Search Results for: Environmental Cleanup

DEC ordered to admit site into brownfield program

Courtesy of Ismael Leyva Architects.

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>

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>

Daniel C. Walsh on the City’s Efforts to Clean Up Brownfields

Daniel C. Walsh is the former Director of the City office of the Superfund and Brownfield Cleanup Program for the State Department of Environmental Conservation. Walsh studied the geochemistry of New York City landfills as a doctoral student at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and the Rockland County native has spent his professional career studying and helping to resolve environmental problems in and around the City.

WA day not so far off. Walsh recalls reading Mayor Bloomberg’s … <Read More>

Site qualifies as brownfield

DEC acted outside its authority by creating “but-for” test to deny eligibility. East River Realty Company LLC owned several contaminated properties in the Murray Hill neighborhood of Manhattan and in 2001 entered them into the NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation’s Voluntary Cleanup Program. The sites are former Con Edison sites, and are among the largest and most valuable development sites in the City.

Following the enactment of the State’s Brownfield Cleanup Program in 2003, East … <Read More>

Court compels DEC to accept brownfield application

DEC overstepped its authority by judging application against eligibility regulations not found in Brownfield statute. HLP Properties LLC owned a 1.75 acre surface parking lot bounded by West 17th and 18th Streets between 10th and 11th Avenues in Manhattan. The lot was part of the former West 18th Street manufactured gas plant, a 19th century facility that converted coal to combustible gas for all of Manhattan north of Canal Street. The plant operated for more … <Read More>

Council Hears Testimony on Willets Point Proposal

Concerns over displacement of businesses dominated hearing. On June 13, 2007, the City Council’s Land Use Committee and its Economic Development Committee held a joint oversight hearing on the proposal by New York City’s Economic Development Corporation to redevelop 61 acres of Willets Point in Queens. The site, located directly east of Shea Stadium, is mostly privately owned and currently home to a mix of automobile related, light industrial and manufacturing businesses. EDC estimates that … <Read More>