Gowanus Canal Luxury Housing Project Under Fire
It is not smooth sailing for the 700-unit luxury housing project being developed by the Lightstone Group along the banks of Brooklyn’s famed Gowanus Canal. Protestors gathered last week to proclaim that the proposed development will cause flooding in the streets with filthy water from the canal as well as breaking several laws when it is constructed.
The protest drew dozens of activists who hope to either alter or stop the Lighthouse Group’s present plans. The development is to go up within the bounds of Bond, Carroll and Second Streets along the canal, long known for its bad smells and putrid water. The Lightstone Group is expecting to begin construction in early 2014 and finishing sometime in 2015.
“The project’s design is ill-suited for the community” said Warren Cohen, First Street resident, of Save Gowanus, the group who organized the rally.
“It’s going to aggravate the flooding region-wide” said Gowanus activist Marlene Donnelly.
Spokesman for the Lighthouse Group, Ethan Geto, says that the activists are perpetuating, “not just misinformation, but disinformation” concerning the project. The Lightstone Group is not changing its building schedule or delaying construction in anyway. They say they have government approval and all the green-lights it needs, with a complete environmental impact review on file.
“The rally organizers simply do not have the facts on their side” Geto said.
