When we screw up, it’s always nice to do so in a big way. So, we were pretty bummed to learn that we’d put some bad information out there the other day regarding the fact that the Gowanus Green project had doubled in size to 1,500 units with the addition of the warehouse that is now being demolished. This is not to say that the warehouse owner might not build his own housing development on the site or that Gowanus Green partners didn’t discuss joining forces last year. Or that the city might not have some plans up its sleeve for the property. But the partnership didn’t happen. We heard from the Gowanus Green partnership via the Fifth Avenue Committee. Their original comment was: “The Abadi site has not been added to the Gowanus Green project. The total number of units at Gowanus Green remains approximately 774 in eight residential buildings, plus the open space, City-owned park, a community facility, and retail spaces.” We asked them a bunch of questions and we’re running their response in order to set the record straight:

As the Brooklyn Paper reported last year, we have had some conversations with Mr. Abadi about potential development on his site. The conversations were early and general, and we discussed various opportunities for partnership or acquisition to align the redevelopment of his site with the redevelopment of Public Place. However, those conversations did not successfully progress and are over.

The Abadi site will never be added to Gowanus Green because we are moving ahead on our City-sponsored rezoning without his site and it is too late to change the size and scope of our project. If Abadi chooses to redevelop his site in the future, either by partnering with a developer or working independently, he would have to seek his own rezoning and related public approvals through an entirely separate and lengthy public process (ULURP). We can’t speak to his intentions in the near, medium, or long term since we haven’t spoken with him in many months.

So, there you have it. The warehouse site is being demolished as part of the cleanup of the full Public Place site but will not be part of Gowanus Green as it now stands. It may very well be developed with hundreds of units of housing, but if there are any current plans, no one knows what they are.