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.

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Two-building project will include market-rate condominiums on West 116th Street and an affordable rental building on West 117th Street. On August 17, 2011, the City Council approved L+M Development Partners Inc.’s proposal to develop two mixed-use buildings on a through block lot between West 117th and West 116th Streets, in the block between Fifth Avenue and Malcolm X Boulevard in Harlem. The midblock project will be developed on a lot currently used by an adjacent building as a parking lot and a basketball court. L+M requested a rezoning to facilitate the construction of a twelve-story condominium building fronting West 116th Street and a nine-story affordable housing building fronting West 117th Street.  (more…)

State Senator Tony Avella and community group argued that rezoning would lead to undesirable uses. On July 28, 2011, the City Council approved TD Bank’s rezoning proposal to facilitate the construction of a one-story bank building near the Cross Island Parkway in Whitestone, Queens. The proposal established a C1-2 commercial overlay on the majority of a triangle-shaped block zoned R3A and generally bounded by the Cross Island Parkway Service Road, 15th Avenue, and 148th Street. The rezoning area comprises portions of four lots occupied by a non-conforming lumberyard, a gas station, and an automotive repair facility operating pursuant to a BSA variance. Pursuant to a 20- year lease, TD Bank plans to replace the lumberyard site with a 3,849 sq.ft. bank building with parking for eighteen vehicles.

Queens Community Board 7 and Borough President Helen M. Marshall supported the proposal. Marshall, however, recommended that TD Bank use landscaping to screen the bank’s parking lot from adjacent residential properties.  (more…)

Mark Weprin

Council Member Mark Weprin, the newly elected representative for the 23rd District and son of the late State Assembly Member Saul Weprin, admits that he is no expert in land use law. When Weprin first learned that he would inherit the position of chair of the Zoning & Franchises Subcommittee from fellow Queens Council Member Tony Avella, he pulled out the same land use hornbook he used in law school and started reviewing major land use decisions.

Born, bred, and still living in eastern Queens, Weprin grew up in a political family. His father, Saul Weprin, was a State Assembly Member for 23 years and rose to the position of Speaker. Though Mark Weprin himself had no ambition to run for public office, he was elected to replace his father in the Assembly following Saul Weprin’s sudden death in 1994. In the Assembly, he passed 62 laws involving mainly consumer affairs, education, and criminal justice issues. In January, Weprin replaced his brother, David Weprin, as representative for the 23rd District in the City Council, which includes the Queens neighborhoods of Bellerose, Fresh Meadows, Floral Park, and Oakland Gardens.Weprin views the position as an opportunity to deliver for his constituents on a more local level. (more…)

Developer agreed to increase affordable housing and provide additional three- and four-bedroom affordable units. On April 14, 2010, the City Council modified Isack Rosenberg’s proposal to build a multi-tower mixed-use development along the Brooklyn waterfront at 470 Kent Avenue. Known as Rose Plaza on the River, the project’s 3.7-acre site is bordered by the Schaefer Landing housing development to the north and Division Avenue to the south. The project will feature three residential towers rising to heights of 18, 25, and 29 stories. Rosenberg’s original proposal called for 801 residential units, twenty percent of which would be set aside for affordable studio, one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments; 33,000 sq.ft. of public waterfront; and 29,000 sq.ft. of retail.

The project drew criticism from Brooklyn Community Board 1, Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, and local Council Member Stephen Levin. They argued that Rosenberg needed to increase the plan’s affordable housing component and build more affordable three- and four-bedroom apartments in exchange for the economic benefits derived from the project. (more…)