To: Community Board 7
72 Caton Place: Petition for Environmental Impact Assessment
Regarding possible changes at 72 Caton Place, Brooklyn, NY: We are greatly concerned about any project’s impact on the community, and we request a thorough environmental impact assessment before any proposal is approved.
Why is this important?
We are deeply concerned about possible developments and zoning changes at 72 Caton Place.
We are a small neighborhood surrounded by 4 major traffic arteries critical to the area, and we are at risk to head into a level of density unparalleled in our part of Brooklyn. We are trying to preserve a singular cultural institution (Kensington Stables) and welcome a vitally important new school with safe streets and traffic areas. We have yet to tackle the built-in challenges: an inadequate sewage system, narrow streets, and a large influx of new residents in 22 Caton and The Kestrel. This is a critical moment where we have an opportunity to preserve a neighborhood.
Kensington Stables: This Brooklyn institution, which represents the diversity of culture and architecture in our neighborhood, could be disastrously impacted by increased traffic on Caton Place — particularly on the block between Coney Island Avenue and East 8th Street. Riders will have no safe area to mount the horses, no place for pony rides and dangerously difficult access to the bridal paths.
Infrastructure: East 8th Street, an essential thru street in the neighborhood, is currently virtually impassable to 2 way traffic. We also question whether the existing sewer system is adequate for the increasing population.
Rapid Density Ramp: PS437, 22 Caton Place and the Kestrel have not yet even been factored into the local equation. They represent massive changes to this neighborhood. Cars are already double-parked on busy Coney Island Avenue weekday mornings and afternoons outside the International Baptist Church, and on Coney Island Avenue for Brooklyn College Academy High School. On the weekends, cars are parked on sidewalks on Caton Place while volunteers manage traffic into and out of church parking lots. Meanwhile AYSO (American Youth Soccer Organization) families circle the block looking for parking for the games at the parade grounds. This is all before the PS 437 opens, and 22 Caton and the Kestrel become fully occupied.