In New York, the need for housing continually drives the search for new solutions, but in Crown Heights, a neighborhood in Brooklyn, a proposal for a skyscraper has sparked significant debates.
The project, which involves the construction of a 14-story building with hundreds of apartments, has encountered an obstacle in the famous Brooklyn Botanic Garden. The building is at risk of casting shadows over a precious collection of rare plants, including orchids and ficus trees, jeopardizing their survival.
This issue highlights the delicate balance between urban development and conservation and is a hot topic in city politics. Park officials fear that the resulting lack of sunlight could compromise the blooming of many species, which may need to be relocated to sunnier parts of the country.
The president of the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Adrian Benepe, explained that the garden is seeking strategies to protect the vegetation without hindering housing construction, although he emphasizes that safeguarding the garden should remain a priority.
The current proposal presented to the City Council is the result of years of discussions. The decisive vote, which will determine whether the zoning rules for the building’s construction need to be changed, is expected next month.
The original plan called for the construction of 475 apartments, about a quarter of which were reserved for low-income families, but this has already been scaled back to 355 units in order to minimize damage to the green space. However, even the new planning has raised resistance among supporters of the Garden, who are calling for further reductions. A solution involving the installation of artificial lights for shaded plants did not assuage the environmentalists’ concerns.
Real estate developers, however, specified that any further decrease in the number of apartments would make the project financially unsustainable. The risk is that the building could be composed solely of luxury apartments, leaving no space for more affordable housing.
Local councilor Crystal Hudson has also expressed reservations about the impact of of the skyscraper’s shadow and the economic accessibility of the proposed apartments, despite the need for new housing.
Since the building restrictions were imposed around the park in the 1990s, the surrounding area has become increasingly sought after. Rental values have risen by over 50% since 2010, leading to growing pressure on the local real estate market.
