Pier 5. Image Credit: Google Maps

The City authorized Pier 5 on the Harlan River to be development for housing. The City acquired Pier 5 on the Harlem Riven, a 4.4 acre parcel of land in The Bronx, in 2006 during the $60 million renovation of Yankee Stadium and transferred control of the land to the Parks Department. Pier 5 is bounded on the north by Mill Pond Park, on the east by the Major Deegan Expressway, on the south by 149th Street. Parks fenced off Pier 5 and kept it closed for a most of the following ten years. Parks occasionally rented the land to private companies to host carnivals and small events. Between June 2013 and August 2014 Parks allowed the Bronx Council for Environment Quality to collect air quality data and to conduct environmental experiments on Pier 5. The Council permitted members of the public to come on the land for educational and research purposes. Ultimately Parks allowed the Department of Transportation to use Pier 5 for equipment storage. (more…)

View of Co-Op City from the New England Thruway. Image Credit: Google Maps

Owner’s sought to install on a single pole a 9,000 square foot of billboard space capable of running 54 separate advertisements.  In February 2018, Baychester Retail III LLC filed applications with Buildings to install a 9,164 square foot LED billboard made of 27 two-sided panels mounted on one pole on a commercial property located near Co-op City, in the Baychester neighborhood of the Bronx near the New England Thruway. The large billboard would be capable of displaying 54 video screen advertisements, since each of the 27 panels could display advertisements on both sides. (more…)

45 Great Jones Street, Manhattan. Image Credit: Google Maps

Tax Commission withdrew favorable property tax assessment following audit. 45 Great Jones Street in Manhattan was constructed in 2014 and contains a retail space and five cooperative apartments. The property owner challenged the assessed value for the years 2016/2017 and 2017/2018. The Tax Commission approved a nearly 40 percent decrease in property value for both tax years. The Tax Commission reduced the assessed value for 2016/2017 from $3,244,032 to $2,012,612, and for 2017/2018 from $3,503,554 to $2,026,796. (more…)

Licensed plumber violated numerous rules when completing plumbing work. William Harvey held a master plumber license and a master fire suppression license. The Following an investigation the Department of Buildings moved to revoke Harvey’s master plumber and his fire suppression piping contractor licenses. (more…)

315 West 103rd Street (Center building). Image Credit: Google Maps

Neighbor asks the Landmark Preservation Commission to review their neighbor’s completed renovations. Richard Robbins lives in an apartment on West 103rd Street. Robbin’s next-door neighbors at 315 West 103rd Street received permission in 2008 from the Department of Buildings to enlarge their home. In 2009, Buildings ordered the neighbor to stop working on the addition, at a point when only the roof and the backyard expansion had been completed. In 2015 The Landmarks Preservation Commission designated the neighborhood. The new Riverside-West Historic District included both Robbins and his neighbor’s homes, and both homes contributed to the historic status. (more…)