Board was not acting arbitrarily by requiring LPC approval of construction permit for addition to a historic district building. On February 12, 2013, the Board of Standards and Appeals found they could not reinstate a Department of Buildings construction permit for Petitioner, 339 West 29th Street LLC without prior approval from the Landmarks Preservation Commission. The Board found the permit was revoked in July 2009, and in October 2009 the area containing the work … <Read More>
Search Results for: Lower Manhattan
50th Anniversary of Landmarks Law Marked with Exhibit and Symposium
Sometimes-contentious debate focused on the struggle to balance new development with historic preservation in New York City. On the evening of April 20, 2015, the Museum of the City of New York commenced a series of events and exhibitions commemorating the 50th anniversary of the City’s Landmarks Law with a symposium titled “Redefining Preservation for the 21st Century.” The Saving Place exhibit, intends to examine the “impact of a landmark preservation movement that has … <Read More>
CityLaw: Three Policy Questions for Nonprofit Property Tax Exemptions
A long-standing feature of American tax policy is the exemption granted to nonprofit organizations, the largest of which is the exemption from local property taxes. The exemption, with origins back to the 18th century, is widespread. Among the 50 states, 17 state constitutions mandate property tax exemptions for charitable organizations, 25 authorize the legislature to give exemptions, and eight do not address the issue. New York State establishes two classes of exemptions for nonprofits: … <Read More>
Simeon Bankoff: Taking the Context out of Contextual Zoning
In March 2015, the City Planning Commission announced a proposal called Zoning for Affordability and Quality, which broadly calls for three principal changes in the current citywide zoning resolution. The plan proposes to change and enlarge definitions of senior housing to include more types of housing providers than currently permitted. It also proposes to increase buildable space for senior housing in some instances. The proposal also seeks to lessen or some instances no longer mandate … <Read More>
Elected Officials, Community Groups Rally Against Mayor’s Citywide Rezoning Plan
Speakers argued the plan eliminates residential zoning protections with little affordable housing benefit. On March 25, 2015 the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation held a press conference on the steps of City Hall to protest Mayor Bill de Blasio’s proposed citywide rezoning plan, “Zoning for Quality and Affordability”. According to the Department of City Planning, the plan was created in response to zoning barriers identified by DCP and the Department of … <Read More>
Zoning Subcommittee Hears Proposal for New Through-Block Residential Building
The fifteen-story building would be built over an open rail cut in the Special Clinton District. On March 24, 2015, the City Council Subcommittee on Zoning and Franchises heard a proposal by 1818 Nadlan LLC to construct a new fifteen-story residential building at 505 West 43rd Street in the Special Clinton District of Hell’s Kitchen, Manhattan. The proposed building would consist of two segments, one fronting on West 43rd Street and the other fronting on … <Read More>