Court Halts Broadway Triangle Rezoning Plan

New York, NY —

Less than 24 hours after the City Council approved the rezoning of Brooklyn's Broadway Triangle, the project is on hold.

Manhattan State Supreme Court Justice Emily Goodman granted a temporary restraining order until a March hearing for opponents who claim the city planning process illegally favored friends of the Bloomberg administration.

Marty Needleman is a lawyer for the Broadway Triangle Community Coalition. "The court, in staying the process, has taken the first step in stopping this political deal from being implemented, at the great expense to fairness, and racial and religious equity," Needleman says.

The city’s plan calls for building nearly 2,000 housing units on a former industrial site. The parcels would be transferred to two nonprofits, United Jewish Organizations of Williamsburg and Ridgewood Bushwick Senior Citizens Council.

The city's law department says it's disappointed by the judge's order, but doesn't consider it a reflection of the merits of the lawsuit itself.