The Whitestone rally against overdevelopment is still on.
Despite developer Edgestone Group’s plan to return to the original 52 single-family home proposal for the massive 18-acre Waterpointe site instead of 107 townhouses, residents will hold a protest in front the site on Sunday, venting years of built-up anxiety of overdevelopment on vacant plots in the neighborhood.
The We Love Whitestone Civic Association is calling for residents to attend the rally to hold Edgestone’s feet to the fire on the renewed promise to build single-family detached homes on the site.
“We want to make sure to let them and any developer that might come in know that we will remain diligent and what was approved for 52 homes will be built there,” said Alfredo Centola, president of We Love Whitestone.
Edgestone Group unveiled plans to build 107 townhouses on the site at a Community Board 7 committee meeting in April. Overall, the plan called for 97 two-family townhouse homes and nine additional single-family houses. In total there would be 203 units and most of the units would be two-bedrooms.
The proposal received immense backlash from residents and politicians, who want to protect the character of the neighborhood and fear the effects of an increase in population.
Councilman Paul Vallone, who will attend the rally, said the pressure community groups such as We Love Whitestone, Welcome To Whitestone Civic Association and the Greater Whitestone Taxpayers Civic Association, put on Edgestone forced the developer to change back to the original plan, and he said the continued effort is necessary.
“The return to the community-approved plan for 52 single-family homes and community park is an enormous win for Whitestone and its future,” Vallone said. “However, winning these battles does not mean that we will let our guard down.”
The rally will take place at Sixth Road and 151st Place on Sunday, May 17, at 1 p.m.
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