The residential conversion project includes the restoration of cast-iron building in SoHo Cast-Iron Historic District. On September 7, 2017, the City Council voted 45-0 to approve an application for a special permit to allow residential and retail uses at 40 Wooster Street in Manhattan’s SoHo neighborhood. The applicant, 40 Wooster Street Restoration LLC which is a subsidiary of the Northwind Group, sought the special permit to allow for residential and retail uses in what was … <Read More>
Jerome Avenue Neighborhood Plan Enters Public Review Process
The proposal would create new affordable housing, public parks, and other community improvements. On August 21, 2017, the City Planning Commission began the public review process for the Department of City Planning’s proposal to rezone several neighborhoods that flank the elevated train line along Jerome Avenue in the Bronx. The Jerome Avenue Neighborhood Plan seeks to rezone several neighborhoods, including Highbridge, Concourse, Mt. Eden, Mt. Hope, University Heights and Fordham, along an approximately two-mile long … <Read More>
Commissioners Stymied by Century Association Special Permit
A City Planning application, which required report from Landmarks, would see the restoration and maintenance of the Century Association Building in exchange for special permits to develop 21-story tower. On July 18, 2017, the Landmarks Preservation Commission considered an application from Tishman Realty for a restoration and maintenance plan for the Century Association Building, an individual City landmark, as part of a 74-711 special permit application to City Planning. In a 74-11 application, … <Read More>
Council Members Raise Concerns of Climate Change and Government Takings at East Shore Rezoning Hearing
The proposed rezoning is intended to address high flood vulnerabilities on the East Shore by limiting future developments to low density buildings. On September 5, 2017, the City Council’s Subcommittee held a hearing and voted 4-0 to approve the City Planning Department’s application to create a special zoning district on the coastal areas of Staten Island. The zoning map amendment and zoning text amendments would cover portions of the Oakwood Beach, Graham Beach, and Ocean … <Read More>
Nazi Regalia in Condo Lobby to be Investigated by the City’s Human Rights Commission
City will investigate property manager who decorated condo lobby with Nazi and other fascist regalia. On August 29, 2017, the City’s Commission on Human Rights announced that it had launched an investigation into the claims of tenant harassment at 47-55 39th Place in the Sunnyside neighborhood of Queens. The investigation stems from the display of Nazi and Confederate imagery, swastikas and other hate symbols in the lobby. Tenants, condo owners and Majority Leader Jimmy Van … <Read More>
Challenge to Landmarks’ Approval of Gansevoort Redevelopment Fails
Landmarks Commission approved redevelopment of five buildings in the Gansevoort Market Historic District. On June 7, 2016, the City’s Landmarks Preservation Commission voted, in a divided decision, to award Certificates of Appropriateness to redevelop a block face in the Gansevoort Market Historic District between Greenwich and Washington Streets in Manhattan. The work, spanning five buildings and three tax lots, entailed the construction of three additional stories onto a two-story building at 60-68 Gansevoort Street, … <Read More>