The East Harlem Media Entertainment Cultural Center is the official name for the planned mixed-use development on the north side of East 125th Street, between 2nd and 3rd Avenue (top photo). There's currently an open lot used for parking and one notable tenement building housing an antique store on this block of 125th Street. The 126th Street side directly behind this corridor consist mainly of a huge, overgrown, vacant lot that had been abandoned for years. From the lower map, the planned $700 million project partly spearheaded by mall developer, General Growth Properties, can be seen in its full scope in relation to 125th Street (which is the two lane thoroughfare crossing diagonally from the left hand of the illustration). Eminent domain once more was set to be put into motion in the planning of this mega project, but all came to a halt last year since the recession caused the developers to file for bankruptcy. We haven't heard much about the commercial aspect of the East Harlem MEC ever since, but the one affordable residential component loosely affiliated with the project just broke ground last month ( it's the building at the far lower left corner of the the map). Does anyone have an update? Read more about the mall developer's problem's in last year's NY Times: LINK. See more East Harlem MEC plans here: LINK. Top photo by Ulysses
Ulysses,
ReplyDeleteThis project is still on. General Growth Properties will likely not be a part of the project given their financial issues, but other developers have indicated readiness to proceed without GGP. Some of the commercial tenants to be displaced have filed a suit to block the project, but my sense is the suit might get them some extra money; it won't block the eminent domain procedure. Timing is still in question but keep in mind that the city is coordinating this project, so it has a leg up on other stalled commercial developments in terms of viability.
To add one more comment (I'm the first poster), I think there is a very good chance that you see real movement on this project by year end.
ReplyDeleteThe local property owners (not commercial tenants) have a strong case against Eminent Domain, given the findings of the Columbia case which destroyed the "Blight" arguments. They want to be able to develop their own properties and have the same advantage of a "bump" in the zoning that the City has given away to Archstone/GGP/Carey Group/Whomever. For more info look at this link:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.eastharlempreservation.org/docs/E125Street.htm
The local property owners shouldn't have a case. The area is full of blight. It has been neglected. It's unfortunate that the city has to lead in the development of the area but that's still better than status quo.
ReplyDeleteI agree, this project is undoubtedly in the best interests of the neighborhood. #3 sounds like one of the property owners suing to block this. I am a regular customer of the dry cleaner on 126th and 3rd, but I hope this block is razed for the MEC center.
ReplyDelete"The local property owners shouldn't have a case. The area is full of blight. It has been neglected. It's unfortunate that the city has to lead in the development of the area but that's still better than status quo."
ReplyDelete- the area's been full of "blight" because the city owns all of the blighted areas. If you take a close look at the privately owned properties and the city owned properties, you'll see that the privately owned ones all have businesses on them, while the city owned ones just sit there collecting garbage. It's ironic how the city will neglect their properties for decades, and then turn around and say "hey, we need to kick these people out from their homes and businesses because the area's been blighted for decades!" What a sham.
So the city owns those garbage-strewn vacant lots...interesting.
ReplyDeleteAnon 3:30 (here),
ReplyDeleteDoes the city also own the vacant lots on Park Avenue between 127th and 125th? It's horrifying to walk through there mid-day, let alone walking through there at midnight.