Cuomo Calls For Study Of Subway Line To Red Hook
Gov. Andrew Cuomo wants a subway line connecting Red Hook to Manhattan, another in his list of grand plans for transit expansion.
Cuomo released a proposal calling on the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey to research the relocation of its Red Hook shipping facilities and the Metropolitan Transit Authority to study the feasibility of an underwater tunnel for subways between the Brooklyn neighborhood and Lower Manhattan, the New York Post reports.
Cuomo wants to see if it is possible to relocate the activity at the Red Hook Container Terminal to the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal in Sunset Park farther south. The Port Authority recently committed to maintaining ownership of the terminal for at least five years.
Though some developers have seen potential beyond industrial for Red Hook in the past few years, the latter half of 2017 saw an increase in leasing activity for logistics and distribution. The addition of ferry service from Red Hook to Manhattan has led to increased interest in residential and retail uses in the area, such as IKEA and Tesla locations. Cuomo said the waterfront has "untapped potential" in his announcement.
Though the Regional Plan Association recommended additional subway lines to improve transit accessibility in its Fourth Plan, it also recommended a substantial increase in spending on infrastructure repairs and improvements, something which the state-run MTA has been accused of neglecting in favor of ambitious, headline-grabbing projects such as the recently opened Second Avenue extension and now, the Red Hook proposal.
