The Right and the Wrong Way to Redevelop

Williamsburg and Coney Island, two historic neighborhoods at opposite ends of Brooklyn, are both enveloped in the billowing clouds of redevelopment blowing across the city, and bloggers have written ad nauseum on the sweeping changes occurring, or about to occur, in each. I would be remiss as an urban planning blogger in New York if I did not throw my two cents into the discussion.

In the news this week are stories of the adaptive reuse of the Domino Sugar Refinery in Williamsburg and the planned swing of the wrecking ball in Coney Island. These proposals represent to me the right and the wrong way to redevelop New York City.

It is no longer the 1880s, when the refinery was built in Brooklyn. The modern city economy has evolved, and large industrial firms have fled the city, while the architectural traces of their once great presence remains. Furthermore, while a sugar refinery does not present the health hazards of, say, a radioactive or hazardous waste storage plant, I would say that separating residences from heavy industry is a good thing. Perhaps transitioning Williamsburg and Greenpoint into an even more dense residential area could place further pressure on heavily-polluting industrial firms to clean up or get out.

The adaptive reuse process stands to help communities respond to transitioning demand for particular land uses in an evolving urban landscape. The demand for housing in Williamsburg today trumps the need for industrial businesses, and the redevelopment of the refinery responds to this shift. In addition, the project would incorporate significant retail and community space to accommodate a burgeoning residential population, and would create a projected 550 new jobs. I would hope that local residents would fill these positions, lessening the impact on roads and public transit (see my previous post).

Adaptive reuse does not appear to be a strategy in Coney Island. Neither is creating services and amenities to serve the neighboring communities. The plan to wipe the slate clean and build anew in Coney Island seems reminiscent of a combination between urban renewal movement of the 50s and the city beautiful movement from the turn of the 20th century. Rather than work with existing assets of the Coney Island community, the plan seems intent on clearing nearly all that stood before and starting from scratch. Meanwhile, millions will be invested in developing recreational parks and resorts to bring money into the area and increase property values, just as cities 100 years ago invested heavily in major institutions such as museums and libraries, not for their inherently good qualities, but rather to increase property values in the areas around them.