Text Amendments Approved

Follow-Up Corrective Action (FUCA) approved 17 modifications to Hudson Yards revitalization plan. In January 2005, after extended negotiations, the City Council approved ten land use actions related to the revitalization of Manhattan’s Hudson Yards. 2 CityLand 4 (Feb. 15, 2005). Public review of the proposed text amendment identified the need for certain modifications. On August 4, 2005, the Planning Department, Council Member Christine Quinn, and Manhattan Community Board 4 applied jointly to incorporate the modifications … <Read More>


BSA permits bldg. to exceed limits of new rezoning

Owner claimed soil cleanup and structural repair made smaller building infeasible. Prior to the City’s 183-block rezoning of North Brooklyn, Selik Realty sought BSA approval to convert a three-story manufacturing building on North 7th Street and Meeker Avenue in Williamsburg into residential units and to add four additional stories. When the site was rezoned in May 2005, residential use became permitted as of right, but Selik maintained its BSA application, seeking approval of a building … <Read More>


Munitions warehouse to be residential complex

Variance will permit 43-unit luxury apartment complex. Ira Weinstein, the owner of 2184 Mill Avenue, a 99,340-square-foot lot located on the northwest side of Strickland Avenue in an R3-1 district of Mill Basin, Brooklyn, sought a variance to convert a four-story, 100-year old munitions factory, currently used as a warehouse and retail showroom, into a five-story, 67,000-square-foot multiple dwelling with 45 luxury residential units, doctors’ offices, and a ground-floor restaurant.

Weinstein argued that commercial and … <Read More>


Zoning protection of natural areas tightened

Grandfather clause that had allowed removal of slopes, trees and vegetation on large lots eliminated. The City Council approved an amendment to the 1974 Special Natural Area District text that will further protect significant natural features like steep slopes, trees and vegetation in three areas of the City: Riverdale in the Bronx, Fort Trotten in Queens, and Staten Island’s Greenbelt and Shore Acres. The Planning Commission initiated work on the text amendment in 1997 at … <Read More>


Yankee Stadium area gets new BID

BID will address sanitation and security problems and increase marketing for the area’s attractions. The Planning Commission unanimously approved a new BID in the East 161st Street corridor in the Bronx, which will encompass Yankee Stadium, Concourse Village, the Bronx County courthouses, as well as existing one-story fast-food restaurants and street-level retail. The BID is proposed to extend along East 161st Street, from River Avenue on the west to Morris Avenue on the east.

The … <Read More>


300-Foot Tower Approved for Chambers and West Street

Developer reduced tower by 60 feet and increased community facilities. The City Council approved, without additional changes, the City Planning Commission’s resolutions adopted on July 28, 2004 to allow construction of a 29-story mixed-use building at 200 Chambers Street. The Council’s action completes the designation of the site as an Urban Development Action Area, allows the transfer of City-owned land to the City’s Economic Development Corporation, and approves a special permit to modify … <Read More>