Community groups band together to oppose 49-story Downtown Brooklyn tower
They hope to sway Councilmember Levin before Wed. vote
Six community groups and co-op boards in Brooklyn Heights and Downtown Brooklyn have formed a consortium to fight off a plan to build a 49-story luxury-apartment tower with affordable units in Downtown Brooklyn.
If rezoning sought by Savanna, a NYC-based real estate firm, is approved, the new development would be 150 percent larger than what is now allowed in much of Downtown Brooklyn.
The city-owned site at 141 Willoughby St. is currently occupied by a small building that houses the Institute of Design and Construction.
Opponents say that allowing the rezoning would exacerbate the area’s already overburdened infrastructure, including overcrowded schools, and “would set a dangerous precedent by opening the door for other developers to seek a similar upzoning of their Downtown properties.”