By Nicole Breskin
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
GREENWICH VILLAGE — More than 200 seething Greenwich Village locals and activists turned out to oppose plans by New York University to build a 38-story high-rise in the heart of the Village, which would be the tallest building in the area.
The university said they desperately need the new construction to keep up with the school's growth, but those assembled at Monday night's Community Board 2’s Arts and Institutions committee disagreed.
“NYU is building a feudal Village,” said Judith Callet, the resident chair of the Bleecker Area Merchants & Residents Association. “They are taking away space from residents who have spent years making it gorgeous.
“It’s already oversaturated. We can’t take any more,” Callet added.
Opponents say that the tower, which would be the tallest in the Village and function as both a hotel for university guests and a faculty residence, does not fit in the largely residential community.
Terri Cude, of the neighborhood group SuperBlocks Coalition which aims to curtail overdevelopment, said the university should take their plans downtown, as had been initially rumored.
“It’s two or three subway stops away. How can you say that’s remote?” she said to a rousing applause.
Alicia Hurley, NYU's vice president for government affairs and community engagement said the university prefers not to move their new construction beyond the immediate area.
“Just as our planning process has shown us that our neighborhood can’t accommodate all our growth over the next 20 years, so has it shown us that some of that growth must be near our campus core in order to fulfill our academic needs and ensure that our academic community is functioning and vital,” Hurley said in a statement.
Community Board 2’s Arts and Institutions David Gruber said “the fact that this is presented doesn’t mean it will be built. There’s a long approval process.”
NYU plans to approach the Landmarks Preservation Committee in the fall in hopes of obtaining clearance to add the tower on a piece of landmarked property currently inhabited by I.M. Pei's Silver Towers.
