New York, NY (Feb. 16, 2011) - In an unusual partnership, the Owners and Tenants of the largest apartment complex affected by the Second Avenue Subway project in Manhattan have come together to file suit in order to forestall a dangerous and disruptive placement of the 86th Street subway station entrances.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) propose to locate both station entrances midblock, directly in front of the 695-unit Yorkshire Towers, on a residential block with four active driveways. The stated rationale for placement on the north side of 86th Street, east of 2nd Avenue is to save the majority of station users, whom modeling indicates will arrive from the northeast, the few steps it would require to cross west of Second Avenue or to the south side of the street.

The complaint, filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, points out, "The Residential Midblock Alternative would create unprecedented and substantial impacts to an area with a completely different residential character than the normal commercial intersections where most subway entrances in New York are located. Nearly 3,600 passengers are projected to flood the sidewalk in front of Yorkshire Towers during the AM Peak Hour for entry and exit alone."  More than 2,000 residents live in Yorkshire Towers.

The united Owner-Tenant effort to site the entrances less disruptively recalls the successful effort to eliminate identical midblock station entrances on the north side of 72nd Street in front of high-rise residential buildings. That relocation occurred after further required environmental review, which the plaintiffs now seek for the 86th Street station.

The supplemental environmental assessment on 72nd Street resulted in relocation of the entrances to the northwest and southeast commercial intersections of Second Avenue, which, according to the complaint, "comported with well-established pedestrian flow, traffic engineering and urban planning principles for subway entrances in New York."  The harmful impact of residential midblock entrances in front of the 695-unit Yorkshire Towers would outstrip that of placement in front of the 260 residential units on 72nd Street.

The MTA and FTA’s determination to locate the 86th Street station midblock faces unanimous opposition by the entire Coalition of East Side Elected Officials, including Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney; State Senator Liz Krueger; State Assemblyman Micah Kellner; Council member Jessica Lapin, and Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer and local Community Board 8 (Community).

The Coalition seeking relocation of the 86th Street entrances does not oppose completion of the 2nd Avenue subway, or construction of an 86th Street stop.  What they oppose is the arbitrary and unnecessary siting of subway entrances directly in front of Yorkshire Towers, and all of its associated adverse impacts, without the required statutory environmental reviews, the complaint asserts.

"The MTA and FTA are failing to respond to legitimate community efforts to avoid unnecessary and permanent disruption to the residential environment on 86th Street, ignoring the sensible precedent laid down by the re-siting of the 72nd Street entrances," said Jeffrey E. Glen of Anderson Kill & Olick, counsel to Plaintiffs Yorkshire Towers Company, L.P. and the Yorkshire Towers Tenants Association. "As soon as they come to their senses, we expect to get this issue resolved in a manner that will benefit commuters and neighborhood residents alike."

Joseph J. Ceccarelli of Ceccarelli Weprin, co-counsel to Plaintiffs, added, "Notably, the agencies have never fully considered or evaluated  the many congestion and safety issues that present themselves when the equivalent of an army regiment of passengers during the a.m. rush hour alone converges on an estimated 40% reduced sidewalk area in front of a building with over 2,000 residents."