Under new plan, City can opt to build High Line amenities in exchange for $2.3M developer fee. On September 5, 2007, the Planning Commission approved amendments to the zoning text for the Special West Chelsea District, specifically aimed at allowing the City to opt to build amenities for the High Line Park rather than waiting for developers to complete the construction.
Under the original text, developments adjacent to the High Line could receive a floor area bonus if the developer agreed to construct amenities for the High Line Park. Since the text’s approval in March 2006, the City grew concerned that developers might delay the High Line Park’s opening since construction of the amenities would correspond to the development’s construction timeline, not the park’s. (read more…)
Rendering of High Line Elevated Structure, affected in a follow-up zoning action in West Chelsea. All images created by Field Operations and Diller Scofidio + Renfro. Permission to reproduce images: courtesy The City of New York, (c) 2004.
Boundaries, frontage, easement access and lot coverage modified for High Line and Special West Chelsea district. In June 2005, the City Council approved several applications related to West Chelsea including the establishment of a Special West Chelsea District to support development of the High Line elevated public space, art galleries, marketrate housing, and affordable housing. 2 CityLand 83 (July 15, 2005). Public review of the proposed text amendments identified the need for additional modifications.
On October 27, 2005, the Planning Department filed an application for a Follow-Up Corrective Action, or FUCA, proposing modifications to the text amendments. The proposal clarified the boundaries, lot coverage calculations, and access requirements for the High Line Improvement Area; reduced minimum allowable frontage for development along the High Line; and identified Parks as the agency responsible for High Line maintenance and inspection. The proposal also added anti-harassment provisions similar to those created for the neighboring Special Hudson Yards District. 3 CityLand 5 (Feb. 15, 2006).
The Commission unanimously approved, finding that the application addressed needs identified during the approval process of the prior text amendments. (read more…)
Rezoning crafted to transform High Line into elevated open space; no mandatory affordable housing requirement set, despite community’s request. On June 23, 2005, the City Council approved the complicated rezoning and land acquisition plan for West Chelsea that has as its central goal the transformation of the High Line, an elevated rail line, into a 1.45-mile open space.
The approved rezoning impacts the area between Tenth and Eleventh Avenues from West 17th to West 30th Streets and on West 16th through West 18th Streets, east of Tenth Avenue to the mid-block. The area’s zoning had been M1-5 manufacturing except for the West 23rd Street corridor, which was rezoned in 1999 for commercial uses. Under the approved rezoning, only a small portion remains zoned manufacturing, in order to preserve lots for additional Chelsea art galleries, with the remaining blocks permitting commercial and residential uses. (read more…)
