![](https://erikmcgregor.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/EM-200818-NoGowanusRezoning-002.jpg)
Brooklyn, NY – Gowanus residents organized a banner drop during rush hour at an overpass over the Prospect expressway in Brooklyn on August 18, 2020 to call on elected officials to oppose the proposed Gowanus rezoning.
![](https://erikmcgregor.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/EM-200818-NoGowanusRezoning-011.jpg)
Concerned residents are asking Public Advocate Williams and Councilmembers Lander and Levin to ensure that the Department of City Planning conducts a racial impact study prior to the certification of the proposed Gowanus rezoning.
![](https://erikmcgregor.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/EM-200818-NoGowanusRezoning-009.jpg)
The Gowanus rezoning, which will be the largest rezoning undertaken under the de Blasio administration, is the perfect opportunity to show the value and importance of such a study to ensure that social justice—racial, environmental, and economic—is at the center of NYC’s development.
![](https://erikmcgregor.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/EM-200818-NoGowanusRezoning-004.jpg)
Real-estate developers are just itching to rezone Gowanus and reap the financial rewards, but we question the wisdom of doing so right now. The current limitations to large in-person gatherings and public engagement due to the pandemic substantially undermine the key process by which the public holds power accountable during land-use reviews.
![Residents oppose proposed Gowanus rezoning](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50243358612_5e30b4f061_z.jpg)
© Erik McGregor – erikrivas@hotmail.com – 917-225-8963