,267 105,641 99,519 107,109 115,723 -43,544 -27.30%
BK 16 Brownsville, Ocean Hill 122,589 73,801 84,923 85,343 86,468 -36,121 -29.50%
BX 1 Melrose, Mott Haven, Port Morris 138,557 78,441 77,214 82,159 91,497 -47,060 -34.00%
BX 3 Morrisania, Crotona Park East 150,636 53,635 57,162 68,574 79,762 -70,874 -47.00%
BX 2 Hunts Point, Longwood 99,493 34,399 39,443 46,824 52,246 -47,247 -47.50%



43rd Assembly District Special Election May 5th, 2015

Candidate Forum at Grace Church 

Sponsor:  Prospect Lefferts Gardens Neighborhood Association.


Moderator: Rachel Holiday Smith, DNAInfo

Candidates:


Geoffrey Davis, Love Yourself Party (not present)
Shirley Patterson, Independent Democrat Watch Video
Menachem Raitport, Conservative Party (not present)
Diana Richardson, Working Families Party Watch Video