The 2020 Livable Neighborhoods Program is Underway!
Welcoming Staten Island and Greenpoint
This year, MAS sought partners who were focused on shaping New York City’s public realm and protecting access to sunlight as a component of community-based planning efforts. Two partners were selected that are both experiencing change following neighborhood rezonings. One partner, the Brooklyn Youth Sports Club (BKYSC), is based in the Greenpoint neighborhood in Brooklyn and the other, the Staten Island Urban Center (SIUC), gathers neighborhoods along the North Shore of Staten Island.
SIUC and MAS are co-hosting a series of webinars and community conversations regarding the future development and investment on Staten Island’s North Shore. This neighborhood was rezoned in 2019 by the City but has been slow to see development progress as new projects have been abandoned. At the same time, there is uncertainty about the City’s ability to deliver promised neighborhood improvements in a period of slowed growth and austerity. The community aims to continue to forward a community-generated vision that prioritizes community economic development, stable housing, access to recreation and park facilities, quality education, and health as related to food and healthcare access.
BKYSC and MAS are collaborating to develop and deliver a series of modules targeted for 8th-10th graders in BKYSC’s Summer Academy, focusing on increasing youth’s understanding of land use planning and the public realm as well as helping them become stronger neighborhood advocates. Greenpoint, along with its next-door neighborhood Williamsburg, was rezoned by the City in 2005. As BKYSC serves youth throughout the borough, this gives students an opportunity to understand some of the changes to the neighborhood they have witnessed over the last few years while equipping them with the tools to shape it through advocacy.
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