Garment District Rezoning Postponed Amid Stakeholder Concerns, City Says
(DNAINFO) Maya Rajamani | August 18, 2017 — The city is postponing its controversial plan to introduce zoning changes in the Garment District — just days before the Department of City Planning was scheduled to review it, a spokeswoman said.
At a press conference Friday morning, elected officials, Garment District workers and designers including Anna Sui asked the city’s Economic Development Corporation to set aside space for manufacturers in the Garment District and ensure “real estate stability” for its businesses before it moves ahead with a plan to eliminate preservation rules for manufacturing in the area.
City Planning was slated to review the proposal on Monday, Aug. 21, but a few hours after Friday’s press conference, an EDC spokeswoman confirmed the department would be postponing the review “to provide more time to work with stakeholders and review proposals.”
The city hasn’t set a new date for the start of the review process, the spokeswoman added.
EDC’s proposal had included eliminating a rule requiring building owners to preserve manufacturing space in the Special Garment Center District, and providing incentives for manufacturers interested in relocating to Sunset Park in Brooklyn.