Jim Cavanaugh, Mayor Spano’s former deputy mayor, defends the City Council’s decision to rezone the Domino Sugar property by asserting that the D-MX zone has already “successfully facilitated the development of thousands of new housing units and a public linear park that opened the waterfront to the public for the first time in many generations.”
What he does not address are the central arguments I raised in my opinion pieces: that the City Council gave away its statutory authority without any guarantees; that it granted future developers sweeping development rights without an in-depth, site-specific study; and that it did so without meaningful community input. In short, the Council pre-zoned a once-in-a-generation, 25-acre waterfront site before knowing who would build it, what they would propose, or what the impacts would be.
Since this is Super Bowl Sunday, you could look at it this way: the Council was supposed to be on the field, negotiating every down. Instead, before kickoff, it voluntarily took itself out of the big game. That is not planning — it is pre-game surrender.
Zoning is the City’s strongest negotiating tool. Once it is granted, leverage disappears. By locking in height, density, and scale in advance, the Council walked away from its obligation to shape future development in the public interest and to protect surrounding neighborhoods and the City as a whole from bad development.
Mr. Cavanaugh curiously undercuts his own argument when he concedes: “Not everyone loves the DMX zone. Some people are happy with the downtown’s growth while others want nothing but low rise. That’s a legitimate argument to have.”
He’s right—it is a legitimate argument. But that is precisely the argument the Council ducked by rezoning first without asking questions. Instead of facilitating a debate on whether the D-MX zone was appropriate for this large 25-acre site that isn’t even part of the City’s street grid, the Council foreclosed it by granting maximum development rights upfront.
Mr. Cavanaugh also suggests that a future SEQRA review will fully protect the public interest. It will not. SEQRA evaluates possible environmental impacts; it does not, renegotiate fundamental decisions that have already been made. Once any environmental concerns are addressed, the developer will still have broad discretion to decide what gets built.
I am not arguing against redevelopment of the Domino property. In fact, I am an enthusiastic supporter of new development on the waterfront that improves the life of the people who already live in the neighborhood, and at the same time fosters economic growth. What I object to is that the Council abdicated their responsibility by issuing an automatic extension of the D-MX zone without any consideration of the alternatives. On a site of this scale and importance, leadership would have meant patience, scrutiny, and strategic use of leverage, to ensure that the best possible development is ultimately approved.
With their premature decision, It is clear our Council lacks the kind of leadership our City needs.
