BQE Path to Growth Won't Be Through My Backyard
The New York State Department of Transportation has started public outreach on plans to rebuild or replace a section of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway that runs along the edge of Brooklyn Heights, including a section that extends into the air off a cantilever. That engineering feat was imposed after Brooklyn Heights residents beat back a proposal by Robert Moses to have the highway go through the historic neighborhood in the 1950s. His spirit lives on, however, as one scenario, described by State DOT as the "worst case" would have required the demolition of a stretch of the north Heights, including the house in which my wife and I currently live. We were not thrilled with this prospect.
Facing a situation similar to that of the protagonist, Arthur Dent, I brushed off my copy of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and reminded myself of its soothing suggestion: DON'T PANIC.
Sure enough, local officials vowed to stop condemnation of homes in the Brooklyn Heights Historic District. DOT soon beat a hasty retreat. Having apparently determined that they have had to relocate 300-400 families, as well as raze 80 commercial properties, they have taken this concept off the table.
DOT will study other options, including the alternative of tunneling under Brooklyn Heights from Atlantic Avenue to the Brooklyn Bridge. While that might have some additional short term costs, on a life-cycle basis there could be real savings as well as opportunities for waterfront revitalization. I have long been an advocate of replacing the Gowanus Expressway with a tunnel for the same reasons. That alternative (.pdf), conceived by the Regional Plan Association, is currently under consideration. The RPA suggested a Brooklyn Heights bypass some years back, but it didn't attract much attention. State DOT has been aware for decades that the cantilever needed major repairs. It would have made sense to accelerate their planning and throw construction of Brooklyn Bridge Park into the project when it was done, but the State missed the opportunity.
