Residents Fighting Fort Greene Park Renovation Sue City — Again

FORT GREENE, BROOKLYN — A group of local activists fighting the city's controversial plan to renovate Fort Greene Park aren't resting on their laurels.

Just a few days before a court ruling on a lawsuit they filed last year heads to an appeal hearing on Thursday, the group filed yet another lawsuit against the city — this time demanding an environmental review of the plans.

The Friends of Fort Greene Park, this time along with the National Sierra Club and another local nonprofit, filed a lawsuit against the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation on Monday, claiming that they violated a state law by not including a full environmental study in their $10.5 million project plans for the park.

The activists contend that the project — which includes removing 58 trees to build a promenade in the northwest corner — falls under the state requirement to perform a study if there are any potential environmental consequences. The parks department wrongly argued that it was exempt from this law, the lawsuit claims.

"We believe the Parks Department tried to avoid doing an environmental impact statement that would shine a light on the history, tradition and enjoyment of the park and the surrounding community that would be lost,” attorney Richard Lippes said.

The lawsuit includes nearly a dozen residents surrounding the park, the Sierra Club, Friends of Fort Greene Park and The City Club of New York.

It claims that the Fort Greene Park project should have been deemed a "Type I" project under the New York State Environmental Conservation Law, the determination for projects that "include the potential for at least one significant adverse environmental impact."

Instead, the parks department deemed the project a "Type II," or a project that is exempt from performing an environmental study since it is "routine agency work."

The group contends that the new plaza's impact on wildlife, greenery and the removal of the trees makes this identification incorrect.

"Logic says that removing a third of the trees in this area and heavily pruning others will definitely have environmental effects," organizer Enid Braun said.

A spokeswoman for the parks department said she could not comment on pending litigation, but that the department stands by the approval for the project.

The most recent lawsuit comes more than a year into the local group's fight to stop the proposed renovation and just a day before another legal action faces a hearing.

As part of several Freedom of Information Law requests, Friends of Fort Greene Park sued the city when officials refused to hand over unreacted versions of a report about the park. A judge ruled in October that the city must release the document, but the city appealed the decision and will face a hearing this Thursday.

Braun said members have been feeling the time-crunch as the start date for the renovation project draws closer. The parks department has said that it will likely secure a contractor in the spring.

But, Braun added, the group hasn't slowed down just because they are down to the wire.

"We are monitoring the approval process for the contract, but yes, of course, we feel the time pressure," she said. "On the other hand, our numbers are growing by the day."