Toll Brothers' V.P. Von Spreckelsen Submits His Testimony To The EPA!

I am sure that the EPA will be super impressed by a developer such as Toll Brothers calling its reputation into question and urging the federal agency to refrain from listing the Gowanus Canal on their National Priority List as a Superfund Site.
But that is exactly what David Von Spreckelsen, Toll Brothers V.P. is doing. Von Spreckelsen submitted the testimony below to the EPA, as part of the agency's public submission process on the Gowanus nomination.
In his submission, he is urging the EPA to let the City go ahead with its rather shaky alternative clean-up plan.
No surprise there!
The Toll Brothers' VP has been working hard to move the developer's condo project at 363-365 Bond Street forward. First, Von Spreckelsen spent hundreds of thousands of dollars lobbying the New York City Council, the City Planning Commission, the Brooklyn Borough President, Brooklyn Community Board 6, the Mayor's Office and the State Assembly, to facilitate the rezoning from manufacturing to residential of the two blocks along the Gowanus Canal on which the Toll Brothers' wanted to build.

Not surprisingly, the spot-rezoning was approved at every step during the Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (U.L.U.R.P.), despite the protests of community members who pleaded with city officials to first clean the Gowanus Canal thoroughly before rezoning its shores. To no avail. The New York City Council approved the spot-rezoning in March, 2009, ahead of a general rezoning of the Gowanus area.

But just when it looked as though the last hurdle had been removed and that the Toll Brothers' Bond Street project could get started, the EPA stepped forward and announced that the Gowanus Canal was one of the most polluted waterways in the country. In April, the federal agency proposed placing the canal on its list of Superfund sites. That was welcome news for most local residents.

But not for the Toll Brothers. David Von Spreckelsen went into over-drive. Just days after the EPA made its announcement, he was quoted in countless newspapers as opposing the listing. He told everyone who would listen, that the Toll Brothers would walk away from their Gowanus project if the canal were to be listed. He hired a consulting firm and joined forces with a handful of Gowanus property owners to oppose the EPA Superfund designation. The Clean Gowanus Now! Coalition, as they called themselves, printed up slick anonymous fliers filled with misinformation. The Coalition hired a young man, named Daniel, to knock on the doors of local residents to spread more untruths about the Superfund program. Daniel freely gave out a telephone number that could be tracked right back to David Von Spreckelsen.

It is unlikely that the EPA will listen to the Toll Brothers' spin. The agency after all is more interested in science and in protecting the public from harmful chemicals, than in covering up facts to help a developer.











The EPA's Public comment period will end on July 8th. If you have not yet sent in your own testimony, I urge you to do so.

Please help insure that the Gowanus Canal becomes a Listed Superfund Site. You can participate by doing the following:

1. Go to www.superfundgowanus.org and sign the online petition to our representatives.

2. Go directly to the EPA Website and submit your comments under the Public Comment period that runs until July 8, 2009. http://www.epa.gov/region2/superfund/npl/gowanus/

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