The Vision 2020 Comprehensive Waterfront Plan

Proposal is part of inter-agency effort to develop blueprint for managing the City’s shoreline. On April 8, 2010, the Department of City Planning held a public hearing on the Vision 2020 Comprehensive Waterfront Plan. Vision 2020 builds on the City’s original 1992 waterfront plan, and Planning is required by local law to submit a new waterfront report by December 31, 2010 and revise it every ten years thereafter.

2020 plan is part of a broader City-wide initiative to establish a long-term blueprint for sustainable management of the City’s 578 miles of shoreline. Known as the Waterfront Vision and Enhancement Strategy, the plan also includes the City Waterfront Action Agenda, created by the Economic Development Corporation, to identify high-priority initiatives that could be implemented within the next three years.

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Proposal is part of interagency effort to develop blueprint for managing the City’s shoreline. On April 8, 2010, the Department of City Planning held a public hearing on the Vision 2020 Comprehensive Waterfront Plan. Vision 2020 builds on the City’s original 1992 waterfront plan, and Planning is required by local law to submit a new waterfront report by December 31, 2010 and revise it every ten years thereafter.

The Vision 2020 plan is part of a broader City-wide initiative to establish a long-term blueprint for sustainable management of the City’s 578 miles of shoreline. Known as the Waterfront Vision and Enhancement Strategy, the plan also includes the City Waterfront Action Agenda, created by the Economic Development Corporation, to identify high-priority initiatives that could be implemented within the next three years. (more…)

Planning proposed amendment to address community concerns about inappropriate curb cuts and front yard parking spaces in residential areas. On April 14, 2010, the City Council approved the Department of City Planning’s Residential Streetscape Preservation text amendment. The amendment contains a host of changes, including applying stricter parking regulations in low-density residential districts, and establishing curb cut regulations in medium- and high-density districts that previously had none. It strengthens front yard planting requirements in low-density districts by closing a loophole that allowed narrow planting strips in driveways to count towards the required plantings. To ensure adequate parking is available, the amendment requires that residential enlargements and conversions in R3 and R4 districts provide additional off-street parking for each additional dwelling unit.

The text amendment also addressed a recent court decision ruling that a section of the zoning resolution prohibiting curb cuts in residential “B” districts applied only to new developments and not to existing buildings. The curb cut prohibition will now expressly apply to both existing and new buildings in “B” districts, reinforcing the City Planning Commission’s original intent. (more…)

Daniel R. Garodnick

Council Member Daniel R. Garodnick, the recently re-elected representative for Manhattan’s 4th District and chair of the subcommittee on Planning, Dispositions & Concessions, takes pride in being born and raised in the district he represents. Garodnick grew up in a rent-stabilized apartment in the Stuyvesant Town/Peter Cooper Village community and still lives in that neighborhood with his wife. His district also includes parts of the Upper East Side, Midtown, and Murray Hill.

After graduating from the University of Pennsylvania Law School, Garodnick worked as a litigator at Paul,Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP. He also served as a public member of Manhattan Community Board 6, where he gained a deeper understanding of local issues and their effect on residents. When a City Council vacancy arose in 2005, Garodnick ran as the Democratic Party’s candidate and won 63 percent of the vote in the general election. (more…)

City Planning Commission approved Related Companies’ Kingsbridge Armory plan,with four Commissioners voting against proposal. On October 19, 2009, the City Planning Commission approved Related Companies’ proposal to redevelop the landmarked Kingsbridge Armory in northwest Bronx. The plan is a result of the combined efforts of the EDC and the Kingsbridge Armory Task Force, which was established by the City in 2006 to facilitate the development of the vacant building.

Related’s proposal includes building a four-story structure within the armory’s 180,000 sq.ft. drill hall, leaving its landmarked exterior unaltered. Combined with the armory’s three basement levels, this would create seven levels of usable space. The project would provide 500,000 sq.ft. of commercial and retail space, including a movie theater and fitness facility. It would also provide 27,000 sq.ft. of community facility space, 30,000 sq.ft. of public open space, and approximately 400 sub-level accessory parking spaces. (more…)