The Demonstrators held protest signs and caricatures of developer Joseph Chetrit. (Photo by Dashiell Allen)Chinatown and Lower East Side organizations rallied together outside the Department of Buildings’ offices near City Hall on Mon., April 11, calling on the agency to “check [Joseph] Chetrit,” the real estate developer who plans to build two “megatowers” along the East River.
Activists and Chinatown residents, organized by CAAAV Organizing Chinatown, Good Old Lower East Side (G.O.L.E.S.), and Tenants United Fighting for the Lower East Side (TUFF-LES), among other groups, are concerned that the development of the two towers — at 64 and 70 stories tall — will trigger the mass displacement of low-income immigrant residents, as well as endanger the health of surrounding communities.
They called on D.O.B. to revoke the Chetrit Group’s work permits, and to respond to a letter they sent the agency last week.
“Stop the towers!” they chanted. “Save our homes! We can’t wait! Chinatown is not for sale! Bullies not welcome!”
Opposition to the impending construction of four supertall towers along South Street in the Two Bridges neighborhood of the Lower East Side has been a rallying cry for many in Lower Manhattan since before 2018.
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