Columbia already owned most (but not all) of the land in the Manhattanville area by the time it announced its plan, and at this time there remain only two private landowners in the expansion footprint. However, the expansion area was zoned for low-rise manufacturing uses, and in order to develop its new campus, Columbia had to enter the city’s Uniform Land Use Review Process (ULURP) to get the area rezoned to what was termed the “Special Manhattanville Mixed-Use District”.
ULURP is a process that all rezoning has to go through in the city of New York. It requires a comprehensive environmental review analyzing all the potential impacts that the changes, and the projects they are tied to, will have on the surrounding communities.
This process has four parts –
First, the Community Board reviews the application, calls a public hearing, and issues its official recommendation. This recommendation is advisory and non-binding.
Second, the Manhattan Borough President reviews the application, calls a public hearing, and issues a similar advisory recommendation.
Third, the City Planning Commission (CPC) reviews the application, calls the public hearing, and issues its official recommendation. The CPC’s recommendation is binding, and the body has the ability to modify plans.
Finally, the City Council approves the CPC-approved application, including any changes, and makes the final vote on the plan.
The process was codified in 1975, on the heels of the formation of Community Boards that meant to decentralize and democratize the city’s approach to planning in the wake of the Robert Moses era of develop of secretive development projects.
The process is meant to be open and transparent, allowing for public participation. Unfortunately, while there are public hearings, there are no mechanisms in place to guarantee that the public testimony is actually considered by the relevant authorities. In many cases, as in that of the Columbia plan, the key deals are worked out before the process even begins. SCEG believes that the entire process is far from democratic; rather, it was an elaborate farce to give the plan legitimacy despite being opposed time and time again by the community.
So, what happened?
June 15th, 2007 – The Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) was completed by Columbia and certified by the Department of City Planning, meaning that the ULURP clock could begin. Efforts by the West Harlem Local Development Corporation, State Sen. Bill Perkins and Community Board 9 to push back the date of consideration, because the Community Board was on summer recess and Columbia students were on summer vacation, were rejected.
August 20th, 2007 – Community Board 9 holds a hearing on the plan. In line with the massive community opposition voiced at this event, including the booing of Columbia President Lee Bollinger and former Mayor David Dinkins, the Board votes against the plan by a vote of 32-2, with one abstention. The Board comes up with ten conditions that would lead to its approval of the plan around eminent domain, underground construction, affordable housing retention and construction, and other relevant issues. Columbia never meets with the Community Board to negotiate a compromise on land-use issues, despite publicly expressing concern.
September 26th, 2007 – Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, after a public hearing in which the majority of speakers forcefully urged his rejection of the plan, issues a “conditional approval” of the plan. He announces a deal with President Bollinger regarding an Affordable Housing Fund of approximately 20 million dollars to combat secondary displacement, along with various toothless commitments to “respecting the 197-a plan” and “avoiding eminent domain”. Neighborhood critics are angry because all negotiations were supposed to go through the West Harlem LDC, not through separate deals with politicians.
October 3rd, 2007 – The City Planning Commission holds a hearing on the rezoning. According to its own documents, 60 speakers “opposed” or “conditionally opposed” Columbia’s plan, while only 22 speakers spoke out in favor of it – this despite the fact that the meeting was held downtown, far from the affected community. Nevertheless, the CPC overwhelmingly approves the proposal, with one abstention from Commissioner Irwin Cantor and one negative vote from Commissioner Karen Phillips. It stated that the Community Board’s 197-a plan, even substantially revised to accommodate Columbia’s space needs, would not meet Columbia’s needs as well as Columbia’s plan.
December 12th, 2007 – The City Council holds its public hearing on the expansion. Once again, most testifying in favor of the expansion are affiliated with or business partners of the university, whereas the anti-expansion majority comes from students, residents, and members of community organizations in the area.
December 19th, 2007 – The City Council unexpectedly decides to vote on the plan before its winter recess, although the ULURP clock allows it to wait until January. Attempts by Councilmen Charles Barron (D-Brooklyn) and Tony Avella (D-Queens) to block the vote fail. Harlem councilmembers Robert Jackson and Inez Dickens are in the forefront of advocating for the plan, incredibly arguing that it will enhance the amount of affordable housing available in Harlem. Many councilmembers clearly are unfamiliar with the plan, with Councilwoman Gale Brewer (D-Manhattan) asking if Community Board 9 had approved it (it had, of course, rejected it almost unanimously). Nevertheless, because of the political support of Dickens and Jackson, the plan passed by a crushing majority, with 35 in favor, 5 opposed, and 6 abstentions.
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Student Coalition on Expansion and Gentrification 