Aerial view of St. Francis Preparatory School. Image Credit: Google.

City Council approved rezoning amendment to expand music and science programs at St. Francis Preparatory School. On August 19, 2013, the City Council’s Land Use Subcommittee on Zoning and Franchises held a public hearing on St. Francis Preparatory School’s rezoning application. The school, located at 6100 Francis Lewis Boulevard in Fresh Meadows, Queens, filed an application on January 24, 2013, for an amendment of the zoning map. The proposed action would allow the school to build additional classrooms, science laboratory, art and musical performance facilities, as well as a chapel. (read more…)

Carol Samol

As director of the Department of City Planning’s Bronx Office, Carol Samol uses zoning tools to promote sustainable economic development in the Bronx. She has also participated as a leader in a broader City effort to reform the City’s Uniform Land Use Review Procedure’s pre-certification process.

Journey to the Bronx. Samol grew up in the upper Ohio Valley near Wheeling, West Virginia and studied English at Berea College, a small liberal arts college in Kentucky. Berea College admits academically promising students who are able to attend for free so long as they work in some capacity for the school. After graduation, Samol moved to the Bronx where she earned a Master’s Degree in Philosophy from Fordham University. Philosophy served as an extension of Samol’s English studies, allowing her to expand her analytic skills. Samol searched for a practical application of her studies, ultimately developing an interest in urban planning. She attended New York University’s Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service and earned a Master’s in Urban Planning. Samol says that she felt an instant and personal connection to the Bronx, the borough where she continues to reside. Ultimately, Samol knew that she would help work towards the borough’s redevelopment.

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