Long-term lease renewal coupled with study for improvements. On May 6, 2015 the City Planning Commission approved Amico Senior Center’s lease renewal for twenty years. The center is located at 5901 13th Avenue in Borough Park, Brooklyn. Amico has continuously operated as a senior center at that location since 1973.
On February 24, 2015 Brooklyn Community Board 12 voted unanimously to recommend approval of the lease renewal with no conditions. On March 11, 2015 Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams issued a recommendation of approval, on condition the lease renewal ensures a minimum of twenty-year right to lease, that street trees be installed along the 59th Street sidewalk, and the installation of bioswales and sidewalk bulb-outs be examined by the relevant agencies. On March 18, 2015 the Commission held a public hearing on the renewal. Dr. Joan Pastore, Amico’s director, testified on the services provided by the center. On questions from Chairman Carl Weisbrod about repairs to the facility, Dr. Pastore testified the landlord has made repairs as required by the lease and though she’d prefer a more modern space, it was not possible to find a comparable space to where Amico is now.
In its final report, the Commission noted many facilities that were renewed twenty years ago are coming up for renewal now, and at the time of previous renewal those facilities had issues with physical condition and maintenance. The Commission found staff from the Departments of City Planning, City Administrative Services, and Aging had all visited Amico and found the facility in good condition and capable of satisfying a senior center’s operational needs and praised Amico as a “highly active, vibrant space that fosters social interaction” among neighborhood seniors. The Commission encouraged the Department for the Aging to explore Borough President Adams’ improvement recommendations and to identify future development opportunities to serve subsidized seniors.
CPC: Amico Senior Center (150115-PQK) (May 6, 2015).
By: Michael Twomey (Michael is the CityLaw Fellow and a New York Law School graduate, Class of 2014).
