Amanda Burden: 19 Months Left to Remake New York

What does Amanda Burden's goals for her tenure as director of the New York City Planning Department mean for the Sasaki Garden and the NYU Superblocks?

“Today, I am thrilled to vote on the department’s latest sustainability initiative,” said Ms. Burden, the director of the New York City Planning Department, her clipped diction and sophisticated dress contrasting with the worn-out rug and metal chairs of her surroundings. Ms. Burden was referring to Zone Green, “the most comprehensive effort of any city in the nation,” she said, to use zoning to spur environmentally efficient building.

It is the latest effort by Ms. Burden to transform the face of New York. Since 2002, when she was appointed to head City Planning, she has overseen the wholesale rezoning of the city, with 115 rezoning plans covering more than 10,300 blocks; by the end of her administration, the department is expected to have rezoned about 40 percent of New York, an unprecedented number.

Read the entire profile at http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/20/nyregion/amanda-burden-planning-commissioner-is-remaking-new-york-city.html.

NYU Superblock Gardens at Washington Square Village

For your consideration, a slideshow of the NYU Superblock Gardens condemned under NYU 2031 has been prepared by Hubert J Steed:

NYU2031 expansion plans call for the construction of several new skyscrapers in the heart of historic Greenwich Village which will be built on this garden, bordering park strips, the comprehensive children's playgrounds, and on a "super block" south of WSV which will destroy a treasured community garden at LaGuardia Place Corner Garden.

City Planning Commission Review Sessions on NYU

From Community Board 2 Manhattan chair, Brad Hoylman:

Members of the public are able to observe the CPC review sessions on the NYU expansion proposal, although there is no opportunity for testimony or questions from the public. The next review session is on Monday, May 21 at 1 p.m. in Spector Hall, 22 Reade Street. Another public review session will be held on June 4, 1 p.m. in Spector Hall, 22 Reade Street. This is a good chance for the community to stay on top of the proceedings as they are discussed by the Commission. Please check the CPC website http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcp/html/luproc/calbeg.shtml for agendas as they become available.

Photo: Butterflies in the WSV Sasaki Garden

Are we all doing everything we can to preserve and protect the WSV Sasaki Garden so everyone will enjoy butterflies and flowers for generations to come?

Red Admiral Butterfly on a Rhododendron Blossom in the WSV Sasaki Garden (source)

A Battered American Lady Butterfly in WSV Sasaki Garden (source)

(Photos courtesy of Hubert J. Steed.)

NYU Submission to City Planning Commission

NYU Vice President Alicia Hurley, PhD submitted to the CPC "followup materials to address questions that were raised at the hearing" held on April 25, 2012. The 65-page document can be found online at http://www.nyu.edu/content/dam/nyu/govCommunAffairs/documents/2031/NYU-2031-Submission-for-City-Planning-Commission.pdf.

Of particular interest to Save the WSV Sasaki Garden advocates is the following category and definition of