Reader epc attended last evening’s “stakeholder meeting” concerning reconstruction of the portion of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway that passes by or through Brooklyn Heights, DUMBO, Cobble Hill, and Red Hook. Here is a portion of his report (his entire comment can be read here–scroll down to bottom):
[T]hey’ve eliminated two of the potential alternatives which would have involved taking much of DUMBO and portions of Brooklyn Heights around Squibb Hill. The alternatives still on the table include:
– rebuild existing roadway & cantilever, making almost no changes to clearance or lane widths[;]
– a number of tunnel options: under the Heights (a couple of variants), under 4th Avenue, and a couple of options which run under the river (either cutting through DUMBO, right through [the] Dock Street development if I understand the map correctly, then under the park; alternately going under the river much farther north and returning inland around 65th St).I haven’t been attending the meetings so I kept my questions to one: whether or not the various alternatives which rely on the existing BQE to serve as a collector road include renovation and the cost of renovation of the existing cantilever in the separate estimates, the answer was that they did (so the approximate $4bn for one of the tunnels included $250MM for renovating the cantilever).
The next meeting is expected to be in May. They will return with an analysis of the various options using funding and likelihood of funding as the criteria for making a determination.
We’ll keep you advised of further developments, including the date of the next meeting when determined.
