Community Pushes Back on Thor Equities Plan, by Noah Phillips

After years of speculation and rumors about Thor Equities’ intentions for its waterfront holding at 280 Richards Street, representatives from the company unveiled the “Red Hoek Point” at a well-attended Community Board 6 Land Use committee meeting.

The December 1 presentation at the Miccio Center was given by Ethan Goodman, Director of New York Planning & Project Management at Fox Rothschild (land use council to Thor Equities), and Catherine Dannenbring, Director of Development at Thor Equities.

As presented, “Red Hoek Point” will be a two building office complex designed with an eye for tech companies. The site will house retail on the ground floor along with an esplanade and other amenities, such as a bicycle valet service for the young professionals working there.

“There’s a lot of thought that’s gone into this project,” said Goodman during the presentation. ”Thor has come up with this project not only because it’s economically feasible, which for any developer is a number one consideration, but also because amongst all the potential uses out there Thor believes this is one that will be met with the most positive reception and success, not only with the office market but also in terms of the community.”

While Thor Equities can build Red Hoek Point as-of-right, meaning it will not need any zoning changes, the company is seeking relief from the standards regulating its parking capacity and its bulkheads. The December 1 presentation focused on the parking requirements, as the company is hoping for a thumbs-up from CB 6 on December 22 before its application appears before the Board of Standards and Appeals (BSA).

BSA can grant up to a 50% reduction in required parking spaces for office developments. As Red Hoek Point will be primarily offices, Thor Equities is seeking the full reduction, which would leave around 1,100 spaces.

“As we’re seeing up and down the Brooklyn Waterfront, and in developments all over the place, the kind of people that are working at these office uses… tend not to drive to work,” said Goodman. “They don’t own cars, they don’t like to drive to work, and they find other modes to get to work, so we think that in actuality, the demand will be much lower than even that.”

The meeting’s attendees were not convinced. While many of those present seemed impressed by the look and design, many voiced concerns both about Thor Equities’ approach to neighborhood relations and about how the development would impact the community.

“To say the least, this is our first time seeing you, or speaking to you, and it kind of sounds like you already have your ideas,” said Karen Blondell. “I understand this is an as-of-right project, but we’re still looking for you to be a good neighbor and include us in your conversations. And I don’t see that happening.”

Blondell is a founding member of a group called the Red Hook Community Collaboration, which has put forward ideas such as the development providing space for local non-profits, organizing a tech internship for local youth, and creating a watchdog group to monitor the company’s conduct.

Thor Equities’ representatives said that they were eager to engage with the community, and that they had hired Joni Yoswein’s PR firm, Yoswein New York, for that very purpose.

“We are just coming out here, and we will be out here for months going forward” said Goodman. “This is the beginning of a process.”

Responding to a question from John McGettrick about sewage capacity, Dannenbring said that Red Hoek Point would capture its rainwater and handle outflow directly.

Carolina Salguero, Founder and President of PortSide, pointed out that the two major complexes adjoining the site, those housing IKEA and Fairway, already have esplanades that are underutilized. She offered PortSide’s services in optimizing the shoreline with more water-centric programming.

Finally, Dannenbring indicated that their plan involved replacing the cobblestones on Beard Street with regular pavement, and integrating the salvaged stones into their complex. Community Board 6 has gone on record in favor of maintaining Red Hook’s remaining cobblestones.

It struck community members as odd that Thor Equities, as of yet, has no leases signed for the property despite its avowed marketing efforts.

Sustainable Commitments

In 2004, community opposition was ignored and a rezoning that forever changed downtown Brooklyn was passed by the City Council. A generation of small business owners that catered to lower income African-American consumers was basically evicted from the Fulton Mall as property owners took advantage of the increased property values that the zoning change (allowing much larger buildings) produced.

One of the beneficiaries of this plan was Joseph Sitt, owner of Thor Equities. He had purchased the Albee Mall in 2001, financially supported and testified for the pro-business Downtown Business Partnership that proposed the plan, and once it passed began evicting all his tenants. In 2007, he sold off the mall, netting a profit of $100 million on a $25 million investment.

This is the same Thor Equities that is now asking for two zoning changes on its Red Hook property, and appeared before Community Board 6.

Perhaps the most resonant comments were made toward the end of the meeting by David Estrada, Councilman Carlos Menchaca’s chief of staff. Menchaca was hoping to make the meeting himself, but had multiple meetings throughout the district that evening, so Estrada spoke in his stead.

“Community engagement means nothing if the input of the community cannot be demonstrated within the outcome, said Estrada. “Ownership changes, times change, economics change, and if there are community benefits built into this, there needs to be a formal mechanism [to sustain those benefits].”

Estrada reiterated Menchaca’s earlier statements to the group, charging Thor Equities to demonstrate its good faith by both making real changes to the project based on the community’s wishes and making sure that those changes will survive change of ownership and occupancy “in terms that themselves are sustainable and resilient, verifiable and enforceable.”

“I think that those things are in your reach, you’ve said all the things that sound good,” Estrada continued. “I don’t doubt that those are aspirations, but if they’re not commitments, then they haven’t served this community.”

It remains to be seen whether these valuable variances, if granted, will benefit the currently tenantless Red Hoek Point, or whether they will simply be a useful selling point if Sitt decides to flip the property.