GOWANUS — The neighborhood famous for its contaminated canal is one of the fastest changing parts of Brooklyn, and it's starting to attract attention for much more than its notorious pollution.
Readers of Curbed on Monday even declared Gowanus the city's "best" neighborhood in the annual Curbed Cup competition.
Here's a look at some of the key stories of 2015 that will continue to shape Gowanus in 2016.
► An Influx of New Residents Looms
A long-planned residential development overlooking the heavily polluted Gowanus Canal is nearly finished, and the first residents are expected to move in this winter. The development consists of two side-by-side high-rises at 365 and 363 Bond St. (between Carroll and Second streets). Together the buildings will hold 700 new apartments, including 86 affordable units. They're expected to bring more than 1,000 new residents to Gowanus.
► Other New Developments Aren't Far Behind
Keep an eye out for news on the long-delayed Public Place affordable housing development and the arts complex planned for the former Bat Cave. Locals have tried to set the development agenda through City Councilman Brad Lander's Bridging Gowanus initiative.
► Artists Fight to Stay in the Neighborhood
In September 2014, news broke that dozens of artists in three Ninth Street buildings were being displaced. Local arts leaders called the exodus a "huge loss" for the local creative community, and many worry the displacement means Gowanus is on the same path taken by so many other gentrifying New York neighborhoods. Some see proposed legislation called the Small Business Jobs Survival Act as a way to prevent further losses.
► EPA's Massive Superfund Cleanup Marches Forward Slowly But Surely...
It took more than a century to pollute it, and cleaning it up will be a time-consuming task. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency unveiled plans for a $506 million cleanup of the Gowanus Canal back in 2013, but locals probably won't notice any large-scale detoxifying activity until 2017, when the EPA is scheduled to start removing the contaminated sludge known as "black mayonnaise" from the bottom of the canal. Residents can follow news of the EPA cleanup at Gowanus Canal Advisory Group meetings, which are open to the public.
► ...While Other Smaller Cleanups Take Root
While the EPA's Superfund cleanup grabs most of the attention, several other smaller efforts are underway to cleanse the polluted canal and surrounding land. Among them are a floating garden and "sponge park" that will absorb toxins, and 90 "curbside gardens" that will help prevent pollution from flowing into the canal.
Despite those improvements, environmental activists say it's not enough.
► Locations Will Be Finalized for Two Underground Sewage Tanks
The EPA is expected to announce early this year where two massive underground sewage tanks will be built to help keep raw sewage from polluting the Gowanus Canal. One of the tanks could close a neighborhood park for several years, a possibility that's created tension between the city and the EPA. Meanwhile, a developer says it has a solution to the controversy.
► New Pre-K Center Proposed at Possible Revolutionary War Site
The city's Department of Education wants to build a 180-seat pre-K center on Third Avenue and Ninth Street, but some locals say the DOE has picked the "absolute worst site in the neighborhood" because the land might be the final resting spot for Revolutionary War soldiers who fought in the Battle of Brooklyn.
► Closed Pathmark Grocery Store Will Be Replaced With New Business
Shoppers mourned the loss of the neighborhood's largest lower-cost grocery store and a new landlord is expected to rent out the space soon — possibly to another supermarket.
► New Businesses Continue to Flock to the Area
As gentrification takes hold in Gowanus there's been an influx of new restaurants, co-working spaces, fitness businesses and even a boutique bathhouse just blocks from the fetid canal. Look for even more new arrivals in 2016.
