Park West Residents Rally Around Lawsuit

Entering the Second Presbyterian Church, Anne Wangh immediately stood out from the stark white, ornately carved plaster walls. A red parka cloaked her petite frame, quiet alertness emanated from behind her gold-rimmed glasses. Wangh, like many of her neighbors, had been drawn to the church Monday night by the promise of change, though the events that would pass there would prove to be more of a beginning than a means to an end.

What drew Wangh to this church at West 96th Street is not what one would typically think of as worship, but it was indeed an act of faith. This faith, however, was not concentrated on a higher power, but more intrinsically vested in the members of the congregation.

Wangh is a seven-year resident of 788 Columbus Avenue, one of the seven original buildings that make up Park West Village—a residential complex originally designed as middle-income housing. Now, she, her Park West Village neighbors, and other community members are deeply troubled by a new commercial and residential development, Columbus Village, being constructed on both sides of Columbus Avenue between 97th and 100th streets.

“The huge shadow of the construction is being cast on me,” she said, adding later that, “The developers had to make a decision which building to sacrifice and they chose 788. We’re the sacrificial lambs.”

The construction of Columbus Village is the most recent in a series of changes that have drastically altered Park West Village since it was first constructed. Following the conversion of affordable apartments into luxury condominiums and mom and pop stores into chains, this new development will permanently alter both the physical and social landscape of the area.

While some, like Community Board 7 member Paul Fischer of West 97th Street, think the up and coming business enterprises—which would occupy 320,000 square feet—are “exciting for our neighborhood,” the majority of those in attendance at Monday night’s meeting staunchly disagreed.

“This is extraordinarily destructive of the community. It [Park West Village] was a real feather, a real beauty of the community,” Wangh said, adding, “We’re not that kind of area that should have a three-block-long commercial wall stamped in the middle of this very unique project.” David Dow, fellow 788 resident agreed, adding, “If I knew this building was going to be built right in front of me I wouldn’t have moved here.”

The purpose of Monday’s meeting was to disseminate information about a lawsuit brought by Paul Bunten of 372 Central Park West against the New York City Department of Buildings. According to the press release circulated by Bunten’s attorney, Jack Lester, the purpose of the lawsuit is “intended to force the developer of the proposed ‘Columbus Village’ to comply with land use regulations and respond to community interests.”

“This lawsuit is to ensure that all local stakeholders have a say,” Bunten said, adding that, “Full public participation has been delayed far too long. But it begins right here, right now.” To that end, Bunten announced the formation of a new community organization—Westsiders for Public Participation—that would allow more residents to get involved.

Standing up to address the congregation, Wangh threw her support behind Bunten and his cause. “We’re behind you Paul,” she exclaimed, “we’re with you.”

But while others also supported action against Columbus Village, many worried this lawsuit is coming too late. “This is a done deal anyways,” Fischer said. “It looks like we’re three or four years too late,” Joe Eisler, also a resident of 372, agreed.

Bunten responded to doubts saying, “don’t let a failure in imagination limit what we can do here.”

Maria Watson, Bunten’s neighbor and a former attorney, mentioned pushing for city review of the new development. According to Watson, New York’s standard land use review process should have been conducted before the Columbus Village project began, but there is no evidence any such evaluation took place.

In addition to concern about the impact of the new construction on the area’s infrastructure, residents like Shauna Zasslo of 784 raised concerns about how the construction was physically affecting the area’s landscape.

Zasslo noted the July collapse of a supporting wall located behind her building which led to the evacuation of all the building’s tenants to a nearby school for eight hours. Residents of the apartments closest to the collapse were not allowed to return for a week. “It was right by our laundry room,” Zasslo said, adding that in a report of the collapse released recently, “The engineers viewed the collapse as being caused by weakened bedrock.”

Zasslo’s comment on the areas potential physical instability raised further concerns: if the bedrock was already too weak to support a wall, then what could happen when the proposed 29 story tall residential tower was built in the same area? Residents fear that the results could be disastrous, and force them all to evacuate for much more than a few hours, maybe permanently.

“Our laundry room floor is reconfiguring,” Zasslo added, continuing to question the “structural soundness of the entire project.”

As if in response to Zasslo’s concerns, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer entered the church after having been delayed by an East Side construction disaster that killed an on-site worker earlier in the day.

“I do know how painful this process is. I know there has not been an easy answer to this. The developer has simply rolled this community,” Stringer said.

Community members also questioned the impact the Columbus Village construction could have on local schools. Richard Rubin, a parent of P.S. 163 students, voiced his concerned not only about the “number of students coming into our school” as a result of new Village residents, but also the location of a construction crane beside Happy Warrior Playground. According to Rubin, the New York City Department of Education came to examine the issue and “suggested we cancel recess, cancel all outdoor activity for the entire year.”

Stringer promised to contact the school’s Parent-Teacher Association Tuesday to resolve this debacle.

Despite the promises and optimism of Monday’s meeting, Bunten won’t give up the tenacity of his efforts. “We have talked till our faces are blue. Time to make them stop.”

As the meeting closed, Wangh gripped the back of the pew in front of her and rose to a triumphant shout for success: “Yes we can!”

lydia.wileden@columbiaspectator.com