Rezoning of 25 blocks in North Tribeca moves forward

Proposal would establish new height and bulk regulations in northern portion of Special Tribeca Mixed Use District. On September 15, 2010, the City Planning Commission approved the Department of City Planning’s North Tribeca Rezoning proposal. The 25-block rezoning area is generally bounded by Canal Street to the north, Walker and Hubert Streets to the south, Broadway to the east, and West Street to the west. The plan would impact the Special Tribeca Mixed Use … <Read More>


Remnants of historic free black community heard

Rossville AME Zion Church at 584 Bloomingdale Road in Staten Island. Image : LPC.

Four 19th century buildings in Staten Island’s Sandy Ground, one of the first communities settled by freed slaves, considered. On August 10, 2010, Landmarks heard testimony on the potential designations of four buildings located in Staten Island’s Sandy Ground community, one of the country’s oldest communities settled by freed slaves. The buildings date to the 19th century and include the Rossville … <Read More>


Richard Bearak on the Brooklyn Borough President’s Office

Richard Bearak, Director of Land Use for Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, had originally intended to be an architect. But as an undergrad at the New York Institute of Technology (NYIT), Bearak unexpectedly developed an interest in city planning. After receiving a degree in Architectural Technology, Bearak was admitted to Hunter College’s urban planning graduate program in 1981.

Upon finishing school, Bearak worked in the private sector designing subdivisions and clustered developments in southwestern Connecticut. … <Read More>


Energy-efficient project in Brooklyn approved

Image courtesy of ridgewood-bushwick-senior-citizens-council.org

Architect claimed that residential building would be first in the United States to conform to strict “Passive House” design standards. On March 24, 2010, the City Planning Commission approved the Department of Housing Preservation and Development’s proposal to allow the Ridgewood Bushwick Senior Citizens Council to build a six-story affordable housing project on a vacant City-owned site at 803 Knickerbocker Avenue in Bushwick, Brooklyn. The 28,390 sq.ft. project, known as Knickerbocker … <Read More>


Judge enjoins Brooklyn’s Broadway Triangle plan

State court judge granted a preliminary injunction blocking the plan the day after full Council approval. On December 21, 2009, the City Council approved the Department of Housing Preservation and Development’s rezoning plan for the Broadway Triangle Urban Renewal Area in South Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The plan includes rezoning nine blocks, primarily zoned for manufacturing, to R6A and R7A districts in order to facilitate the development of 1,851 residential units, 844 of which will be marketed … <Read More>


Split vote favors Brooklyn Broadway Triangle plan

Community groups opposed to rezoning proposal expressed concerns about HPD’s opaque planning process. On December 7, 2009, the City Council’s Land Use Committee modified and approved the Department of Housing Preservation and Development’s proposal to redevelop the seventeen-block Broadway Triangle Urban Renewal Area in South Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The City created the Broadway Triangle URA in 1989, and HPD’s proposal included redrawing the boundaries of the urban renewal area and rezoning nine blocks in order to … <Read More>