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The City Is Dropping Its Plan for a Huge New Jail
Big news from the Daily News: “The city’s controversial plan to pile a massive new jail facility atop a lower Manhattan building has officially been nixed […] mainly over difficulties relocating all the existing tenants inside 80 Centre St., which houses state offices and is used as the city’s marriage license bureau.” Is it really possible the De Blasio administration hadn’t considered that problem before announcing the plan?
The city wants to close Rikers Island and open jails in each borough. No word on where in Manhattan they’ll turn next….
UPDATE: According to the announcement from councilperson Margaret Chin, it appears that the city will instead use the existing Manhattan Detention Complex (125 White, below). “The Administration’s proposal to reconsider siting the Manhattan Detention Complex at 125 White Street is a sign that the community’s concerns and input about the future of this facility matter. By focusing the conversation on this existing detention site, we can ensure that this facility remains near the courts, and Columbus Park will no longer be placed under the shadow of a proposed 40-story jail at 80 Centre Street.”
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This is good news for the future of the Centre Street building and community.
However, as you say at the end, “no word” on where the jail will be dropped instead. Maybe it will still end up in our neighborhood, or in another neighborhood which would be similarly unhappy about the location.
One might still go further and question the plan of closing (rather than reforming) Rikers altogether.
How about building the jail over City Hall? Very convenient for the criminals.
Actually, the jail may well still be in our neighborhood, but just as an expansion of the existing “Tombs”.
“The city is likely to return to its earlier plan to expand its existing lower Manhattan jail, the Manhattan Detention Complex, also known as The Tombs. That complex on 125 White St. was deemed too small — but officials are now contemplating tearing it down and building a larger facility”
I guess that’s better than the previous proposed vandalization of 80 Centre, but would still bring the other concerns in terms of effects on the neighborhood of a massively expanded complex.
Build it in Police Plaza. With all of the restrictions and barricades that space has already been taken from the public effectively, and no one in the neighborhood uses it.
While they are at it, the city should also figure out how to reopen Park Row, a true egregious taking for no reason other than to give some parking space to the police.