Willets Point Proposal Heard at City Planning Commission

23-acre proposal will include environmental cleanup, expressway ramps, affordable housing, and retail and entertainment complex. The City Planning Commission held a public hearing on land use actions to facilitate Phase 1 of the Willets Point Development Project on July 10, 2013. The application was submitted by the New York City Economic Development Corporation and the Queens Development Group, LLC, a joint venture of Sterling Equities and Related Companies. Phase 1, to be split into … <Read More>


New York City’s Parking Odyssey: A Play in Several Acts

Traffic congestion in 2013 stems in large part from how the City has allocated street space among motorists, pedestrians, bicyclists, CitiBike stations, pedicabs, and horse-drawn carriages. While changes to address street space allocations can be anticipated, the logic and purpose of the allocations have changed over time.

Act I – Suffocation on the Streets

Facing public streets “choked” with cars, the City in 1950 amended the 1916 Zoning Resolution to require developers of residential buildings … <Read More>


BAM South Cultural and Residential Tower Approved by Council

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<Read More>


Planning a Sustainable NYC: Howard Slatkin, Director of Sustainability, NYC Department of City Planning

Howard Slatkin, the director of sustainability for the New York City Department of City Planning, was a frequent visitor to NYC while growing up in New Jersey, but it was not until he moved to the City after studying history at Brown University, that he became interested in architecture and the social life of places. He earned a master’s degree in urban planning at Columbia University in 2000. At that time the concept of sustainability, … <Read More>


Trinity Church’s Special Hudson Square District Wins Council Approval

Modifications to private rezoning application centered on encouraging affordable housing. On March 13, 2013, the City Council voted to approve Trinity Church’s Special Hudson Square District proposal with modifications. The proposal was intended to facilitate residential development and protect existing office space. Zoning & Franchises Subcommittee Chair Mark Weprin announced modifications to the proposal at a Subcommittee meeting on March 13, 2013. The modifications addressed many of the concerns expressed by community residents and … <Read More>


Community Concerns Voiced at City Council Hearing for Special Hudson Square District

Community Board urges Trinity to build a new recreation center to accommodate projected population increase. On February 12, 2013, the City Council’s Zoning & Franchises Subcommittee held a hearing for Trinity Church’s application to rezone 18 blocks generally bounded by West Houston and Canal Streets, Avenue of the Americas, and Greenwich Street. The Special Hudson Square District will facilitate residential development, maintain commercial office space, and encourage ground-floor retail. Trinity Church owns approximately 39 … <Read More>