On March 5th, the US Department of Transportation (DOT) announced awards of $274 million in stimulus funds to the East Side Access and 2nd Avenue Subway Extension projects. The East Side Access project will receive $194.5 million and the 2nd Avenue Subway will receive $78.9 million.

In his “State of the Borough” speech last Thursday, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer (D) proposed a dramatic transformation of the East River waterfront extending from lower Manhattan to Midtown. Stringer named the proposal the “East River Blueway” and called for the removal of riverfront obstructions and the addition of parks, pools and docks along the route.

Last week, members of the Coalition to Protect Chinatown and the Lower East Side (CPCLES) and the Chinatown Working Group (CWG) attended a town hall meeting to discuss the future of Chinatown. Both CPCLES and the CWG formed after the November 2008 area rezoning. The groups felt outside developers had undue influence over the rezoning terms and wanted a larger voice for the community.

An Upper East Side co-op board filed a lawsuit against the MTA, alleging that the first phrase design of the project would block the windows of eight co-op buildings and is not what the MTA originally outlined in the 2004 Final Environmental Impact Statement. The windows would be blocked by eight structures that may tower up to 100 feet.

An article from CityHallNews.com provided a summary of NYU and Columbia University expansion plans in New York City. The article stated that NYU plans to expand by six million square feet and that this expansion has been fought against by neighborhood preservationists.

New York University (NYU) has announced plans to purchase the Forbes Building near Fifth Ave ad 12th Street. A spokesperson from the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation stated that the group is worried that NYU continues to purchase buildings and occupy property within the area instead of making use of its current properties and expanding to satellite campuses.

NYU's Steinhart School of Culture, Education and Human Development opened a new $6.5 million complex. The building is one of the nation's most advance and is located at 35 West 4th Street.

The 2nd Avenue Subway will make use of new ventilation systems that consist of above ground buildings that will contain modern cooling systems. A few critics argue that these large ventilating buildings will “blight” the neighborhood and bring down property values.

The first floor of the new NYU Law School building, stretching from 133 to 139 MacDougal Street, has been constructed. Once fully completed, the building will have six floors. The building now replaces the former Provincetown Playhouse.

NYU’s community relations representative, Alicia Hurley, broadly stated that the University has aspirations to expand into Downtown Brooklyn and Governors Island. Though no specific details were given, Hurley stated that the University recognizes it must look beyond Greenwich Village to sustain its future and growth.