Appellate Division Finds Architect Not Liable For Damages In Church Renovation

The suit was brought by owners of a neighboring building that was damaged in the course of renovating the church.  In 2001, the Church of God of St. Albans in Queens Village, Queens hired Harold Gebhard as design architect for a renovation of the church.  The project involved demolishing part of the existing church structure and replacing it with a new building.  During excavation of the building site in 2009, the neighboring building at 223-05 … <Read More>


Proposed Extension to IFC Center Would Face Cornelia Street

New space would add screening rooms, lobby to film center; extension would fill in vacant lot on Cornelia Street. On October 13, 2015, the Landmarks Preservation Commission held a hearing on a proposed extension of the IFC Film Center that would face 14 Cornelia Street in the Greenwich Village Historic District Extension II. The Film Center, at 323 Sixth Avenue, adjoins and owns the lot at the rear, currently vacant, on Cornelia Street. The … <Read More>


BSA Amends Variance to Facilitate Development Rights Transfer

Board distinguished the application from relevant case law.  On July 28th, the Board of Standards and Appeals voted to reopen and amend a variance for the applicant, 124 West 24th Street Condominium, to facilitate the conveyance of unused development rights.  The site from which the rights were to be transferred was the subject of a previous Board variance and could not be transferred without Board approval.


Appellate Court Upholds Decision In Favor Of Adult Entertainment Stores

Court found amendments expanding reach of the adult use zoning resolution to be unconstitutional.  In 2002, For the People Theaters and JGJ Merchandise Corp. filed suit to declare the 2001 Amendments to City’s adult use zoning resolution unconstitutional as a violation of the First Amendment.  The amendments broadened the resolution to cover any establishment regularly featuring live performances emphasizing specified anatomical areas or sexual activities and restricting or excluding minors.  Prior to the 2001 Amendments, … <Read More>


Variance Granted for Construction of Brooklyn School for Medically Frail Children

On July 28, 2015, the Board of Standards and Appeals voted to grant a zoning variance to the applicant, Akerman Senterfitt LLP, for the construction of the Brooklyn School for Medically Frail Children in the Ditmas Park neighborhood of Brooklyn.  The construction would yield a pre-kindergarten school at 570 East 21st Street with dormitory facilities for physically-handicapped children who require breathing ventilation and general respiratory care throughout at least part of the school day.  The … <Read More>


BSA Renews Construction Permit in Rezoned Area

Board recognized a vested right to continue construction.  On June 16, 2015 the Board of Standards and Appeals voted to extend a construction permit to the applicant, 180 Orchard LLC, for a twenty-four story mixed commercial- and community-use building at 180 Orchard Street in the Lower East Side of Manhattan.  The building will contain retail on the cellar and ground floors, community space on the mezzanine and second floors, and hotel use through the remaining … <Read More>