Stormwater easements and acquisition approved

DEP to acquire 3.3 acres and three easements to establish stormwater runoff areas in Staten Island. In February the Planning Commission approved two actions associated with stormwater runoff systems in the Arden Heights, Annadale, Eltingville, Woodrow and Prince’s Bay neighborhoods of Staten Island, some of the last remaining areas in the city without established stormwater sewer systems.

DEP sought to acquire three easements, totaling .2 acres, in Prince’s Bay and Woodrow and in the second … <Read More>


Mixed-use antique district expanded

129-lot area rezoned to permit residential, live-work and retail. The Planning Commission approved the proposed rezoning of a 129-lot area of Port Morris in the South Bronx that altered the area’s manufacturing zoning to mixed-use, facilitating increased live-work, residential and small commercial business development. The proposed new zoning builds on a 1997 zoning action that established the Port Morris Special Mixed-Use District – the city’s first mixed-use district – within a five-block area of Port … <Read More>


Historic District approved

Landmarks designates northeastern Queens suburb a historic district. On December 14, 2004, Landmarks designated the Douglaston Hill Historic District in Queens, a residential park-like community developed between 1890 and 1930, to preserve the special historical and aesthetic values of early twentieth-century architectural styles within the area. The new district consists of 31 freestanding, wooden, single-family homes of Queen Anne, Colonial and Tudor Revival style. Douglaston Hill became one of the first commuter suburbs that marked … <Read More>


Water taxi dock approved

Dock to be located on the East River next to the Schaefer Landing luxury building. The Planning Commission unanimously approved an application by the Department of Parks and Recreation for the construction of a water taxi dock in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The dock is to be located on the East River adjacent to the waterfront esplanade of the Schaefer Landing luxury apartment building, west of Kent Avenue between South 8th and South 11th Streets.

The floating … <Read More>


John Jay College wins major expansion approval

John Jay faced the largest space deficit in the CUNY system. On January 5, 2005, the Planning Commission approved the 513,500 sq.ft. expansion plan for John Jay College of Criminal Justice, which, with its link to John Jay’s Haaren Hall along Tenth Avenue between West 58th and West 59th Streets, will create a unified urban campus occupying the full city block from Tenth to Eleventh Avenues between West 58th and West 59th Streets.

In addition … <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>