I find Charlie’s arguments in favor of the NYU Brooklyn proposal persuasive, but it looks like the Mayor and everyone else likes the imagery of an outpost of Roosevelt island, even if it turns out to be a pain in the ass geographically for everyone that winds up working or studying  there:

Charlie O’Donnell via This Is Going To Be BIG…

NYU-Poly made a pitch to transform the former MTA headquartersinto a “‘Center for Urban Science and Progress,’ where engineers can work to solve urban, global problems like traffic, pollution, and energy conservation.”  The building at 370 Jay Street is currently an underused eyesore.  Redeveloping existing infrastructure that already sits on top of multiple transit lines is smart.  Even smarter is that the NYU plan seems doable at a fraction of the cost of other proposals to redevelop the southern end of a relatively isolated Roosevelt Island into a tech campus.

Downtown Brooklyn is in close proximity to Dumbo, a burgeoning tech community, and downtown Manhattan’s own innovation centers.  Make no mistake, Brooklyn is absolutely the future of innovation in NYC.  It’s cheaper and it’s attracting the young, creative class that drives our most innovative companies. 

I think, one day, you’ll see more people start their entrepreneurial endeavors in Brooklyn, and as companies mature, they’ll move into the city.  Places like Dumbo and Williamsburgh will become the primordial soup of designers, developers, hackathons and co-working communities in reclaimed spaces that will produce the next great companies coming out of NYC.  It’s happening now, and by putting in real infrastructure to support it, like an engineering school, you’re only adding to the momentum. 

19 December 2011 3