Plans to redevelop the former Greenpoint Hospital complex into 240 units of affordable housing fell through in 2012 after the developer chosen by the city was indicted on bribery charges. But now it's 2014, and East Williamsburg residents are wondering what the holdup is. "This is one of the longest unfinished issues in Williamsburg. It's frustrating to watch a beautiful building just sitting there when there is an affordable housing crisis in the city," housing advocate Jan Peterson told the Daily News. Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney decried the previous selection process, saying that it "reeked of favoritism and corruption," and admonished the city for failing to get the ball rolling again. "There is no reason to allow this site to continue to deteriorate and sit unused," she said. "It's city-owned land, and it's not being used for any positive purpose."
The hospital has been vacant since 1982 (though it had quite a storied history before that). The Department of Housing Preservation and Development says that it is "currently engaged in assessing potential strategies for moving forward in refining parameters of a redevelopment plan," but that it has no plan in place to find a new developer.
· Shuttered Brooklyn hospital eyed for affordable housing [NYDN]
· Greenpoint Hospital [Brooklyn Relics]
· Greenpoint Hospital coverage [Curbed]
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