Steven Spielberg filming in DUMBO. (Photo via vbadikov's flickr)
It's 2015 and Brooklyn residents are still barking about film crews taking over the borough, and this time around merchants are getting in the game. Some Atlantic Avenue business owners "pleaded with lawmakers" yesterday at a City Council hearing in an effort to put a stop, or stall, on filming, according to the NY Post. The crews take up parking spots and delay deliveries, according to some merchants.
"The head of the local business improvement district said film crews took over the streets on 17 of the 73 days between Columbus Day and Christmas last year, costing some businesses $1,000 a day in lost revenue."
The Council will now consider passing a bill, introduced by Councilman Steve Levin (who has repped filming hotspots like DUMBO and Brooklyn Heights), that would require de Blasio & Co. "to create monthly and annual reports on every production filmed in the city" as a way of keeping tabs on filming and the impact it has on local businesses.
Those on the other side of the debate, specifically Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment Commissioner Cynthia Lopez, are concerned that requirements and restrictions would make New York seem like an unwelcome atmosphere for productions, according to the Daily News, and drive them out for good while costing the city millions... and depriving us of this kind of magic.
