Ian Bruce Eichner and 960 Franklin Avenue. (Google Maps, Getty)
Two rezonings, held up by the same judge for similar reasons, can now both move forward. But in one case, a developer will need to figure out the logistics of holding an outdoor hearing.
Brooklyn Judge Katherine Levine on Thursday lifted her temporary restraining order blocking the rezoning of a former spice factory at 960 Franklin Avenue, where Ian Bruce Eichner’s Continuum Company wants to build two 30-plus story rental towers.
The move allows the controversial project to advance on the condition that the developer works with Community Board 9 to provide an outdoor venue and virtual access to hearings on the matter.
Judge May Let Gowanus Rezoning Move Forward
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How Political Judge-Making Haunts New York Real Estate
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Judge Katherine Levine (Levine via Facebook; Getty)
If a city agency makes a small change to its website, will a “usual Joe Schmo in Gowanus” know what that means?
That, more or less, was the subject of a nearly two-hour hearing Thursday on a lawsuit that seeks to stop the Brooklyn neighborhood’s rezoning from moving forward.
Kings County Supreme Court Judge Katherine Levine didn’t rule on that issue directly, but agreed to partially lift a temporary restraining order on the rezoning, allowing the Department of City Planning to release the remainder of the proposal’s application.
She said she is “predisposed” to allow the application to be certified, which would officially kickstart the city’s public land-use review process, but called on the city to find ways to ensure more people have access to virtual hearings held as part of the Uniform Land Use Review Procedure. She floated the idea of installing public computers in the Park Slope Armory.