Residents prevail on claim that Manhattan building violated height limit. In 2006, the owner of 515 East Fifth Street self-certified a permit to add a sixth story and penthouse addition to the building. With construction underway, local residents and Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer complained to the Department of Buildings that the penthouse violated the 60-foot height limit set by the zoning resolution’s Sliver Law, which limits building heights in certain districts to either the width of the street or the height of an abutting structure.
Almost seven months later, Buildings rejected the residents’ complaints, finding the Sliver Law’s height limit inapplicable to the penthouse due to the penthouse’s size and the fact that it was set back and not visible from the street. Buildings’ pointed out that the construction maintained the street wall’s continuity, making it compliant with the Sliver Law’s intent. The residents appealed to BSA. (read more…)
Neighbors claimed that two Manhattan developments violated the height limit. On July 17, 2007, BSA held public hearings on the Department of Buildings’ issuance of permits for two projects: a one-story penthouse addition to 515 East Fifth Street and a one-story mechanical room addition to 441 East 57th Street. Local residents claimed that the penthouse and the mechanical room violated Section 23-692 of the zoning resolution, also known as the Sliver Law.
The City enacted the Sliver Law in 1983 to limit the height of buildings in certain zoning districts to either the width of the street, or to the height of an abutting structure if the abutting structure was taller than the street’s width. In 2005, the owner of 515 East Fifth Street added a sixth story and an additional penthouse set back from the street. While the sixth story did not exceed 60 feet, the width of East Fifth Street, local residents claimed that the nine-foot high penthouse did. Similarly, residents argued that the mechanical penthouse at 441 East 57th Street clearly violated the limit. (read more…)
