By Michael V. Cusenza
City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams’ State of the City address has certainly raised some eyebrows and the blood pressure of South Ozone Park residents and elected officials.
Delivered last week at the Howard Gilman Opera House at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, the speech unveiled proposals to increase housing production, expand homeownership, and deepen affordable housing to levels that match the affordability needs of New Yorkers.
Among the housing-related priorities and proposals emphasized by Adams was a re-envisioning of Aqueduct Racetrack and an adjoining City-owned lot to be repurposed for housing, homeownership, and community amenities. The Aqueduct, which is located in Adams’ 28th District, is temporarily being used by the New York Racing Authority in place of Nassau County’s Belmont Park, which is currently being renovated. Once completed in an estimated three-to-four years, horseracing will return to Belmont as the only facility to be used as part of a longer-term plan to consolidate downstate New York horseracing.
Photo Courtesy of NYRA
Aqueduct Racetrack opened on Sept. 27, 1894.
“This plan presents a generational opportunity to redevelop the nearly 200-acre site of the Aqueduct Racetrack,” Adams said.
This proposal did not sit well with some elected officials.
“On behalf of our constituents, we must express our concerns about New York City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams’ statement in relation to the development of the Aqueduct Racetrack site, a 172-acre State-owned property,” State Sen. Joe Addabbo, Jr. (D-Woodhaven), chairman of the Senate Committee on Racing, Gaming and Wagering, and Assemblywoman Stacey Pheffer Amato (D-Howard Beach) said in a joint statement. “Due to the uncertainty of the specific location of the property mentioned by Speaker Adams, we believe it is crucial to recognize that decisions regarding any state land should be made by state authorities and in accordance with state regulations. The State Legislature has actually addressed this issue when it passed the Belmont Racetrack reconstruction legislation last year to create a community-based council to assist in deciding the future fate of the Aqueduct property, once the racetrack there closes. Speaker Adams’ vague reference to the Aqueduct property is questionable since it has several owners, different jurisdictions and could possibly raise legal and procedural issues. We have seen other proposals for the Aqueduct Racetrack property that would create thousands of local union jobs, entertainment opportunities, parkland, in addition to thousands of workforce housing units.
“Furthermore, the timeline for the decision-making process may extend beyond the term of the current Speaker, leading to a lack of continuity and accountability for said process. It is essential that decisions of such long-term magnitude and importance be made with due diligence and transparency, ensuring that the best interests of the community and all stakeholders are properly considered. The future of this valuable property, most of which is state-owned, should be decided through a comprehensive and inclusive process that respects the jurisdiction and authority of the state and others. We look forward to working with the community, interested entities and our colleagues in government when the time arises to discuss the future use of the Aqueduct property.”
