Battle to Preserve View of Brooklyn Bridge Ends After Judge Green Lights Controversial Hotel-Condo Project

June 17, 2015 — Community Board 5's Sunshine Taskforce isn't the only group fighting to keep super-tall condo buildings from ruining their view. Brooklyn locals have been trying to stop developers Toll Brothers and Starwood Capital Group from building a hotel and condo development "that critics say destroys majestic views of the Brooklyn Bridge." According to the New York Daily News, the group claims that the view of the bridge from the Brooklyn Heights Promenade was supposed to be protected by a deal hammered out with Brooklyn Bridge Park officials in 2005." But their fight came to an end last week, after the Supreme Court ruled that the developers can resume work on the Pierhouse hotel and condo project. The Daily News reports that the "there’s no evidence that the construction breaches the terms of the deal, which was drawn up under former Mayor Michael Bloomberg and former Governor George Pataki." Supporters of the controversial project, including Brooklyn Bridge Park Corp., insist that "the construction is vital to the fiscal stability of the park, which is being financed through revenue from several real estate developments." Without the super-tall structure there would be no park. Not surprisingly, local residents "said they were disappointed by the court’s decision and by the behavior of Brooklyn Bridge Park Corp., which they say places the interests of private developers above those of park-goers and neighborhood residents." Who needs an eyeful of one of the world's most beautiful bridges when you can stare at yet another shiny glass and steel structure instead?

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