Happy New Year, everyone! We hope you are staying safe and warm after Winter Storm Fern passed over us. CSWA has already had a busy month, and there are exciting events coming up, so we have more than usual to share. Feel free to email admin@columbiastreetwaterfront.org if you’d like to learn more.

CSWA January Board Meeting

With the CSWA bylaws approved after the November meeting, the Board elected the initial officers for the Association:

• Randy Gordon – President
• John Leyva – Vice President
• Lucy Di Rosa – Secretary
• Debra Tackney – Treasurer

Randy, John, Lucy, and Debra had served as acting officers in these positions prior to the election. They will hold these offices until the first Annual Meeting of the Association in the fall, when elections for directors and officers will be held.

The Board also welcomed Ben Fuller-Googins as a director. Ben is the Executive Director of the Carroll Gardens Association. The CGA office is on Columbia Street, and Ben and CGA have supported CSWA since its inception.

The Board established a BMT Committee that will focus on providing community feedback on the ongoing development plans. This committee is in addition to the Greening, Communications, Membership, Community Life, and Environmental/Infrastructure committees. See below for committee news.

CSWA applied to the IRS for 501(c)3 status and for registration with the NY Charity Bureau. These are the first steps to enable CSWA to accept tax-deductible donations.

BMT

As we noted in our last issue, we were thrilled that our board member, Professor James DeFillippis, has been appointed to the Brooklyn Marine Terminal Development Corporation, which will oversee and direct the BMT project as it moves through the environmental review process and future phases. As James had been our nominee for the BMT Advisory Council, the Board decided to nominate Bryan Woll as CSWA’s representative to the BMT Advisory Task Force, with Sharon Gordon as Bryan’s alternate. Bryan and Sharon will join the CSWA BMT Committee and will coordinate with CSWA to ensure our community’s voices are heard.

As mentioned in our December 7 newsletter, the EDC announced the extension of the City Environmental Quality Review (CEQR) comment period from December 11 to March 31, 2026. You can submit your comments by emailing espokowski@moec.nyc.gov and HSemel@cityhall.nyc.gov. CSWA had requested an additional virtual hearing before the extension was granted and intends to pursue this with EDC and the Mayor’s office.

Resilient Red Hook, in collaboration with Pratt School of Architecture, is hosting a BMT Alternative Visions Exhibit on Friday, January 30th, 6–9pm, at 251 Van Brunt Street. From the description of the exhibit:
​
​What You’ll Experience:

• A student-designed visual exhibit covering the past, present, and speculative futures of the BMT
• Interactive stations to share your feedback, priorities, and neighborhood knowledge
• Light refreshments, printed resources, and opportunities to connect with neighbors and advocates

​You can register here.​

Also, Resilient Red Hook and the City Club of New York will be releasing their 2026 Brooklyn Terminal Hub Report this week. This describes a port-centric alternative to the EDC’s BMT Vision Plan. Read ​​here about the Zoom press conference scheduled for Tuesday, January 27 at 10:00 AM.

Other Updates

President/Columbia Streets traffic safety issues

Community Board 6, in support of our letter regarding the hazardous traffic conditions on Columbia St., sent its own letter to Brooklyn Borough Commissioner Keith Bray. Our neighbor Robbie Block has been working with Commissioner Bray to arrange a meeting with the community. If you would like to participate in this meeting, please email Robbie at robbieblock@gmail.com.

SIMS Concrete Recycling Facility, 142 Columbia Street

Community members continue to follow up with our electeds to make sure the DOT has cleared the site of all concrete piles, as it had committed to do by year end.

CSWA Committee News

The Community Life Committee, fresh off the success of our Tree Lighting at Human Compass Garden, is planning events for this spring! More info to follow soon.

Jacob Kayen has volunteered to help the Communications Committee set up the CSWA website! We hope to have it up and running by the end of February!

The Greening Committee will resume meeting in February, with a full agenda, including potentially supporting the caretakers of Human Compass Garden.

The Environmental/Infrastructure Committee and Membership Committees expect to have their first meetings in February.

If you are interested in joining any of these committees, please email us at admin@columbiastreetwaterfront.org.

CSWA in the News

Brian Abate at Red Hook Star-Revue and Julie Holstein’s Ward 6 Brooklyn both covered our holiday tree lighting. Thank you, Julie and Brian! You can subscribe to the Star-Revue's free email newsletter here. You can subscribe to Ward 6 Brooklyn here.

Questions? Email us at admin@columbiastreetwaterfront.org. Also, please share our mailing list sign-up page with your friends and neighbors: Columbia Street Waterfront Association Email List.​

Media Contact:​
Randy Gordon, President
Columbia Street Waterfront Association, Inc.
Phone: 917-593-2674
Email: REGordon27@outlook.com