Tenant will supply U.S. Navy with docking services and emergency provisions. On March 9, 2005, the City Council approved a draft lease submitted by the City’s Economic Development Corporation for a 40,000 square-foot portion of the Staten Island Homeport Pier to a tenant to be chosen by the U.S. Navy’s Military Sealift Command. The chosen contractor will provide layberthing services to U.S. Navy vessels, allowing the ships to dock, be maintained in a state of … <Read More>
City Council
City increases zoning protection for Bay Ridge
New zoning designed to protect Bay Ridge from high-density development. On March 23, 2005, the City Council approved the Planning Department’s rezoning plan for a 249-block area within Brooklyn’s Special Bay Ridge District, bounded by 65th Street to the north, Seventh Avenue to the east and Shore Road to the south and west. In 1978, after neighborhood residents protested the development of three large residential buildings, the twin 30-story Bay Ridge Towers and the 13-story … <Read More>
Zoning protection of natural areas tightened
Grandfather clause that had allowed removal of slopes, trees and vegetation on large lots eliminated. The City Council approved an amendment to the 1974 Special Natural Area District text that will further protect significant natural features like steep slopes, trees and vegetation in three areas of the City: Riverdale in the Bronx, Fort Trotten in Queens, and Staten Island’s Greenbelt and Shore Acres. The Planning Commission initiated work on the text amendment in 1997 at … <Read More>
Science Annex approved
Science Annex construction will alleviate overcrowding in Midwood High School. On December 15, 2004, the City Council approved a proposal by the New York City School Construction Authority for the construction of a three-story, 45,476 sq.ft. science annex for Midwood High School in Brooklyn. The project site is a 67,600 sq.ft. parcel of City-owned property located across from the existing school on Bedford Avenue. It is currently used as an informal parking lot and play … <Read More>
Council Modifies Hudson Yards Proposal
Changes will increase the protection and affordability of low-income housing and lower the commercial square footage. The Council approved all ten Hudson Yards land use actions after extended negotiations with the Bloomberg Administration on modifications to the rezoning text as well as the financing mechanism. The Council’s modifications were aimed primarily at lowering the overall development potential of commercial uses, increasing the potential for residential uses, lowering density along the Tenth Avenue corridor and altering … <Read More>
Long-awaited project for Clinton
Two 24-story towers and a mixed-use building approved for two large City-owned parcels. On February 2, 2005, the City Council unanimously approved the joint application of the Dermot Company and the Department of Housing Preservation and Development for a 609,000 sq.ft., three-building development in the Clinton district of Manhattan on two large City-owned parcels. The two sites span from West 51st to West 53rd Streets at the mid-block between Tenth and Eleventh Avenues and partially … <Read More>