Park West Village

Paul Bunten and his fellow Westsiders for Public Participation have spent little time resting over the past months. The group of activists have continued to rally against the development of Columbus Village, a massive building project of residential and retail space, even as it continues to rise.

Residents of the Upper West Side development between 97th and 100th Streets along Columbus Avenue crowded into Second Presbyterian Church to strike back against the continued construction of Columbus Village, a commercial undertaking that locals say could permanently alter PWV’s landscape. It was the first official meeting of Westsiders for Public Participation, a group established to increase community involvement in the raising—and the prevention—of the commercial structures at Columbus Village.

After vocally opposing the continued construction of Columbus Village—a commercial and residential development being built amid the affordable housing complex, Park West Village—PWV resident Paul Bunten filed a lawsuit Friday that would force the developer to comply with land regulations. Columbus Village, which is currently being constructed along both sides of Columbus Avenue between 97th and 100th Streets, would include over 320,000 feet of retail space and five residential towers, some as tall as 29 stories. Many PWV residents and other community members feel the construction is both unattractive and detrimental to the neighborhood.

Construction at Columbus Avenue between 97th and 100th Streets continues to rattle windows and ruffle its neighbors’ feathers this week after city inspectors lifted an order that stopped some of the work in late July when a retaining wall at the site collapsed.