The Local East Village Explains the NYU Expansion Plan

The Local East Village is a newspaper collaboration between the New York Times and the NYU Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute.  On March 27th, The Local launched the "Expansion Explainer" to examine the impacts of the project and thus far has written about the WSV parking garage,  the three at-risk playgrounds (Mercer, Key Park, and Rocket Ship) [what of the decrepit playground adjacent to the Coles Gym?], and the Mercer-Houston dog run.  Follow the "Expansion Explainer" at http://eastvillage.thelocal.nytimes.com/tag/expansion-explainer/.

Updated: NYU Expansion Plan - News and Events

In today's (Mar. 25th) New York Times, reporter Michael Kimmelman proposes an alternative to the NYU Expansion Plan in "It Riles a Village" at http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/25/arts/design/nyu2031-universitys-plans-for-greenwich-village.html?ref=arts.

WNYC host Leonard Lopate will air a segment on "the controversy surrounding the plans to expand

Walking Off the Big Apple Walks Washington Sq Village

Sasaki Garden at Washington Square Village looking northeast, courtesy of Hubert J. Steed (source)

Teri Tynes of Walking Off the Big Apple has updated her walking guide to Washington Square Village and Silver Towers following the NY Times architecture critic Michael Kimmelman's analysis of the NYU Expansion Plan.  Tynes invites visitors to "stop and say hello" if they see "a casually dressed woman out walking her dog".

Video: Vote NO on NYU 2031 City Hall Press Conference

The "Vote NO on NYU 2031" City Hall Press Conference held on March 22, 2012 is available on the GVSHP YouTube channel in two parts:

City Hall Press Conference - March 22, 2012 - Part One

Stringer Press Conference March 22, 2012 Part Two

GVSHP also recorded the Town Hall meeting held on January 4, 2012.  Those videos and more can be viewed on the GVSHP channel.

Rally + Press Conference: BP Stringer Vote 'NO' on the NYU Expansion Plan

On Thursday, March 22 at 12 noon on the steps of City Hall, join the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation (GVSHP), community and preservation groups, NYU faculty and students, and tenants of the North and South Blocks for a Rally and Press Conference to Request from Borough President Stringer a Public Hearing and a Vote "No" on NYU's Expansion Plan. 

Learn more at the GVSHP website. To help, the GVSHP recommends the following actions:

Template for Letter to Scott Stringer

Dear Neighbor:

By now you’re probably aware that NYU is planning to turn your backyard—and all of Greenwich Village—into a massive construction site.

What this means for all of us: 18 years of dust, smoke, cranes, debris, late-night and early-morning truck deliveries, and jackhammers. The university’s 2031 plan will also destroy public parks, playgrounds, dog runs, beloved community gardens, and our local grocery store.

It’s not too late to stop this awful plan. But we need your help. Please take a moment to write a letter and mail it to Borough President Scott Stringer. We’ve included a sample letter to give you some ideas, but please make it your own.

Every letter counts: Stringer wants to be mayor. If we ALL just take a moment of our time, we can save our homes and neighborhood for the next 18 years.

Thank you!

A template has been included below -- please feel free to write your own reasons for wanting to save our neighborhood (“I want a safe playground for my children,” or “I like trees and birds”).  Also, you can download the letter template here.

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Updated: NY Times Reporting on the NYU Expansion Plan

The NYU Expansion Plan was recently covered by the New York Times.

It is perhaps the largest project ever proposed for Greenwich Village, and it has angered many residents in the area as few issues have recently. Opponents say the development would mar one of New York’s signature neighborhoods. A huge expansion of New York University is vital, school officials say, but some neighbors oppose its size and density.

Photo: Flowers Not Towers

Walk through the neighborhood or attend a NYU 2031 hearing and you'll likely see signs of protest like the ones below. All photographs courtesy of Hubert J Steed.

Rhoma Has Long Admired the Sasaki Garden Because...

As a resident of this neighborhood, I have long admired the Sasaki Garden in Washington Square Village. Sasaki was a well-known landscape architect and his innovations in the Sasaki garden are well known in the history of landscape architecture.

NYU is turning a deaf ear to the pleas of its neighbors and residents of the community who do not want the
 

Media Coverage of NYU 2031-related Events

Community Board 2 hosted a round of hearings in February on NYU 2031 and the board unanimously voted against the NYU 2031 ULURP Applications on Thursday, Feb. 23, 2012. The community board's rejection of the plan was covered The Epoch Times, Washington Square News, NY1, Fox 5 News, Globe St.com, The Local East Village  (NYU Journalism Institute + NY Times), and The New School Free Press.

NYU President John Sexton led a Town Hall Meeting for NYU students on Feb. 28, 2012 and that meeting was covered here (Capital New York).

The next step is a vote from Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer. Mr. Stringer will begin deliberating the NYU plan on March 11th and must vote by April 11th (he will submit his recommendation to the City Planning Commission). Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation, NYU Graduate Workers Union, Downtown Independent Democrats, and Chelsea Council of Block Associations have asked Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer to schedule a public hearing during his deliberation period. This request was reported on by The Local East Village.

For previous media coverage of the NYU 2031 ULURP see Press Coverage of Jan. 2012 CB2 Hearings on NYU 2031 and Press Coverage of the Jan. 4, 2012 Community United Town Hall.  If we have omitted any coverage, please let us know by leaving a comment.