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According to Mayor de Blasio and Council Speaker Johnson, the application is solely focused on changing the mapping of Rikers Island to end its use as a jail.
By Michael V. Cusenza
Ten days after announcing that it will close two jails—the Eric N. Taylor Center on Rikers Island and the Brooklyn Detention Complex, also known as “Brooklyn House”—next year, the City on Monday began the land use process to officially prohibit the incarceration of individuals on Rikers Island after Dec. 31, 2026, when the borough-based jail system is expected to be in operation.
The land use application filed Monday by the Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice, the Department of Correction and the Speaker of the City Council is the first step in the Uniform Land Use Review Process to change the island’s designation on the official City map to a public place.
“This is a major step for New York City, and shows our deep commitment to closing Rikers Island. We are moving away from the failed policies of mass incarceration and showing the world that Rikers’ days are numbered,” said Council Speaker Corey Johnson.
According to officials, the application is solely focused on changing the mapping of Rikers Island to end its use as a jail. The proposed mapping action does not lead to any new development or construction on its own, Johnson and Mayor Bill de Blasio noted. Any future plans will require a new planning and public review process, including a separate approval for any environmental review process as necessary.
According to the administration, Brooklyn House is set to shutter by the end of January; ENTC will close its doors for good in March. They will be the second and third jails closed by the administration, joining the George Motchan Detention Center, a former Rikers facility, which the City closed last year.
“The proposed change to the City map to establish Rikers Island as a public space solidifies the administration’s commitment to end incarceration in this space,” said Councilwoman Adrienne Adams, chairwoman of the Council Subcommittee on Landmarks, Public Sitings, and Dispositions. “The people of New York City deserve to have a meaningful say in the future of the island and I applaud the public participatory planning effort. This is an exciting step forward so that New York City can move toward ending an inhumane and environmentally unsound system of mass incarceration.”
In addition to the new announced closures, the City recently announced its initial timeline for finding and securing firms to execute the design-build demolition and construction process for the borough-based jails. Requests for Qualifications for early work items were published last month with the remaining RFQs to be issued in the first quarter of 2020.
“Rikers Island has been a stain on New York City for nearly a century, with thousands of people subjected to physical and mental anguish under a broken system,” Councilman Costa Constantinides (D-Astoria) said. “As the representative for Rikers Island, I am proud to see the ULURP commence to ensure these 413 acres are never again used for this kind of torture. The future of Rikers Island should get restorative justice for the over-policed and over-polluted communities marginalized for too long. I look forward to continued engagement with key stakeholders—especially those impacted by Rikers Island.”
