New Collaborative Book Criticizes NYU's Planned Expansion
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Opponents of New York University's planned expansion gathered in Manhattan on Sunday to promote a new book that is strongly critical of the proposal.
The book, "While We Were Sleeping: NYU And The Destruction Of New York," is a collaborative effort by writers and artists who oppose the plan.
NYU is looking to add 2-million-square-feet to the campus including classrooms, living space and auditoriums.
The school says the expansion is needed to attract quality students and faculty but opponents say it will ruin the neighborhood's character.
"It would be environmentally calamitous. It would destroy two acres of green space in a part of the city that has the second lowest amount already," said NYU professor Mark Crispin Miller, who opposes the expansion.
"This is not advantageous to to most people in the city. It just isn't," said Fran Lebowitz, another opponent of the expansion. "It's advantageous to real estate interests, which are the number one interests of city government, and perhaps to some people at NYU."
In a statement, the school said the plan allows it to meet its need for more academic space while addressing community concerns.
The plan won approval from the City Planning Commission and goes before a City Council Committee tomorrow.
The full City Council vote is set for July 25.