EDITORIAL: Cooper Union must respect its neighbors (08/05/01)

EDITORIAL

Cooper Union must respect its neighbors

The large-scale proposal by The Cooper Union to renovate and modernize its facilities - which presently calls for the demapping of Taras Shevchenko Place, since 1978 a symbol of the strong Ukrainian presence on New York's Lower East Side - has been repeatedly described by school officials as "a process to be reviewed, evaluated and scrutinized by the community."

Founded in 1859 for the purpose of providing "an education as free as water and air for the boys and girls of this city, who had no better opportunity than I," as Peter Cooper wrote, the school has in the past demonstrated commitment and sensitivity to the neighborhood. But today one must wonder: how can it claim to be listening to the community's needs when, by its own actions, the school continues to show that the requirements of East Village residents, some of whom have been living in the area for over 65 years, are the last thing on its mind?

Aside from controversy over the actual development plans, there is growing criticism of The Cooper Union's handling of the issue. The school has proven to be less than honest about its motives, and, as a result, the number of critics of the "process" The Cooper Union has taken to communicate with the neighborhood has grown.

State Sen. Thomas Duane, in a June 6 letter to school president George Campbell Jr., stated: "The Cooper Union has long benefited from its mutually cooperative relationship with the community in which it exists. The Cooper Union's development plans, and the resulting deleterious effects on the residents and businesses of the community, threaten that relationship from which both The Cooper Union and the community have long benefited." As there has been no response to Sen. Duane's letter, his representative, Matt Fox, commented at a recent public meeting: "It's a shame you (The Cooper Union) say you're listening because the response he got back was a joke. There has been no statement - there continues to be no statement."

Since such a massive development plan is required to pass the scrutiny of the "public process," one would assume The Cooper Union could have presented the public with, if not actual alternative plans, at least an attitude suggestive of compromise. This, in fact, has been the farthest from the truth. At every turn that residents, albeit some rather emotionally, express concerns about current development plans and offer suggestions for compromise, school officials and hired consultants respond merely by emphasizing the need to maintain the current plan, citing "the best place for such a building" or "the best area for a certain type of use."

One can only deduce that, if The Cooper Union has already ironed out the best possible scenario without the public's input, then this "process" to which school officials allude is more a process of public persuasion than of community compromise.

So the question must be asked: Is there a way for The Cooper Union to appease the East Village community without jeopardizing the plans it says it needs to modernize and renovate its facilities as well as bring in additional revenue to ensure the full scholarships it offers its students?

A possible solution to this impasse would begin with The Cooper Union proposing alternate plans to which community residents could react and offer input. With the plans for the controversial hotel on Astor Place now scrapped and The Cooper Union's large-scale development plans yet to be screened by city planners, this seems the opportune time to re-evaluate the needs of everyone involved in order to find a compromise solution that suits The Cooper Union and respects the East Village.

Can The Cooper Union maintain the ethos preached by its founder and compromise with residents? Or will the ethnic East Village community be burdened by what The Cooper Union deems it needs without heeding community requirements of affordable housing, safe surroundings and culturally diverse neighbors respectful of one another? The historic Ukrainian East Village community and its neighbors are pushing for the former ... but they await The Cooper Union's response.

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