As SHoP unveils massive redevelopment plans for the Domino Factory site in Williamsburg, Su Friedrich rails against the gentrification that has already transformed the neighborhood in her film Gut Renovation, which premiered at Film Forum last week.
Filmmaker Su Friedrich's documentary "Gut Renovation" incorporates footage shot between 2000 and 2008, as NYC rezoned industrial lofts, home to artists and small businesses, in Williamsburg, for residential redevelopment.
In an interview with the filmmaker, Architectural Record's Dante Ciampaglia asks tough questions about making a "one-sided" documentary that ignores the point of view of the developers and the gentrifiers, focusing instead on the disappearance of the neighborhood's architectural fabric and the impassioned voices of the discontent.
"I did spend time reading things and hearing them do their sales pitches, but I think that what they're selling is a false argument," retorts Friedrich who says she did not set out to provide a balanced story because she knew a lot of people who were displaced and angry because of the city's actions.
She hopes residents of the Upper West and Lower East Side in Manhattan will learn from what happened to Williamsburg before their own neighborhoods are transformed before their very eyes.
FULL STORY: Newsmaker: Su Friedrich
Opinion: Wealthy Residents Are Opposing Brooklyn Development to Protect Their Own Interests
Residents are arguing that a Williamsburg development would negatively affect the neighborhood. But it’s a grassroots effort to protect the status quo in a neighborhood where gentrification benefited them.
Report: Greenpoint-Williamsburg Rezoning Sparked Growth
An editorial cites newly released analysis of changes on the North Brooklyn Waterfront since a 2005 rezoning.
Advocates Push to Study Racial Impacts of NYC Rezoning
Neighborhood rezonings that disproportionately displace minority residents could violate the Fair Housing Act, advocates say.
Pennsylvania Mall Conversion Bill Passes House
If passed, the bill would promote the adaptive reuse of defunct commercial buildings.
World's Largest Wildlife Overpass In the Works in Los Angeles County
Caltrans will soon close half of the 101 Freeway in order to continue construction of the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing near Agoura Hills in Los Angeles County.
U.S. Supreme Court: California's Impact Fees May Violate Takings Clause
A California property owner took El Dorado County to state court after paying a traffic impact fee he felt was exorbitant. He lost in trial court, appellate court, and the California Supreme Court denied review. Then the U.S. Supreme Court acted.
California Grid Runs on 100% Renewable Energy for Over 9 Hours
The state’s energy grid was entirely powered by clean energy for some portion of the day on 37 out of the last 45 days.
New Forecasting Tool Aims to Reduce Heat-Related Deaths
Two federal agencies launched a new, easy-to-use, color-coded heat warning system that combines meteorological and medical risk factors.
AI Traffic Management Comes to Dallas-Fort Worth
Several Texas cities are using an AI-powered platform called NoTraffic to help manage traffic signals to increase safety and improve traffic flow.
City of Costa Mesa
Licking County
Barrett Planning Group LLC
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Tufts University, Department of Urban and Environmental Policy & Planning
City of Universal City TX
ULI Northwest Arkansas
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
