N.Y. City Council Approves Columbia U. Expansion into West Harlem

The New York City Council voted on Wednesday to approve Columbia University’s plan to expand into West Harlem.

Columbia’s plan to redevelop 35 acres of light industrial property, which has long been under way, has raised tensions between the university and the neighborhood. Residents have argued that if the university moved in, it could destroy the fabric of the community and displace low-income residents. Three weeks ago, when New York’s City Planning Commission approved the plan and sent it to the City Council, residents vowed to fight the university every step of the way.

It seems that residents made good on that vow at Wednesday’s City Council meeting, according to today’s New York Times.

“I’m sure there will be lawsuits coming out of this, but we will continue to try to get Columbia to be a good neighbor,” the Rev. Earl Kooperkamp, who opposes the expansion, told the Times. The article also notes that many residents had been told that a vote on the plan would come in January and were surprised by the City Council’s sudden move. The vote was 35 to 5, with 6 abstentions and 5 absences.

In a written statement, Lee C. Bollinger, Columbia’s president, said that “after five years and innumerable discussions, negotiations, plans, documents, hearings, and votes, we have arrived at a significant turning point on the matter of space for the university to grow together with our communities.”

Columbia has said that it will contribute $150-million to the community as part of the deal. The expansion may create 6,000 jobs. —Scott Carlson