Applicant claimed that a conforming residential development would not yield a reasonable return given the lot’s irregular shape, location, and sloping grade. Joseph Maza applied to BSA for a variance to build a one-story commercial building with 21 accessory parking spaces at 4553 Arthur Kill Road in Charleston, a Staten Island neighborhood located just north of the Outerbridge Crossing. The site was located within the Special South Richmond Development District, a district established in 1975 to guide the development of the southern portion of Staten Island. The proposal required a variance since Maza intended the building to be occupied by retail stores, which are prohibited within the R3-2 residential zoning district.

Maza claimed that the lot’s irregular triangle shape made it difficult to construct a conforming residential development, and that the lot’s 15-ft. upward slope, beginning at its Arthur Kill Road frontage, would increase sewer line installation costs. The proposed commercial development avoided these added costs since an on-site septic system would be utilized, eliminating the need for a new 700-ft. sewer line. Maza also claimed that a nearby 87,000 sq.ft. bus depot would render the site unmarketable for residential use given the depot’s task of servicing several hundred buses daily, seven days a week. The depot, Maza added, would increase traffic around Arthur Kill Road, a 60- ft. wide arterial road that provided access to New Jersey by way of the Outerbridge Crossing. The traffic-choked road, which touched the site, would further lessen the prospect of successfully marketing a conforming residential development. (read more…)