
Image Credit: DSNY
The new regulations will remain in effect throughout the summer. On June 23, 2020, Mayor Bill de Blasio and Sanitation Commissioner Kathryn Garcia announced that Alternate Side Parking (ASP) street cleanings will be reduced from two days a week to no more than once per week, per side, starting on Monday, June 29. (more…)
BSA reduced building size, but included parking for each unit. The owner of 114 Walworth Street in an M1-1 district of Bedford Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, sought a variance to construct a six-story, 47-unit residential building with 24 parking spaces on a vacant 17,500-square-foot lot with 175 feet of frontage on Walworth Street. The site, formerly occupied by residential buildings, has remained vacant since the buildings were demolished.
The applicant argued that Walworth Street’s narrow 50-foot width with only 24 feet of paved roadway, coupled with the unrestricted on-street residential parking on both sides, made it impossible for trailers to back onto the site. The site’s slope, two adjacent residential buildings and potentially contaminated soil conditions made conforming development infeasible. The only way to create functional manufacturing or commercial use on the site, the owner argued, would be to create one flat floor plate requiring a combination of excavation and decking at a considerable cost. (more…)

Ross Sandler
The Bloomberg administration will be remembered for, among other initiatives, a major reallocation of public street space for new and innovative uses. Cars and trucks have been joined by a host of new users, most recently by the long anticipated bike share program. Citibike is a worthy experiment.
The City’s Department of Transportation chased vehicular traffic from portions of Times Square, Herald Square and Madison Square and rededicated the space to movable chairs, tables and planters. Formerly clogged streets now serve as parks for sitters, walkers, lunch time breaks and urban star gazing. Along First Avenue, Second Avenue and other thoroughfares, DOT has seized entire lanes and pushed the parking lane away from the curb and out into the street. It then dedicated the former parking lanes to bicycles. These two shifts – pavement parks and protected bike lanes – constitute the largest shift of street space away from motorized vehicles since New York City started paving streets with asphalt.
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Rendering of proposed 40-story development (center) at 570 Fulton Street in Downtown Brooklyn. Image Credit: CPC/ Hill West Architects.
The development which requires a significant upzoning, special permit, and several building envelope requirement modifications will now proceed to City Council for review and approval. On December 5, 2018, the City Planning Commission held a public hearing on a proposed mixed-use development at 570 Fulton Street, located within the Special Downtown Brooklyn District. The applicant, 570 Fulton Street LLC, is proposing to build a 40-story, approximately 202,000 square foot building containing a mix of office space, residential apartments, and retail. To facilitate this development, the applicant is seeking three approvals including a zoning map change, a zoning text change, and the creation of a special permit that would unlock several building envelope waivers sought by the applicant. The project was presented by the applicant team comprised of Allison Curreri and Jay Segal of Greenberg Traurig, David West from Hill West architects, and David Schwartz of Slate Property Group. On January 9, 2019, the City Planning Commission approved the project, which will proceed to City Council. (more…)
Welcome to CityLand‘s fifth annual top ten stories of the year! We have selected a range of our most popular and prominent stories, and guest commentaries concerning New York City land use in 2016. Our fifth year as an online publication was marked by the fight to pass the Mayor’s Mandatory Inclusionary Housing plan, proposed reforms to the building code to prevent illegal home conversions, and capped by the passage of state laws prohibiting Airbnb advertising in New York City. We at CityLand are excited to continue providing in-depth coverage of the latest land use projects, cases, and legislation in 2017 and look forward to seeing what the year will bring. Thank you for all of your support and have a happy new year!
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