Rezoning will allow Chelsea’s International Toy Center to be converted for residential use. 200 Fifth, LLC applied to rezone 200 Fifth Avenue and 1107 Broadway in Chelsea, Manhattan, to allow conversion of manufacturing/commercial buildings to residences with an expected 500 units. The buildings, located between Sixth Avenue and Broadway, along West 23rd and 25th Streets, are home to The International Toy Center and nearly 300 toy companies, many of which have been tenants since 1938. … <Read More>
Two lots win partial upzoning despite opposition
The Council allowed 75-foot rather than 80-foot height. Following a modification proposed by the Planning Commission, the City Council approved a controversial application by 22 Caton Place Corporation to rezone two lots in Brooklyn’s East Windsor Terrace to facilitate a large residential development.
Caton’s original application received strong opposition from local residents, Brooklyn Community Board 7 and Borough President Marty Markowitz, who complained that the proposed 68-unit, 80-foot tall structure was too large for East … <Read More>
Fieldston Designation gets Council hearing
Many in community testified in opposition to landmarking of Bronx neighborhood. On March 28, 2006, the City Council’s Landmarks, Public Siting & Maritime Uses Subcommittee held a hearing on the designation of the Fieldston Historic District, located in the northwestern portion of the Bronx. The 97-year-old community’s historic significance lies in its winding roads and eclectic mix of Medieval, English, Tudor, Dutch, and Mediterranean architecture. Fieldston was unanimously designated by Landmarks in January, 2006, despite … <Read More>
“House that Ruth built” to get new home
82-year-old Yankee Stadium and nearby public parks to be replaced by new stadium, park space and public parking. On April 5, 2006, City Council approved 11 Parks applications related to development of a new Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, including disposition of three parcels of land to the Economic Development Corporation.
The new stadium site on East 161st Street is immediately north of Yankee Stadium’s current site. The proposal included 15.82 acres of new public … <Read More>
Dental practice use within zoning laws
- 218 E. 61st Street, Manhattan. Photo: Kevin E. Schultz
Neighborhood associations claimed dental office violated restrictive covenant dating back to Civil War and current zoning laws. Two neighborhood associations in the Treadwell Farm Historic District, an area bounded by 61st and 62nd Streets and Second and Third Avenues in Manhattan, sued Jak Cohane, the owner of the bottom two stories of a four-story brownstone located at 218 East 61st Street, who leased his premises to … <Read More>
Court affirms dismissal of spot zoning claim
Lower Manhattan property owner claimed it was singled-out by down-zoning. In 2003, the City Council approved a South Street Seaport down-zoning that reduced the permitted height and mass of future development in a 10-block area of Lower Manhattan. Peck Slip Associates LLC., the owner of a surface parking lot at 250 Water Street, sued the City and City Council, claiming that the down-zoning made development impossible. It further claimed that the 2003 downzoning was inconsistent … <Read More>