How To Find The Recently-Released Gowanus Rezoning Application

GOWANUS, BROOKLYN — Nearly 200 documents detailing the city's official plan to rezone Gowanus are available to download after a court decision last week lifted a restraining order on the proposal.

The Department of City Planning released its long-awaited Gowanus rezoning application on Friday following an order from Kings County Supreme Court Justice Katherine Levine, who decided the city could make the plans public without starting the clock on the land use review process as she mulls a lawsuit from opponents of the plan.

The city had planned to release the plans — and start the review process — on Jan. 19 before the lawsuit resulted in a temporary restraining order.

"We hope that we will be able to begin the public review process soon and be able to present the application, hear your thoughts and feedback, and answer your questions," the city wrote in an email on Friday. "For now, we are glad to be able to share with you the product of all the work we did together over the past four years."

Levine's order partially lifted the restraining order so the city could make the application public without "certifying" it – a step that usually comes before releasing an application and starts the time-limited review process known as ULURP.

The judge said she is leaning toward allowing the city to certify the proposal, but needs to finish reading court documents. The next hearing on the lawsuit is slated for Thursday.

Levine also vowed not to allow the city to certify its proposal until an agreement is reached on the more significant part of the lawsuit about whether the Gowanus rezoning should be put on hold altogether until in-person meetings about it can be held.

Voice of Gowanus, the group leading the legal challenge, contend that virtual public hearings used during the coronavirus crisis stifle the participation of the public.

Levine has said she will likely not bar the use of virtual hearings, but wants the city to look into expanding how New Yorkers can access the remote meetings.

In the meantime, New Yorkers interested in the Gowanus rezoning can peruse the city's application through its portal known as ZAP.

The newly-released documents are found under the "Public Documents" section in a drop-down menu titled "Filed LU Package v2." Another batch of documents that the city released in November that are specific to changes that would be made to the city maps are in "Filed LU Package v1."

Find the ZAP page here.