Frank St. Jacques testifies before the Board of Standards and Appeals. Image credit: BSA
Approval corrects an erroneously-granted permit in 2011. On May 19, 2015 the Board of Standards and Appeals voted to grant a special permit to the applicant, 22-32 31st Street LLC, for expanding an existing Use Group 6 restaurant at 22-32 31st Street in Astoria, Queens, into an adjacent residential zoning district.. The restaurant sits on a lot that is partially zoned as C2-4A with the remainder zoned as R5B. The permit is needed to allow outdoor accessory dining in the R5B portion.
(more…)
Architect rendering of the proposed Astoria Cove development project. Image Credit: Studio V
Approval came after negotiations increased the percentage of affordable housing. On November 12, 2014 the City Council Land Use Committee voted 18-0 to approve the Astoria Cove development project, with modifications. The vote was delayed several hours as negotiations between lead developer Alma Realty and Council Member Costa Constantinides continued into Wednesday afternoon over Astoria Cove’s housing affordability and other issues discussed in the initial hearing.
(more…)
Architect rendering of the proposed Astoria Cove development project. Image Credit: Studio V
The project was approved by City Planning despite opposition from the Community Board, Borough President, and the local Council Member. On October 20, 2014 the City Council Subcommittee on Zoning and Franchises will hold hearings on the proposed Astoria Cove mixed-use development project. The project, designed by Alma Realty, is the first project subject to Mayor de Blasio’s mandatory inclusionary zoning housing requirement. Despite the requirement, the project has faced opposition from community groups and elected leaders arguing the designated affordable units are too expensive for current Astoria residents.
(more…)
Developer affected by rezoning claimed substantial work. In early 2010, Scott Minuta obtained a permit to demolish two low-rise buildings at 35-16 Astoria Boulevard in Astoria, Queens. On May 10, 2010, Minuta obtained a building permit to develop a six-story mixed-use building on the site. Two weeks later the City Council approved the 238-block Astoria Rezoning Plan, which replaced the site’s R6 zoning with an R6B district. 7 CityLand 71 (June 15, 2010). The rezoning rendered Minuta’s 11,798 sq.ft. project out of compliance with the new district’s maximum height and floor area regulations. Because Minuta had not completed the building’s foundation by the rezoning’s enactment date, Buildings issued a stop work order.
Minuta sought BSA approval to complete construction. At BSA, Minuta claimed to have excavated 85 percent of the site and poured 35 percent of the concrete needed for the building’s foundation. Minuta also claimed to have already spent $228,692 of the project’s total $1,686,550 budget. Further, Minuta reclaimed that a complying project would result in a building with 43 percent less floor area and lead to an estimated loss of nearly $2.5 million.
BSA granted Minuta a two-year extension to complete construction. BSA found that Minuta had performed substantial work on the project, made significant expenditures, and would suffer a serious economic loss if forced to proceed under the current zoning.
BSA: 35-16 Astoria Boulevard, Queens (77-11-A) (Sept. 13, 2011) (Jessica Loeser, for Minuta).
