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The Th T h e Pa P Paper ap pe e r of Record Recor orrd o r d for f o r Greenwich fo Grr e G ee e nwich Village, Villag g e, e , East Ea ass t Village, Vii llag V l l ag ll age e,, Lower L ow o w er e East Side, Soho, Union Square, Chinatown So oh ho o, U Un n iio o n Sq S qu ua a re r e , Chinatow w n and an a n d Noho, No N oh ho o , Since Sii n S ncc e 1933 19 3 3 19
October 26, 2017 • $1.00 Volume 87 • Number 43
Neighbors: N.Y.U. flouting agreement to protect light, air BY LEVAR ALONZO
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epresentatives from New York University returned to Community Board 2’s Land Use Committee to present for a second time changes to the university’s new building at 181 Mercer St. The project was formerly casually known as the “Zip-
per Building,” due to its zigzag appearance when viewed from overhead, but for now according to university officials it’s just being called 181 Mercer. Last year, N.Y.U unveiled its $128 million multipurpose building, which is to include tons of open space inside of N.Y.U. continued on p. 4
Committee backs L.E.S. / Chinatown rezoning initiative BY LEVAR ALONZO
A
crowd of angry residents packed the community room at Two Bridges Towers, at 82 Rutgers Slip, for the Community Board 3 Land Use committee meeting to voice their opposition to developers building megatowers in their community.
About 100 residents and members of community activist groups Good Old Lower East Side (GOLES) and CAAAV Organizing Asian Communities packed the Oct. 18 meeting. Many held signs in English, Mandarin or Spanish, saying, “Stop the Division,” ZONING continued on p. 8
Editorial: Vote for Marte!.......p. 14
“I don’t think we’re in Oz anymore, Toto.” An adventure in Annual Tompkins Square Halloween Dog Parade.
fun at Saturday’s Photo by Bob K r asner
Pier 55 sails again: Guv salvages plan BY LINCOLN ANDERSON
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t looks like those forlorn “ghost trestles” sitting off W. 15th St. won’t be redeveloped as little fishing piers, after all, but will actually be used for the full-blown Pier 55. Yes, “Diller Island” has risen from the depths — thanks to a huge, Poseidon-like helping hand from Andrew Cuomo. A little more than a month ago, media mogul Barry Diller, the chairperson of IAC, shockingly pulled out of the Pier 55 project, say-
ing that lawsuits filed by The City Club of New York against the scheme had escalated the plan’s costs, delayed the construction and were causing “continuing controversy.” On Wednesday afternoon, however, the governor announced that the plan for Pier 55 — a 2.7-acre “arts fantasy island” that would “float” offshore on tall support piles — is now back on. Cuomo also announced his commitment to finish the entire 4.5-mile-long Hudson River Park — which stretches from Chambers St. to 59th St. — within the next five years.
It has been reported that $200 million is needed to finish the park, and the assumption is that the state would now provide a significant chunk of that cash. Calling Pier 55 an “architecturally significant park” and a “spectacular addition to the waterfront,” Cuomo said the project’s scuttling last month was “a lost opportunity for all New Yorkers.” “I have spoken to the parties involved in the lawsuit against Pier 55 and expressed my belief that cooperative efPIER continued on p. 20
Westway warrior Benstock is still at it............p. 10 Halasa, Johnson on affordable housing...........p. 15 www.TheVillager.com