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Art/DesignContinuedMyrtle Ave. MeritsAttention as Part ofDowntown RenewalBY DAN ICOLARIIn its 1969 publication, %u201c Plan for New York City: A Proposal,%u2019%u2019 the New York City Planning Commission links repeatedly the downtown commercial-retail center and the communities directly east--Fort Greene and Clinton HillThe Commission cites the vigor of the downtown shopping area, and discusses ways in which city planning can improve the adjacent communities.Fr. Anthony Failla of Fort Greene%u2019s St. Michael-St. Edward%u2019s Church, chairman of Community Planning board 2 (which covers the three areas), believes downtown redevelopment makes sense. %u201c You%u2019re talking about a vital downtown center in the fourth largest city in the United States. Into this center come most trains and bus connections operating in this borough; more come here than to Grand Central or Times Square; an area that has all those advantages can%u2019t be allowed to deteriorate.%u201dFr. Failla is pleased about the continuing progress of the Atlantic Terminal Redevelopment project and about the work being done along Flatbush Avenue; he%u2019s excited too about the prospect of a Fulton Street Mall, though he feels allowing bus traffic on the street compromises the mall concept.%u201c They%u2019re doing great things in our area, but with all the money and ideas being funneled in, they%u2019ve totally ignored the northern part of the district - specifically Myrtle Avenue - which like Fulton Street, Lafayette Avenue and Hanson Place, leads into Fort Greene from the downtown shopping area. Sure, the City is widening Myrtle, but that%u2019s really a separate thing. It%u2019s designed to accommodate bus traffic and store deliveries, and to relieve congestion.%u201d%u201c A Plan for New York City%u201d does indicate interest in Myrtle Avenue redevelopment, however. The proposal states, %u201c The Myrtle Avenue area from Jay Street east should be totally redeveloped, allowing for the expansion of theadjacent educational institutions, their housing needs and potentially related co\Whether the Fort Greene/Clinton Hill community would consider such redevelopment desirable is anyone%u2019s guess; no formal plans have been announced.For now, Fr. Failla is trying to encourage development of Flatbush Avenue from the Manhattan Bridge to DeKalb Avenue; to try and upgrade the marginal mix of vacant stores, under-utilized commercial and manufacturing property, and tiny pockets of decaying housing.Specifically, he%u2019d like to see a sports facility created in that stretch of Flatbush. As presently conceived by the recently-created Brooklyn Sports Authority, such a facility would provide indoor space for community, professional and college sports events. %u201c They%u2019re doing feasibility studies on several sites right now,%u201d says Fr. Failla, %u201c but not all of them are in the downtown area. If we could locate a sports facility in that stretch of Flatbush, it would be a really positive thing for the whole northern tip of the planning area. It would be a start, anyway.%u201dAt topping-out of Con Edison Building at Flatbush and Fulton aredevelopers George and Stephen Klein, far left and right, and, fromleft: Ken Patton, then-CIty Economic Development Administrator,Councilman Thomas Cuite, Borough President Leone, Con Ed vicepresident John Cleary.Don't put Oilyour eggs in one bosketabsored by adjacent streets, though cross streets will continue to serve north-south, south-north traffic. Turns on to Fulton Street will not be permitted.Ms. Wellington and Mr. Burns agree the project should take two years to complete - one year for design processing, one year for construction. As part of this process, Office of Downtown Brooklyn Development functions as design advisor on both new construction and on restoration of existing facades, where appropriate. %u201c No expert is coming to Fulton Street and dictating,%u201d says Burns. %u201c From the beginning, we%u2019ve had considerable input from the merchants.%u201dOther joint design/advisory projects of DBDA ar.d ODBD are the encouragement of a special Ati a ----------l a u t i v n v w n u vPut them in twoA Long-term Certificate Account for rapid savings growth at the highest guaranteed interest rates. A flexible Passbook Account for paying bills or emergencies %u2014 instant deposit/w ithdraw al privileges, wtih every dollar compounded daily at 5.25% per annum (yielding 5.47% yearly*). In today%u2019s world you can't afford to put all your eggs in one basket. Use two ... for access to yoursavings PLUS maximum interest. 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