How Downtown Brooklyn changed 20 years after historic rezoning

NEW YORK - This year marks 20 years since a historic rezoning of Downtown Brooklyn led to massive changes in the landscape of the neighborhood.

In some images showing Downtown Brooklyn from 2004, the neighborhood looks almost unrecognizable. Today, towering skyscrapers loom over coffee shops and retail plazas.

The difference is 32 million square feet of new development, according to Regina Myer, President of Downtown Brooklyn Partnership .

"In the early 2000s under the Bloomberg administration, there was a big push after 9/11 to really take a look ... citywide for growth opportunities," Myer said. "And one of the results of that effort was the 2004 Downtown Brooklyn rezoning, which really sought to bring downtown Brooklyn in line with other great central business districts."

In honor of the 20-year milestone, the business advocacy group put together an interactive map that highlights changes brought by that rezoning.

"There was a great deal of potential that was unrealized. There was a great shopping street, Fulton Street ... and there was a great government center, but there wasn't really a center to hold everything together," Myer said. "There's wonderful transportation here, all subway lines except the L-train come right to Downtown Brooklyn."

Downtown Brooklyn transformed into destination for shopping, culture

She said decades ago, the neighborhood was mainly a civic and administrative hub. Now, it's a mixed-use community and a destination for shopping, arts and culture, with thousands of new residents living in both luxury and affordable apartments.

"There was very, very little housing. There was offices for government and the courts mostly, and also Metrotech. But what there also was, was a great deal of parking lots and parking structures. Now," Myer told CBS New York's Hannah Kliger, "there's nearly 10,000 housing units."

One of the most recent changes to the neighborhood was the creation of a new park called Abolitionist Place . The one-acre greenspace was built on top of an old parking lot and named after the history of abolitionist activity that took place there.

Though the rapid development was controversial at times, dozens of plans were approved and realized.

"It lost a little bit of a neighborhood feel and culture. It started to feel like a little Manhattan in a way," said Tony Davis, who grew up nearby and now works in the area. "More shopping stores and more coffee shops on every block, but it's cool ... Overall I would say the change is good."

With the rezoning of other Brooklyn neighborhoods and the mayor's ambitious City of Yes Plan , leaders and developers are looking at Downtown Brooklyn to learn from the past and plan for the future.

Have a story idea or tip in Brooklyn? Email Hannah by CLICKING HERE .