DEC ordered to admit site into brownfield program

Court previously overturned DEC’s denial of developer’s application and ordered additional analyses. A developer planned to construct a 341-unit mixed-use building on a 17,700 sq.ft. parking lot at 29 Flatbush Avenue in Fort Greene, Brooklyn. An environmental assessment of the site revealed the presence of lead and semi-volatile organic compounds. The developer subsequently applied to the State Department of Environmental Conservation’s Brownfield Cleanup Program.

DEC determined that the … <Read More>


Lower court reversed; Piers project moves forward

First Department rules NYSDEC was not an “involved agency” in project’s environmental review. In 2008, the City’s Economic Development Corporation selected MMPI Piers LLC, a subsidiary of Vornado Realty Trust, to renovate Piers 92 and 94 along the Hudson River between West 52nd and West 55th Streets in Manhattan. The piers have been used as exhibition space and for trade shows, and Pier 92 has served as a cruise ship dock when Piers … <Read More>


Denial of State brownfield benefits overturned

DEC denied access to State’s brownfield cleanup program on theory that contamination did not complicate development. In 2007, a developer purchased a 17,700 sq.ft. former parking lot at 29 Flatbush Avenue in Fort Greene, Brooklyn, intending to build a 342-unit residential building. An environmental assessment of the site’s subsurface revealed the presence of lead and at least seven semi-volatile organic compounds at levels exceeding regulatory standards. In April 2008, the developer filed an application with … <Read More>