Unstable Ground

Inside the Van Alen Institute’s Brooklyn storefront, the tenor of a community conversation belied the celebrations outside. As part of the institute’s annual block party, members of Gowanus Neighborhood Coalition for Justice (GNCJ) and an interested mix of public housing residents and built environment professionals had gathered to discuss the consequences of a rezoning plan approved by the City Council in 2021, which swiftly led to a glut of luxury housing development in the area. “The weight of these buildings is on unstable ground,” cautioned one participant. It was a reminder few in attendance needed: the previous day’s historic deluge hit Gowanus especially hard, where entire streets disappeared underwater; indeed, the skies cleared just minutes before the event’s start. Artists Juanli Carrión and Rodolfo Kusulas’s installation With Your Voice appeared to have been hurriedly installed along a blocked-off stretch of Bond Street. Resembling both megaphones and cartoon ninja turtles, the objects purport to amplify the voices of locals who would prefer an alternativ…