Jordan Most testifies before the Board of Standards and Appeals. Image credit: BSA
Subject lot was altered following settlement of an adverse possession claim. On June 23, 2015 the Board of Standards and Appeals voted to amend a previously-granted variance for construction of a four-story building at 129 Elizabeth Street in the Special Little Italy District of Manhattan. The proposed building would have retail use on the ground floor, residential use on the upper three floors, and a one-car garage.
The Board held a public hearing on March 24, 2015 with a continued hearing on May 12. Jordan Most of Sheldon Lobel, counsel for applicants Shun K. and Oi-Yee Fung, testified the owner of a neighboring lot brought an adverse possession claim over a portion of the subject lot shortly after the Board granted the initial variances in 2005. Mr. Most stated settlement of the claim reduced the size of the subject lot by twenty-six square feet, reducing the sellable square footage of the building. In response, the applicant requested minor increases in floor area, FAR, and building height to accommodate a new mezzanine above the first floor for additional retail space and to add a foot of height to the residential units for improved light and air.
On June 23, the Board voted 4-0 to grant the amendment of the existing variances. In its decision, the Board found the requested changes would neither alter the findings made in granting the original variances nor trigger any new zoning non-compliance.
BSA: 129 Elizabeth Street, Manhattan (150-04-BZ) (Jun. 23, 2015) (Sheldon Lobel, P.C., for Shun K. and Oi-Yee Fung, owners).
By: Michael Twomey (Michael is the CityLaw Fellow and a New York Law School graduate, Class of 2014).