http://www.planNYC.org/ PlanNYC | New York City Planning Information Portal en-us ja3n@earthlink.net http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=33#4460 The 17-acre site where Columbia University plans to expand is considered blighted by the Empire State Development Corporation (ESDC), a declaration that is needed in order to proceed with the use of eminent domain to take two properties whose owners have not yet agreed to sell. Opponents of the expansion and the courts are questioning the decision by the State to use the same consulting firm, AKRF, which did an environmental study of the area for the school. A public hearing is expected in September on the topic, according to the ESDC. 2008-07-17 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=33#4454 The Empire State Development Corporation (ESDC) was instructed to make documents involving the Columbia University expansion available to the public. On Tuesday, a state appellate court reached this decision, which supports Justice Shirley Werner Kornreich's ruling in the State Supreme Court in June 2007. In 2007 the court ruled that it was a conflict of interest for the ESDC to employ a consultant who also worked for Columbia University and therefore communication documents between ESDC and the consultant ought to be released to the public. The ESDC hired the consultant to determine whether the State’s use of eminent domain to obtain property for Columbia was within their right. The appellate court ruled that some of these documents were excused from public disclosure. Members of the West Harlem Business Group, an organization opposed to the university’s expansion, have been trying to obtain these documents for a while and are pleased with the appellate court’s decision. 2008-07-15 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=33#4440 Columbia University bought a key property in the footprint of its planned expansion. The property, located at 2293 12th Avenue, was owned by the Nebraska Meat Corporation. The price tag for the transaction was $6.968 million. 2008-07-11 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=33#4326 A landowner, previously holding out against Columbia's expansion, made a deal with the university for her property. Now that Ms. Whitman has agreed to trade her property for another property located in Washington Heights, only two landowners remain in the planned expansion area. Whitman formerly stated she would force Columbia to use eminent domain in order to move, even after the University offered $4 million for the building her moving and storage business is located in. She took a deal yesterday including the property in Washington Heights as well as a newly constructed building to be paid for by Columbia on the site. 2008-06-11 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=33#4214 Columbia's expansion is set to begin in Manhattanville, but three business owners, who own 10 percent of the land in the footprint of the expansion, have yet to strike a deal with the University to sell their properties. Community members are concerned that the State will deem the neighborhood blighted in order to allow the State to use eminent domain to acquire those properties. Columbia states they still hope to reach deals with these business owners. Opponents of the expansion believe that use of the State’s eminent domain power would be inappropriate because Columbia is a private institution. 2008-05-13 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=33#4186 The West Harlem Local Development Corporation says that it has been making progress towards a finalized community benefits agreement (CBA) with Columbia University over the past 4 months. While there is a memorandum of understanding in place involving funding from the university for the community, many have believed this to be a non-binding deal. With a community benefits agreement specifics on where funding is coming from and when it will be received as well as details on the number of jobs created are all being discussed at length by both parties. No timeline for its completion was given. 2008-05-05 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=33#4106 Ramon Diaz, the owner of a restaurant, bakery and tapas bar on 125th Street and Broadway, claims that Columbia University is unwilling to negotiate the relocation of his business. The owner of Floridita has been disputing a charge from Columbia that he owes at least $120,000 in overdue rent, real estate tax, and other charges with the University. Diaz claims that mistakes in invoicing are to blame. Representatives from Columbia have consistently said that they want to keep Floridita in the Manhattanville area. 2008-04-17 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=33#4027 Anne Whitman, the owner of a moving and storage company located in the historic Sheffield Farms Stable in Manhattanville, is requesting that Columbia University move her building several blocks south. The two parties were negotiating a sale of the building to Columbia, but Whitman has decided that she would rather the University relocate the building. The seven-story structure is listed on the State Register of Historic Places, but such a move would mean it would be taken off the list. There have been no estimates of the cost of this procedure. Representatives from the University say this request is implausible. 2008-04-03 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=33#4042 Anne Whitman, owner of a moving company in Harlem, is asking Columbia University to move her business’s historic structure four blocks south, instead of forcing her to sell the building. The building is historic, as it was first used to help the dairy processing plants nearby. Some believe that it is not unfeasible to relocate a structure and would be a win-win situation for Whitman and Columbia. 2008-04-03 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=33#4016 Governor David Paterson, a graduate of Columbia and a Harlem native, could play a key role in facilitating or hampering Columbia’s plans for expansion if eminent domain becomes an issue. While Paterson called for a moratorium on the use of eminent domain in 2005, it is not clear what his policy will be as Governor. Columbia is hopeful that they will not have to use eminent domain, but three property owners have yet to agree to a deal with the University. 2008-04-01 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=33#3994 Nick Sprayregen, a West Harlem businessman, has filed a petition to stop Columbia from continuing their plans to expand into West Harlem. His petition cites potential problems with the large underground space known as "the bathtub" that Columbia plans to build to house generators and storage for biohazard labs. Among other concerns, Sprayregen contends that these uses may make the development a target for terrorists. 2008-03-28 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=33#4008 A local business has filed a lawsuit about the environmental impact of the Columbia University expansion. The suit, by “Tuck it Away” Storage, argues that excavation needed for the development presents a risk of flooding, which could release hazardous materials into public streets. Columbia responded that its environmental review process was thorough. 2008-03-27 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=33#3972 Nick Sprayregen, a business owner in West Harlem whose property may be taken by eminent domain, filed a lawsuit against Columbia University and the City of New York on Wednesday. Sprayregen is opposing the rezoning proposal, which would allow the University to expand into West Harlem, claiming that the City did not completely evaluate the environmental implications of certain proposals made by the University. Lawyers Norman Siegel and Steve Silverberg will be arguing Sprayregen’s claims in court. 2008-03-26 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=33#3912 Several stakeholders of the real estate community are concerned that when Lt. Governor David Paterson assumes the governor position he may oppose the use of eminent domain on high-profile developments. According to the New York Sun, when Patterson was state Senate Leader he rallied for a statewide moratorium on the use of eminent domain. Potential developments that could be affected if Patterson opposes the use of eminent domain for economic development is Columbia University Expansion, Atlantic Yards in Brooklyn, and Shea Stadium in Willets Point Queens. No official statement by Patterson’s office on the subject matter has been released. 2008-03-14 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Issues&file=index&catid=1&issueid=33#3825 Several residents have voiced their concern that the design concepts of Columbia University’s Manhattanville expansion will not reflect the history and architecture of the surrounding Harlem area. Some community members and students feel that the “glass and steel” aspects of the new design do not reflect the area’s history. Columbia says that its plans will include architectural links between old and new architecture. 2008-02-25 00:00:00