When word got out that the MTA is planning on selling its headquarters in Manhattan to better utilize its existing real estate holdings, Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz raised an eyebrow. He again reiterated his desire to see something — anything — happen at 370 Jay St.
He said:
“Since 2008, I, along with other elected officials and the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership, have called on the MTA to dispose of this property, which has remained nearly vacant and poorly maintained for more than a decade. The MTA’s response has been to reassert its desire to hold on to the property and to insist that the building is necessary for locating future back offices.
“Yet, while the rest of the surrounding business district has undergone tremendous and transformative growth, 370 Jay St. has languished in sidewalk scaffolding and a black scrim reaching to its highest floors to protect passersby from the structure’s crumbling facade.
The impact of this building’s neglect cannot be understated.”
The MTA’s internal report — entitled “MTA Office Space Portfolio Right-Sizing Business Plan” — features no mention of Transit’s Jay St. space, and the authority has long searched for the right funds to fix up the building. For now, it will continue to sit above a newly-renovated subway station but shrouded in scaffolding. One day, something might happen there, but it seems as though today is not that day.
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