Image Credit: NYC HPD
The City uses ingenuity to make use of City owned spaces in flood plain. On September 25, 2019 City Planning unanimously approved an application to facilitate the construction of resilient housing and create open spaces on 141 city-owned properties, purchased in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. The properties involved sustained a level of storm and flood damage equal to at least half their respective value.
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413 E 120th Street is one of the sites up for redevelopment. Image Credit: Google Maps.
The RFP was developed using community input through the East Harlem Neighborhood Planning Process and visioning workshops. On August 8, 2019, the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) Commissioner, Louise Carroll, announced the release of a competitive Request for Proposals (RFP) regarding the redevelopment of the East Harlem Multi-Service Center site at 413 East 120th Street in Manhattan and the NYPD’s 25th Precinct parking lot on the east side of Park Avenue between East 118th and East 119th Streets in Manhattan. The redevelopment will include affordable housing, retail, and community services. (more…)
Street cuts in Staten Island. Image credit: Staten Island USA.
Street cuts are still a problem in City streets undermining repaving efforts. On July 27, 2018, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced a pilot program to prevent so-called “street cuts” on freshly paved streets. The pilot will mandate interagency cooperation and coordination to prevent fresh asphalt being marred with street cuts. According to Staten Island USA, street cuts are the name given to the patch job done in the wake of underground work performed by developers, plumbing contractors, gas and electric utilities, cable operators and other entities that wish to, or need to work below the streets. The announcement follows the “Pave Baby Pave” campaign launched in 2014 that has helped repave many City streets. (more…)
Edward’s unenclosed sidewalk café restaurant located at 136 W Broadway in Manhattan. Image credit: CityLand.
Operating a sidewalk café requires a public review process and approval from the city. Summer is here and many restaurants open sidewalk cafés to give people a breath of fresh air while enjoying a meal. To operate a sidewalk café, the business must have a food service establishment permit and each year the business must pay consent fees, which are essentially a “lease” for use of the sidewalk space.
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Public plaza at 140 Broadway, Manhattan in 1997. Image Credit: Alexander Garvin.
New York City routinely permits private property owners to acquire public land without paying for it. Does that shock you? It should! Let me explain how this happened.
In 1961 the Board of Estimate approved a new Zoning Resolution in which the public obtained access to and use of privately-owned open space in exchange for permitting certain owners to build additional floor area inside their building. For four decades people routinely used what became public open space. That changed quite dramatically after foreign terrorists crashed two airplanes into the World Trade Center.
In the aftermath of September 11th property owners began to worry about protecting their buildings from possible terrorist attacks. If they were not worried, their insurance companies were and demanded that they provide protection. In some cases the request for additional security came from the NYC Police Department. In no case, however, could anybody specify the form of that attack. Nor did they devise actions that protected against airplanes penetrating their property. The unspecified attack was expected to come from individuals or vehicles.
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