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Hear Ye, Hear Ye!
(For hypocrisy!)
Ever since David Yassky (and his mother) decided his incompetence should be taken to a higher level, e.g.; New York City Comptroller my inbox has been teeming with missives from his minions about his many good deeds. Usually I ignore them bit this one is such a pisser I can’t resist posting it.
It goes on to say:
The priority of the Brooklyn Heights Association has been preservation of the low scale context of the Brooklyn Bridge and the best site for a new Middle School for the district. The current proposal, as well as the subsequent recommendation from the Department of City Planning, does not adequately reduce the size of the project to a scale that maintains the character of the immediate context or the integrity of the bridge itself,†said Tom van den Bout, President of the Brooklyn Heights Association. “An equally important, yet separate issue is whether the proposed building offers the most appropriate place for a much needed middle school. It is deeply troubling that the site selection process, and subsequent negotiation with the developer, has been so completely opaque. We seriously question whether a more appropriate site, offering a larger size and a more central location is not available.
Once again:
No other civilized country would permit this type of development to encroach upon and dominate its most sacred landmarks, whether we are talking about the Taj Mahal, the Eiffel Tower, or St. Paul’s Cathedral. If this project is approved, future generations will wonder at the shortsightedness of our political leaders, who approved a parking garage and retail spaces within one hundred feet of the American equivalent of the Eiffel Tower.
Yet— Councilman David Yassky— the defender of Brooklyn’s history— had no qualms about cock-blocking the land marking of this Cass Gilbert building, AKA: 184 Kent Street. Probably because the developer/Wolf Block/Kenny Fisher paid him off. Via Gotham Gazette:
Council member David Yassky, who represents the district where the building is located, led the fight to overturn the commission’s decision.
“This is simply not worthy of landmarking,” said Yassky.
Recently, Yassky helped broker a deal for the developer to give $335,000 to build affordable housing in the area in return for permission to alter the Austin Nichols building.
“I believe that the future of the waterfront is in residential development, and that is what we should be promoting,” he said.
Yassky was able to convince most of his colleagues, including Simcha Felder, who chairs the council’s landmarks committee, to support him.
“This is a piece of trash,” said Felder. “We should knock it down and put something nice up.”
So as to build something “nice” like this, perhaps? Or do only the more affluent neighborhoods in your gerrymandered district deserve protection? As a resident of north Brooklyn I wonder at your “short-sightedness” every day Mr. Yassky.
You met with Bob Guskind (deceased) last December. The 16th if my memory serves me correctly. This meeting was at your behest. As a close friend of Bob’s I can tell you he had trepidations about it. He said it would be much harder to “riff” on you if he met you in person, e.g.; you’d come off as a nice reasonable guy, etc. He was a “softie” that way. And as his friend (he recounted your conversation to me)Â I can say you succeeded. Somewhat. He said you came off “politician”. You made all the reasonable arguments. And then some.
Among the “concerns” you raised which he agreed with were derelict and abandoned properties. You laid blame on the MTA and the “city” for lack of planning. Simply put, you “kicked the can”. That’s easy to do when you don’t have to look at the following everyday. So much “trash” and lives trampled under foot by your vision of “progress”.
You are responsible, Dave. As the ostensible chair of the Newtown Creek Monitoring Committee you don’t show up much; you send your “community liaison”, Rami Metal, instead. Rami has started NBPac to get the artists engaged in their own eradication. You are ephemerally fighting for Newtown Creek and yet are against Superfunding Gowanus? Perhaps all the previous are why you are shilling for a to have “illegal” gates torn down and have effectively co-opted parks groups in north Brooklyn in partnership with OSA? And have licked Vito Lopez’s devil’s onion ring? You’ll do anything to get elected, David. You have no principles. Robert Guskind made this all too clear to me.
I didn’t go to the Brooklyn Blogfest this month but someone I know did. This was his first (and hopefully last) encounter with your funky bunch:
I knew nothing about David Yassky until I was approached by his minions at the blogfest last week. He actually got on stage and thank god the sound sucked there because no one heard his 5  minute spiel. His assistants, who, all look like hipsters or at least are in disguise to try and get the hipster vote came up to me prob because i was wearing a superfund gowanus tshirt. This guy with a handlebar moustache started trying to convince me otherwise about the superfund, the timeline being their  biggest worry (it will slow down the course of development) I gave him an earful and i think he didn’t expect me to be as informed about what is going on, who the players are, what exactly is wrong with the canal etc….this other girl stepped in and tried to change the course of the conversation by telling me about some mural project on india street…
I would not elect you, David Yassky, as an apprentice lavatory attendant, dog catcher, fluffer or pin setter at a bowling alley. All the previous “professions” are out-dated. As are you. What frightens me more than anything is the possibility/probability you will drop out of the Comptroller race and run for another term (courtesy of the term limits you overturned) in City Council. So you can screw over my neighborhood more thoroughly.
You will not get my vote either way. And I will encourage everyone I know to vote against you. And yours.
To quote Jack Nicholson:
Miss Heather
Comments
2 Comments on Hear Ye, Hear Ye!
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walrustaco on
Fri, 22nd May 2009 8:45 am
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missheather on
Fri, 22nd May 2009 12:44 pm
You’re right about all this. We do need to do something to make more room and (generally) decrease rents in NYC, but million-dollar condos on the water is not the way. The garbage that has gone up in Long Island City and especially Williamsburg is out of control. Considering the crap I’m starting to see on Franklin Street (and by crap I mean poorly-built eyesores), it is only a matter of time before the Greenpoint waterfront begins to look like that ridiculous series of developments on the WIlliamsburg coast. Next you think they’ll put up a Wall-mart.
Don’t forget the Viridian. The Mister and I are counting the days until squatters start moving in.
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