OPINION: Update on Pier 6 development
Last summer, the Brooklyn Heights Association (BHA) filed a lawsuit against Brooklyn Bridge Park attempting to halt the Pier 6 development, alleging, among other things, that the planned affordable housing is not allowed in the park and that the park does not need the revenue to be generated from the market-rate component of the project. Several weeks ago, the BHA claimed that newly released tax valuations for the existing buildings at the edge of the park provide further support for their allegations. Unfortunately, the latest BHA submission follows the pattern of all previous attempts to dispute the need for the Pier 6 development: basic arithmetic errors, cherry-picked data, misleading conclusions and wrong assumptions.
The group’s letter centered around 2018 tentative values for BBP developments issued by the City’s Department of Finance (DOF), but provided specifics on only one of the five, claiming that the DOF valued this property (Pierhouse Condominium) at $230 per square foot. In fact, according to the department’s notice to the park, the valuation is $178 per square foot (nearly 30 percent lower)!
More concerning is the fact that the BHA was trying to use the high valuation to validate their argument that the park consistently underestimates value to support the need for Pier 6 development, and that the BHA consultant’s higher projections are more accurate and in line with DOF — all “proving” the park does not need any more money. However, this narrative falls apart when you look at DOF valuations for other park development parcels. Both the One John Street Condominium and the Empire Stores are valued by DOF at less than half the BHA consultant’s estimates. If the DOF numbers show anything, it is that many of the BHA consultant estimates were wildly aggressive and that the DOF values are exceedingly hard to predict. This is why we are careful to be conservative with our projections so that we do not wind up with budget shortfalls.