BSA rejected owner’s site valuation and claim that buildings were of a “different era.” Sutphin Boulevard LLC, owner of three adjacent lots in a residential district totaling 24,649 sq. ft., sought to demolish four buildings housing auto-service and auto-storage space on one of its lots and construct a one-story 12,005-square-foot retail building spanning the three lots. The site, at Sutphin Boulevard and I I It h Avenue in Queens, has contained an auto-service station since … <Read More>
Board of Standards & Appeals
Harlem car wash owner withdraws application
Owner sought to legalize ‘car wash, auto-lubrication station and accessory retail building. 2 113 First Avenue, llC, owner of two lots used for auto-related uses located at 338 East 109th Street in a residential district, sought a variance to legalize the existing car wash, auto-lubrication station and accessory retail building.
In its application to BSA, 2 1 13 represented that the oddly shaped lots and residential zoning made as-of-right development infeasible and that parts of … <Read More>
Proposed West Broadway building approved at 11 stories
BSA- requested alternate design approved. Siba Re LP, the owner of 350 West Broadway, a 8,264-squarefoot lot in SoHo between Grand and Broome Streets, proposed to expand a vacant two-story building into a ISS-foot tall, 13-story, 4 1 ,320- square-foot mixed-use building with retail and residential uses.
In support of a variance, Siba argued that the shallowness of the lot resulted in inefficient and impractical floor plates for any permitted commercial use. Showing that the … <Read More>
Bensonhurst developments win grandfathered status
Four developments exceeding zoning get green light to proceed over community objection. In June 2005, the City Council rezoned 120 blocks of Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, removing the ability to construct large as-of-right residential towers without any height limit along Bensonhurst’s smaller residential streets. 2 CityLand 86 ( July 15, 2005) .
Four developers with projects underway timely sought BSA’s approval to grandfather their development plans and allow construction to proceed on buildings that violated the new … <Read More>
BSA rejects developer seeking a dormitory use permit
Developer planned a 19-story dormitory building without an existing school affiliation. BSA denied developer Gregg Singer’s appeal from a Department of Buildings determination rejecting Singer’s application to build a 1 9- story, 222-unit student dormitory building on the site of former P.S. 64, located at 609 East 9th Street in the East Village. Singer had acquired the five-story, former elementary school from the City for $3.15 million at a 1 998 auction. The existing building … <Read More>
East Side hotel legalizes its gym and spa
Mid-town hotel,marketing itself as a spa/fitness-getaway, had no permit for its spa. The Affinia Dumont Hotel, advertising itself as “New York City’s only Executive Fitness Suite Hotel,” had illegally operated a spa and gym without a permit since May 2004. Located at 150 East 34th Street, the 37-story hotel concentrates its marketing and hotel services around its spa and gym, offering spa packages, in-room massages and a “fitness concierge” to arrange gym and spa services … <Read More>