Stephanie Lazzara has lived in a one-bedroom apartment in Windsor Terrace for 14 years at what she says is an affordable rate. As a single mother who works two jobs, she fears a large development will force her out.
"There's rent-stabilized, there's people like me who have lived here for a really long time. We have great landlords who have kept the rents affordable for us because they know we can't afford that market-rate so we would have to move out," Lazzara said.
Her home is book-ended by Arrow Linen Supply — an industrial laundry company that wants the city to rezone its U-shaped lot along Prospect Avenue so it can move the business and develop the property into two 13-story towers with 244 apartments, 61 of which would be affordable.
“I’ve always hoped it would turn into housing. Did I hope it would turn into 13 to 19 stories and block all of my light and possibly displace me from my apartment? No," Lazzara said.
Members of the group "Housing Not Highrises" sued to block the city's land-use review process, but were denied. However, Brooklyn's Community Board 7 advised against Arrow's rezoning application last week and recommended further community engagement.
One homeowner said she feels like her voice has not been heard.
“Decisions are being made without the consultation, without the engagement of the community," said longtime resident Luz Torres. “The feeling I get is you must accept this whether you want this or not.”
Members of the lobbying group and advocacy organization Open New York, which pushes for housing development and tenant protections, support the complex and say it's exactly what the city needs to address the housing shortage.
"It is very clearly a progressive position now to be open to more homes and to be building mores homes and that really means the homes that are going to get built. We need affordable housing, we also need market-rate housing, we need housing of all types," said AnneMarie Gray, executive director of Open New York.
According to the NYU Furman Center, no new affordable housing units have been built in Windsor Terrace since 2008. Some residents who support the project believe it will make the neighborhood more diverse and affordable.
"We are deeply underbuilt here and this site is perfect, it's currently a commercial laundry and it's right by transit. I think it would be a win for the neighborhood if it was built as tall as it could be," said Courtney Adrian, a Windsor Terrace resident.
Others like Lazzaro said they fear of getting priced out. The next step in the land-use review process is an official hearing before the Brooklyn borough president next week.