Development of MetroTech
Channel 2 News clip about development projects in Downtown Brooklyn
The construction of MetroTech Center in Downtown Brooklyn was a major urban redevelopment project. Although the idea for the revitalization of this area was first proposed over a decade before, construction finally began in 1989 and was completed by 1992. As a response to New Jersey’s encroachment on New York City’s jobs, this project intended to bring in technology and commercial enterprises while also revitalizing the neighborhood. This project would produce significant changes in the landscape of the neighborhood, which was characterized as a "patchwork of houses, warehoused, and ratty storefronts" (Schuerman). The goal of MetroTech was to establish a "suburban office park," and this project, with a price tag of $770 million, was considered the "largest element so far in the city's effort to stimulate commercial redevelopment outside Manhattan" by the Koch administration, as reported by the New York Times.
When it was completed, MetroTech Center was 16 acres, with new office buildings spanning the area. The development attracted major businesses into the area, including Brooklyn Union Gas, J.P. Morgan Chase, and Securities Industry Automation Corporation (SIAC), turning Downtown Brooklyn into the commercial center they were aiming for.
Plans for MetroTech Center (1980s)
Construction of 6 MetroTech (1980s)
Aerial view of MetroTech Center (after 1990)
Buildings around MetroTech (around 1990)
These photos are some shots of the construction sites around MetroTech center. Each photo shows the new buildings, with the existing buildings of Poly's campus. These new high-rise buildings within MetroTech are shown in different stages of construction, the captions labelling these buildings as "A Corporate Office Tower," the "Brooklyn Hilton" hotel, highlighting the mix of commercial and hospitality components being brought to Downtown Brooklyn.
Buildings around MetroTech (around 1990)
This set of photos also shows the construction of office towers within Metrotech, showing the major corporate tenants that would be occupying the area there, such as J.P. Morgan Chase, Securities Industry Automation Corporation (SIAC), and Brooklyn Union Gas. The large scale of these towers and their sleek modern designs showcases the desire to transform the Downtown Brooklyn area into a commercial hub. It also conveys the new wealth and power the area will have after its revitalization. As architect Aaron Bestky puts it, “the new crop of high-rises presents purposeful symbols of wealth and power to which the rest of us cannot answer. Thes towers have none of the qualities that made their predecessors beautiful, distinctive and, in the many interpretations and associations they evoked, powerful symbols of our aspirations or hubris.” These high-rise buildings are designed to project this image of wealth and status, to which the “rest of us,” or the general public, cannot relate to. The soulless design reflects the way that the system has been objective in its economic growth without taking into account the people it affects. This whole project has become somewhat mechanical in its apppraoch without much regard for the people that are a part of it and eventually have to be the ones that live with the consequences.
Daily News article showing the perspective of those against the development of MetroTech (1987)
This project did not come to be without some opposition. Locals and community organizations like STAND (Stand Together for Affirmative Neighborhood Development), strongly opposed the idea. There were 250 residents living in row houses and loft buildings in MetroTech and 100 businesses around the area, all of whom would be displaced as a result of construction. While the city proposed many options for moving the residents to differnet parts of Brooklyn, residents believed the plan was not specific enough, and there was no plan to relocated the businesses that would be foreced out.
Although the opposition voiced their concerns about displacement and gentrification, those supporting the project highlighted the state of the neighborhood before development, arguing that the location of these businesses was "neither thriving nor inviting." In the article "What Is This Thing Called MetroTech?" by Robert E. Murphy, he describes different situations that locals and employees in the area have witnessed, including "a drug-dealing operation," "two young men swilling liquor in front of the entrance to Poly's Nicholas Hall," and "an under the influence fellow displaying a jail release form dated that day."