New York City: Largest Ice Sport Center Approved in the Bronx.

Rendering of approved Kingsbridge National Ice Center. Image courtesy of NYC Mayor’s Office.

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On December 10, 2013, the City Council voted 48-1 to turn the Kingsbridge Armory, currently a vacant landmark, into an ice sports center. The $275 million development project by KNIC Partners, LLC will feature nine ice rinks and approximately 64,300 sq. ft. of related program space, including a wellness and off-ice training center, curling rinks, and locker and equipment storage. The development plan also includes 58,100 sq. ft. of concession and retail space, approximately 50,000 sq. ft. of community facility space, and an accessory parking garage containing 457 spaces. The ice center is projected to attract two million visitors yearly and create nearly 180 permanent living wage jobs, and 890 construction jobs. Council Member Fernando Cabrera stated that the project approval “represents an unprecedented milestone for the entire City.” (more…)

Sam Schwartz

This week there has been a renewed interest in Sam Schwartz’s revised congestion pricing plan which is being pushed by a group called Move NY.  Read CityLaw’s great profile on Mr. Schwartz that details his plan.  This was originally published on April 18, 2013.

Sam Schwartz is the president and CEO of Sam Schwartz Engineering, a firm that specializes in transportation planning and engineering. Schwartz’s new congestion pricing proposal, “Move New York,” offers a novel approach to the controversial subject.

Sam Schwartz was born and raised in Brooklyn, attended Brooklyn Technical High School, graduated from Brooklyn College where he majored in physics, and earned a Master of Science degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania. In 1971, Schwartz began working with the City’s Department of Transportation, as a junior engineer. He rose to be DOT’s Chief Engineer and First Deputy Commissioner.

In 1990, Schwartz left the DOT to teach classes at Cooper Union. Schwartz also began writing columns for the Daily News under the pen-name “Gridlock Sam.” In 1995, Schwartz opened his own engineering firm called Sam Schwartz Engineering. The firm is involved in projects throughout the globe, including a revolutionary streetcar system in Aruba, powered solely by battery and hydrogen fuel cells.

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Rendering of BAM South project’s public plaza and tower. Image Credit: Two Trees Management.

Local Council Member Letitia James reaches agreements with developers and City to increase affordable housing, preserve nearby public library. 22 Lafayette LLC and the NYC Economic Development Corporation proposed to develop a cultural space and residential tower and plaza at 113 Flatbush Avenue in Brooklyn. The site for development is a triangular lot bounded by Flatbush and Lafayette Avenues and Ashland Place. The lot was previously the subject of a 2007 request for proposals that sought a developer to create an underground parking garage as part of the BAM Cultural District; those original plans evolved into the current proposal. The current use of the site includes a surface parking lot and a vacant one-story building. The lot is owned by the EDC and the City, and the development would be built, managed and operated by Two Trees Management in partnership with the City.

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The current City Planning Commission. Image Courtesy: DCP.

The country’s very first zoning resolution was adopted in New York City in 1916. Called the “Building Zone Plan,” the new regulations dictated building use and physical characteristics, such as set-backs, to organize development of a burgeoning City. In 1961, the zoning resolution was overhauled to what is today the primary land use document of the City. The new plan addressed the realities of population growth and encouraged public amenities, such as public plazas as an incentive for bonus floor area. The Zoning Resolution is a living document amended frequently in order to address the City’s needs and unforeseen changes as they arise. Approximately 1/3 of the City has been rezoned since the 1961 Zoning Resolution to support and encourage smart development of the City’s diverse and ever-changing neighborhoods, due in part to the oversight and commitment of the City Planning Commission. The Commission was established by the 1936 Charter to plan for the City’s orderly growth and development. It was the City’s first permanent planning agency with the authority to draft and amend zoning regulations and create master plans. Before its creation, land use was loosely administered by zoning laws that fell short of a comprehensive plan, Board of Estimate decisions, and political forces.

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Original interior of the Gage & Tollner Restaurant. Image Courtesy: Rosenbaum Design Group.

The interior landmark, which had been converted to a fast-food chain with Landmarks’ oversight, was illegally converted to a retail store. On January 22, 2013, the Landmarks Preservation Commission considered and denied an application for the legalization of work already done to the former Gage & Tollner Restaurant, at 372 Fulton Street in Downtown Brooklyn. The interior landmark occupies the Gage & Tollner building, also an individual City landmark. The interior is significant for its “Gay Nineties” architecture and décor, featuring arched mirrors, ornate woodwork, a paneled bar, and brass light fixtures.

The Gage & Tollner Restaurant opened in 1892 and closed in 2004. The property was later used for a TGI Friday’s restaurant. In 2009, an application was approved by Landmarks for the conversion of the space to an Arby’s franchise. The site is currently a retail establishment that sells jewelry and shoes. However, the site was converted without Landmarks’ approval after Arby’s vacated the space. The tenants put in a lighting system that obscured the wainscoted walls, and removed a wall that had stood between the dining room and the kitchen, as well as one of the signature mirrors.

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