Brooklyn
Williamsburg’s largest waterfront park has stalled — perhaps permanently — because the city doesn’t have the cash to buy the land, according to the Brooklyn Paper.
City officials dropped a bombshell on community leaders last Thursday, revealing that they had no money and no timetable to buy several private properties off Kent Avenue and N. 11th Street surrounding the 28-acre Bushwick Inlet site.
Infuriated community leaders accused Mayor Bloomberg of revoking the city’s long-standing agreement to build parks at the edge of the East River in exchange for rezoning most of the waterfront for luxury high-rises in 2005.
The delay spoiled a series of promising developments for the waterfront park. The city has already purchased two properties at Bushwick Inlet and has the option to buy a third.“The mayor is travelling around the city, trumpeting his proposals for open space, parks and playgrounds as his legacy — and here we have a situation where the city wants to abandon its ironclad commitment that they made with the neighborhood’s residents,” said Assemblyman Joe Lentol (D–Greenpoint).
And last month, the city moved closer to acquiring the Bayside Fuel property at Kent between N. 12th and N. 14th streets after more than a decade of legal battles, sources said.
But about two-thirds of Bushwick Inlet Park remains privately owned — and negotiations for one site have stalled abruptly.
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