The Thursday proceedings proved to be unexpectedly dramatic as Councilwoman Marjorie Velázquez suddenly reversed her long-standing opposition to the rezoning, urging a yes vote before the zoning and franchises subcommittee. The councilwoman had commented as recently as Tuesday that she was against the rezoning and that the developers were “not operating in good faith,” according to reporting from the New York Daily News.
Velázquez doubled down on her reversal in a Thursday statement following the decision.
“The updated project voted out of the council’s committees today … transforms the unfortunate reality that this office before me had been unable to provide affordable housing for our residents, with less than 60 units produced in the last eight years.”
In another turnaround, the NYC District Council Carpenters’ Union, which initially opposed the project, offered its support after being awarded jobs on what is currently known as Site C, the union’s political organizer, Kevin Elkins, told Crain’s on Friday. The number and type of jobs the union will receive is still being ironed out, according to a representative from Velázquez’s office.
“Our only goal is to put our members to work. Marjorie, to her credit, cares deeply about building up the middle class and making sure that any development in her district creates local jobs,” said Elkins. “After ongoing negotiations with the developers, with support from the councilwoman, we’re glad to announce that our workers will receive good benefits, good protections and good wages for our work.”
Following the passage of the proposal, Velázquez lauded the outcome.
“Member deference is not dead, and I love you for that,” she said, referencing a long-standing tradition in which council members align their votes with that of the member presiding over the district in question. If she had maintained her no vote, the tradition dictates that the rest of the council would defer to her, but she may have been overturned in this instance.
Velázquez’s change of heart surprised many Throggs Neck residents, who have bitterly opposed the rezoning in the past year and had been counting on her alliance.
“The only person that could have stopped it just betrayed us,” said John Cerini, a resident who has been active in the opposition. “It was a total shock; I thought she was going to say no all the way to the end to show the community that she was with us, but she gave up right before we got to that point.”
Throggs Neck residents plan to protest outside Velázquez’s office Saturday morning, and Cerini said they are prepared to appeal if the rezoning passes next Wednesday.