BATTERY PARK CITY—The owners of Gateway Plaza have largely reversed a controversial pet policy following an outcry from residents.
The LeFrack Organization, which owns the 1,712-unit Battery Park City complex, implemented a policy in August that called for the declawing of cats, and charged tenants a $250 "annual pet fee." Gateway tenants are now permitted to have almost any size and breed of dog with the exception of pit bulls and pit bull mixes said Glenn Plaskin, president of the tenants association at Gateway Plaza, who met with managment this past week.
"We were opposed to these stipulations but we have agreed to disagree because managment has been very cooperative," he said, referring to the lingering restriction on pit bulls.
The policy had also attempted to ban more than a dozen dog breeds, including German shepherds, great Danes, Doberman pinschers and any dog that weighed more than 40 pounds.
Those restrictions have since been lifted. Plaskin said other parts of the original policy — including mandatory tags on Gateway's 600 pets and prohibiting pets from entering or exiting through the main lobby—have also been dropped.
Gateway Plaza could not immediately be reached for comment.
Despite the near policy reversal, Plaskin said saftey and pet ettiquite is still of the utmost importance at Gateway.
"If any dog is a danger to tenants, children or other dogs, we fully support the eviction of the tenant and the dog," he said. "However, 99 percent of the pets here are perfectly friendly and well-socializied."
