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Originally Posted by ILNY
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Not necessarily. Those drawings are from the building without the cantilever.
it's time for De Blasio to rein in these whackos...
http://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/2014...dents-pols-say
Stop Building Towers That Darken Central Park, Locals and Officials Say
By Mathew Katz
February 20, 2014
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A panel on giant towers near Central Park became a pummeling session Wednesday night as politicians, experts and locals all slammed Midtown's rising skyscrapers for the shadows they will cast on public space.
In a packed house at the New York Public Library, nearly every speaker at the Town Hall on Central Park Supertowers complained that the huge structures planned for the area, many 70 stories or more, would ruin the public's enjoyment of Central Park while providing pricey apartments for the rich.
“This is the debasement of a great public resource, used by millions, for the benefit of an elite few," said author and journalist Warren St. John, to widespread applause.
"My argument is shadows make the park less pleasant."
The sole voice supporting the developments was Gary Barnett, president of Extell Development, which is in the middle of building the 75-story One57 tower.
Sitting with his arms crossed and frequently shaking his head, Barnett was a punching bag as opponents called for harsher reviews of the skyscrapers and even a moratorium on mega-developments.
"I think we need to keep it in context — we don't need to overreact," Barnett said.
He defended One57's shadow, claiming it would only be cast on Central Park for a few minutes a day — and he argued that shadows were already there.
"The southern part of the park is covered in beautiful trees, which already provide shade," Barnett said.
The multitude of towers planned for the area also includes 215 W. 57th St., which will be 1,550 feet; 432 Park Ave., which will be 1,398 feet; and 107 W. 57th St., which will be 1,350 feet.
The new wave of skyscrapers is the result of developers combining lots and taking advantage of zoning controls that were established in the 1980s — before the tall, thin towers were technologically possible, panelists said.
The standing-room-only forum, hosted by Community Board 5, brought out hundreds of people, including politicians from across Manhattan, many of whom complained that the towers largely housed foreign investors who did not live in Manhattan full-time.
"None of these buildings weave into our community, contribute to our community in any meaningful way," said City Councilman Corey Johnson, who represents parts of Midtown and the West Side. He and others suggested tightening zoning codes and requiring more public disclosure of plans for tall buildings. Johnson added that he hoped the proliferation of huge towers would end now that Bill de Blasio is mayor.
Community Board 5 set up a "Sunshine Task Force" in 2013 to evaluate the impact of several tall towers set for construction along 57th Street near Central Park. The board will eventually produce a detailed report on the issue.
But many at the forum had already made up their mind, saying that the towers had the potential to transform the way Central Park is enjoyed for years to come.
"Central Park is not my backyard — it's everyone's backyard," St. John said. "This is about the backyard of New York City, not any one person's private space."
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http://gothamist.com/2014/02/20/shad...ntral_park.php
Skyscraper Shadows Will Not Harm Central Park, Developer Promises
By Lauren Evans
Feb 20, 2014
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It's a comforting fact of New York City life that space in Central Park will never be allocated for towering high rise condos, glass-walled TD Banks or the upscale, alcohol-slinging Denny's that have become commonplace in so much of the city. But according to some, the threat of development destroying the park is still very real—not of physical structures being built in the park, but the shadows that such structures will cast from the outside.
A panel of stakeholders congregated at the New York Public Library last night to discuss the potential effects of shadows cast by the forthcoming "Billionaire's Row," a set of seven sky-high luxury apartments that many park-goers fear will prematurely darken soccer games and picnics with their omnipresent icy shade.
The issues, the panelists insisted, are complicated. Zoning regulations are outdated and lack transparency, but what would changing them entail? Should buildings have height restrictions, or is a building's height less problematic than its width, or moreover, the number of tall buildings densely packed into a group? San Francisco has a "Sunlight Ordinance," which requires review by the city planning department of any proposed structure over 40 measly feet. Should New York City have such an ordinance as well?
Barnett, dressed in a Jobsian black turtle neck and clenching a venti Starbucks Drink, didn't have answers to any of those questions, but he did have a prepared statement intended to tickle the palpable sense of Liberal Guilt that pervaded the room. Not only would the shadows be "slender" (Extell generously narrowed the dimensions of One57 to a svelte 102 feet, versus the 225 feet they could have exploited were they Actually Evil), but the buildings will be an economic engine, creating more than 1,000 permanent, high-paying jobs for New Yorkers and their families.
"Is the possible small, minute addition of shadows that do no harm a worthwhile tradeoff against our fellow New Yorkers' chance to build a better life? And for our city to grow and become greater?" Barnett asked from his turtleneck. "I think not. This is the wrong issue at the wrong time."
Dissenters of the developments also argued that the towers would largely be occupied by foreign owners with little interest in the city—Russian oligarchs, Saudi oil barons—those types of people. "I think we need an oligarch tax on New York City," said State Senator Brad Hoylman, one of the panel's co-sponsors. "They're paying very little, and they're worth very, very much."
Barnett finds this argument prejudiced. New York City is a friendly place, he said, not just for the poor, but the rich and the mega rich.
"America has always been a very welcoming country—we want everyone to do well," he said. "We welcome the poor and the downtrodden, but we also welcome the wealthy, as well. There's nothing wrong with wanting to come here. There's no reason for us to knock other people."
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NEW YORK is Back!
“Office buildings are our factories – whether for tech, creative or traditional industries we must continue to grow our modern factories to create new jobs,” said United States Senator Chuck Schumer.
Last edited by NYguy; Feb 20, 2014 at 9:35 PM.
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