The project was the first
proposed by a private developer under mandatory inclusionary housing, a de Blasio administration policy that forces developers to include affordable housing in any project that needs zoning approval.
In 2001, when a
developer first
proposed building a tower on Tate Modern's doorstep, Serota slammed the plan, calling it «an opportunistic attempt to cash in, for
private gain, on the public benefits that have been created»
by the gallery.