To conclude our week-long look at the impacts of N.Y.U.’s expansion plans, The Local examines the concerns surrounding loss of light under the proposed development.

How will the new buildings proposed on the two superblocks south of Washington Square Park affect sunlight in the area?

There’s no getting around it, the new buildings mean less light. The LaGuardia and Mercer buildings planned for the north block will cast shadows on the two Washington Square Village buildings. More controversially, the proposed Bleecker building on the south block will cast a shadow that likely means an end to the LaGuardia Corner Gardens, located in front of the Morton Williams supermarket on a strip of property that belongs to the Transportation Department. The university notes that the alignment of the LaGuardia and Mercer buildings would make the block resemble the dimensions of the city’s grid pattern – “not an unusual New York City condition,” per William Haas, the university’s director of planning. Read more…