Empty lot vs. Drive-thru is a tough call but in the case of the drive-thru coming in at 5th ave. in Park Slope, I think the empty lot would be better. Putting a drive-thru on a busy pedestrian shopping street is going to be a real hazard. People are likely to be hurt or killed in this spot at some time in the near future. An empty lot would be a lot safer.

By aaron, at 12/18/2004 9:43 PM  

From a pure transportation perspective, yes, a drive-thru is worse than an empty lot because it encourages driving and creates a safety hazard where drivers will cross a sidewalk to get to the drive-thru. Perhaps most appallingly, it creates a line of idling cars right outside apartment windows. But I think from an economic development perspective, a bank branch of any configuration has some postivites. Most importantly, it will provide maybe a dozen jobs for tellers and sales representatives that will probably go to Brooklynites. These jobs can be of enormous social value in that they provide a neighborhood-based platform for low-income people to enter into the finance industry, New York's leading economic sector. Second, people living and earning money in the city helps its tax base. Third, despite it's auto-centric configuration and the perception that automobile owners are from the suburbs, I think most of the patrons of this branch will be Brooklynites. To the extent that the branch makes banking in Park Slope more convenient, it does its little bit to make life in the city that much more attractive vis-a-vis life in the suburbs. For the suburbanites who use the branch, they'll probably be people who work in Brooklyn. Then, at the very least, the branch makes the city seem a more attractive place to work. This is the weakest argument I can think of, but I am playing the role of Devil's advocate, since I too think this branch design is horrible. I hope Naparstek.com will post photos during and after construction.

By AD, at 12/19/2004 9:21 AM  

All good arguments. But when you consider that the bank is building a small, one-story box on a huge lot occupying about 3/4 of a block of avenue frontage, then I think the benefits of the bank wane. That lot could easily support three or four locally-owned storefronts or even one big corporate retailer like, say, the Gap. Above the store, that lot could easily support as many as 30 units of housing. The bank wastes this valuable urban space while also creating negative traffic, safety and esthetic impacts.

By aaron, at 12/20/2004 12:10 PM