E. Village And LES Saved From Development, But...

Yesterday the City Council did a great thing for a large area of the East Village and parts of the Lower East Side. Enacting strict height limits on new buildings is essential to retain the character of the neighborhoods. For too long developers have run rampant in this city, building large globs of glass and steel without a care for the communities they tear down. Capping new structures at 120 feet on Avenues and 80 feet on side streets is welcome regulation.

From The Gothamist:

The plan may significantly curb the rampant development in the trendy downtown neighborhoods. Had it been in effect just a few years ago, it would have made a significant dent into the plans of new buildings, like the Blue Condos on Norfolk Street, which tower over the area at 181 feet. Buildings under construction with completed foundations can skirt the new regulations, while those that have permits and have just put down a substantial foundation merely have the right to apply for extension from Board of Standards and Appeals.

The mayor's office says that the plan will pave the way for more housing on wider blocks like Houston and Delancey with as many as "1,670 additional housing units over the next ten years, including 560 units permanently affordable to low- and middle-income families." The City Planning Commission will now turn its attention to Chinatown, where some had protested the proposal for fear that it would simply shift the burden of development onto them.

That is the big fear among activists that live around the protected zone. The Mayor and his lackeys in the Council need to appease their developer and real estate campaign contributors somehow. It is hard to take advantage of the more well-to-do East Villagers (who da thunk that 20 years ago?) but the activists outside have a sneaking suspicion they'll be the ones sacrificed at the alter of politicians' greed.