Starrett City, Brooklyn
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Starrett City is a neighborhood in Brooklyn, New York. Starrett City opened in 1974, and in 2002, changed its name to the Spring Creek Towers.[1] The neighborhood is part of Brooklyn Community Board 5.
Starrett City spans over 153 acres (0.62 km²) and has 5,881 apartment units in 46 buildings.[2]
It has eight "sections" in which each include several buildings, its own field, recreational area (jungle gym, park, handball court, basketball court) and its own garage for the residents in that section. These sections are Ardsley, Bethel, Croton, Delmar, Elmira, Freeport, Geneva, and Hornell; each named after municipalities in upstate New York. Each building has between 11 and 20 floors, with 8 apartments on most floors. All of the apartment buildings have a street address as well as a building name consisting of one letter from A-H, and one number from 1-8. In this case, A5 would refer to the fifth building of Ardsley Loop.
Starrett City is a very diverse neighborhood. With its many grassy fields, Fresh Creek, and Spring Creek Towers Shopping Center, it is different in landscape, community, and neighborhood life than other regions of Brooklyn.
Starrett City maintains its own Special Police Force and publishes their own community newspaper known as the Spring Creek Sun.[3][4]
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[edit] Sale to Clipper Equity LLC
[edit] Announcement and reaction
On November 30, 2006, Starrett City Associates, the owner of the complex, began to offer the sale of the entire property, raising fears that a new owner will raise rents and squeeze out current tenants.[5] CB Richard Ellis, which brokered the Peter Cooper Village/Stuyvesant Town deal earlier in 2006, will serve as the listing agent.[6] Real estate analysts predict that the complex could be auctioned for over $1 billion.[7]
Upon finding out about the sale, tenants at Starrett City began organizing in response to the sale of their homes. The state's largest tenants rights group, Tenants and Neighbors[1], met with Starrett tenants to inform them of their rights and options. Currently, the Starrett City tenants have partnered with the community activist organization ACORN to form Save Starrett City.
[edit] Clipper Equity's first proposal
On February 8, 2007, at 3AM, Starrett City Associates agreed to sell the sprawling complex to Clipper Equity LLC for a staggering $1.3 billion[8]. The buyers say that the complex has a great potential to develop new housing communities, both luxury and affordable. Although they insist that the complex will remain affordable, housing advocates continue to be concerned with rent raise and service cuts, forcing its current moderate-income residents out of the complex over time. New York's Mayor Michael Bloomberg expressed doubt about Clipper Equities intentions and contrasted the sale to the similar Stuyvesant Town sale. Bloomberg called Tishman Speyer, the purchaser of Stuyvesant Town, a reputable landlord, compared to Clipper Equities. "There are questions about this landlord and some of the plans that they have to build other things there," he said.[9] Similarly, Congressmen Anthony Weiner and Edolphus Towns have expressed concern about the sale and indicated that federal hearings may be held into the matter.[10] Senator Charles Schumer has gone even further and "vowed ... that he would not allow the deal to go through without an ironclad agreement from any buyer that Starrett stays affordable."[11]
[edit] Clipper Equity's second proposal
In response to HUD's rejection of the deal, Clipper Equity has scrambled to propose a new bid aimed at appeasing its critics. Clipper's new bid claims that it can "trim operating expenses by installing new heating and cooling systems, lowering management fees and improving overall efficiencies," and thus keep housing affordable. The bid further raises the possibility of turning some 6,000,000 square feet (560,000 m²) of undeveloped land on the property into "new housing for the senior residents, a retirement facility for members of the city’s labor unions and small-scale retail, with a designated area for local entrepreneurs."[12] Additionally, the New York Observer reported that Rudy Giuliani's former mayoral chief of staff Bruce Teitelbaum, an investor in Clipper Equity, is heavily lobbying politicians to accept the new proposal.[13] Clipper Equity has taken other steps to garner support, including hiring Teitelbaum's lobbyist wife Suri Kasirer, Brad Card, brother of Andrew Card, architects from Beyer Blinder Belle, as well as lobbyists from the law firm of Nixon Peabody, and receiving informal backing from influential ministers Rev. Calvin O. Butts and Rev. A.R. Bernard.[14]
On April 7, 2007, the New York State Department of Housing and Community Renewal Commissioner Deborah Van Amerongen rejected Clipper Equity's second proposal. She stated that Clipper's plan for rents to reach market rate after three years failed to adequately protect residents and would require increased government subsidies to keep housing there affordable. Nevertheless, Clipper Equity has time to submit a third proposal, and a Clipper spokeswoman announced that the developer would persist with the sale.[15]
In an effort to preempt Clipper Equity and Starrett City Associates, Sen. Schumer and state politicians are vigorously backing a bill to force Starrett City to remain in the Mitchell-Lama Housing Program, as both the buyer and seller have indicated they would opt out.[16]
[edit] Schools
Abe Stark Elementary School, (P.S.346)
Gateway Intermediate School, (I.S. 364)
The nearest high schools, Canarsie High School and South Shore High School are located in Canarsie.
[edit] References
- ^ Close-Up on Starrett City, Brooklyn, The Village Voice, April 6, 2005
- ^ With Starrett City Deal Nearly Dead, Developer Tries Again
- ^ Starrett Police Force
- ^ Spring Creek Sun
- ^ Starrett City owners eye Stuy-high offers, New York Daily News, December 1, 2006
- ^ Agent says auction for residential complex. Shanghai Daily, December 4, 2006
- ^ Brooklyn Apartment Complex Could Fetch $1B-Plus, Commercial Property News, December 1, 2006
- ^ Apartment Complex in Brooklyn Sold for $1.3 Billion
- ^ Mayor wary of new Starrett owners, The Real Deal, February 9, 2007
- ^ Congressmen Call For Hearings Into Starrett City Sale, NY1, Feb. 11, 2007
- ^ Schumer to New Starrett Owners: Keep It Affordable or Else, The New York Observer's The Real Estate blog, Feb. 12, 2007
- ^ Starrett City bidder readies new proposal, Crain's New York Business, Mar. 9, 2007
- ^ Bruce T. and Chuck S. Rumble in Starrett City, The New York Observer, Mar. 19, 2007
- ^ Aspiring Buyer of Starrett City Is Back Onstage, New York Times, Apr. 6, 2007
- ^ NY state housing chief rejects new Starrett City bid, Associated Press, Apr. 8, 2007
- ^ Clipper, Government Fight for Starrett City, GlobeSt.com, Apr. 13, 2007
