Statement of Crystal Hudson to Brooklyn Borough President
Regarding the 960 Franklin Ave. Redevelopment
June 29, 2021
Good evening,
My name is Crystal Hudson. I am a third generation Brooklynite, founder of Greater Prospect Heights Mutual Aid, and candidate for New York City Council in Brooklyn’s 35th District, which is where the 960 Franklin Avenue Redevelopment project is located. Thank you to Richard Bearak and the Brooklyn Borough President’s staff for giving me the opportunity to speak today.
As we’ve seen the COVID-19 pandemic reap irreparable damage over the past 15 months, many Brooklynites are learning how to cope with the loss of a loved one, struggling to figure out how to pay back-rent after receiving little to no relief from the government, or navigating how to keep a small business afloat with ever-changing rules and regulations.
Thankfully, our community continues to band together now more than ever to support one another. Whether it’s donating to mutual aid funds, restocking community fridges, or providing childcare in a bind. But while we regroup and work toward recovery, developers and other real estate interests continue to operate behind the scenes to force through new developments that are not in the best interests of local communities — the latest example being the proposed redevelopment and rezoning at 960 Franklin Avenue. These developers focus their efforts not on what a community needs — like a new facility for after-school programs or truly affordable housing units for residents in an area where the median household income is $50,765, where more than 9,000 residents have received food stamp benefits in the past year, and where more than 2,200 receive cash public assistance — but instead on what will make them the most money.
In a time of unending unpredictability, one thing is certain: our community does not need or want this development. And that is why I strongly and unequivocally oppose the 960 Franklin project.
Affordability & Gentrification
Foremost, this project fails the most basic requirement for an affordable housing project: affordability. The developers note that half of the units would be set aside as affordable, but, as many have already noted, this does not mean the units would be affordable for residents of the development’s surrounding community. According to the proposal, a person who wanted to rent one of the 30% of units (or 473) allocated for individuals making an average of 80 percent of the area median income would need to earn nearly $67,000 for a single person or nearly $86,000 for a family of three in 2021, tens of thousands of dollars higher than the median household income of $52,150 and per capita income of $27,651 in Crown Heights South — a neighborhood with an average family size of more than 3 people.
This project would come as Crown Heights residents have seen rents jump 39 percent since 2010 and as more than half of residents report being severely-rent burdened, meaning they pay more than 30 percent of their income on rent. Unfortunately, more residents are likely to become severely-rent burdened, as the COVID-19 pandemic has destroyed good-paying jobs in the retail, food services, and accommodation sectors that previously employed thousands of local residents even while many of those jobs return as our city reopens. The 960 Franklin project will only exacerbate the effects of gentrification and push rents up higher while long-time residents in nearby buildings are left to wonder why they can no longer afford to rent the apartment they’ve lived in for decades. As such, it’s abundantly clear this project is not affordable for our community.
Threat to Community
The request to lift the height restrictions for this project threatens to fundamentally change the character of the neighborhood. The proposed towers also pose a threat to one of our borough’s biggest cultural institutions: the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. The shadows cast by the new development will hamstring the garden’s ability to breed new plants and could result in the elimination of half of its collection within a decade. In turn, this could result in the loss of millions of dollars in economic activity a year, much of which supports the small businesses around the garden like restaurants and retail stores.
The development would also severely hamstring our local infrastructure — everything from our sewage system to subways to schools to streets. By adding units for a few thousand more residents, we risk overloading systems that were never meant to accommodate that many people, something Community Board 9 voiced concern about when urging the Council to oppose the passage of the Mandatory Inclusionary Housing guidelines.
Lack of Community Input
Above all, this project has been forced through for approval with absolutely no substantial community input. This project could have dire impacts on our community — ranging from the displacement of residents of color to the closure of Black and brown-owned small businesses that new residents decide against patronizing. Developers need to hold a meaningful dialogue with the communities in which they want to build before any plans are drawn up to understand what we need and want. We need to fundamentally overhaul how rezonings and new developments happen in our city — 960 Franklin could have been a model for community-centered development. Instead, it represents just a continuation of a status quo that favors wealthy developers.
That status quo is best epitomized by the developers’ threat to build an as-of-right development with 518 condominiums and no affordable housing, when the city decides against approving this project. They are trying to force our hand to approve a project our community does not want rather than coming to the bargaining table in good faith. It is clear that 100% market-rate housing is certainly not the answer, and neither are the proposed 30+ story towers. The only way to identify the parameters for a project that works for all stakeholders is to open an honest, meaningful dialogue.
Conclusion
This project requires a nuanced discussion that takes the time to listen to its supporters and consider what they claim are possible benefits — primarily good-paying, union jobs, both during and after construction, and affordable housing for our community. But when one reviews the plans, it becomes clear that the costs and failures — ranging from straining local infrastructure to jeopardizing a community gem like the Brooklyn Botanic Garden to setting rent at levels that are unaffordable for the surrounding community to further exacerbating gentrification — far outweigh the potential benefits. Above all, this project fails the most basic litmus test for any new development: it was devised without any community input or consideration for our needs.
We know that the city’s land use review process is intentionally opaque, rendering it nearly impossible for anyone but private developers and lobbyists to intervene. Meanwhile, rezonings have decimated communities across the boroughs while developers ignore meaningful input from local residents. And the process as designed leaves communities in the precarious position of appearing opposed to unionized labor when, in reality, the new developments fail to guarantee union workers the full swath of benefits they are due. Moving forward, we need real affordability and long-term community benefits through the city’s land use process while also supporting the use of unionized labor so the prospect of good jobs are part of each negotiation.
I know we have a housing and jobs crisis on our hands, but we need to build responsibly and use a community-first approach to development. It undoubtedly makes sense to build affordable housing at the old Spice Factory site using union labor. But this project is neither affordable nor appropriate for what the community needs. I urge Borough President Adams to disapprove of this proposed development. Thank you.
