It's all so convenient

From the NY Post:

Mayor Bill de Blasio’s $300,000 debt to his outside law firm is starting to cast a huge shadow over his staff’s decisions.

As The Post reports Tuesday, opponents of plans to expand the Frick Museum have gone to court, claiming in part that the Frick’s use of the firm — Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel — to represent it before the city creates a conflict of interest.

They’re right: Frick hired Kramer Levin to push its plans before the Board of Standards and Appeals and the Landmarks Preservation Commission. But the mayor chooses their members, and they’re all surely aware that he owes the firm 300 grand.

The BSA will also decide Tuesday whether to OK a 64-story East Side apartment tower. Who’s repping its developer, Jonathan Kalikow? Yep: Kramer Levin.

The firm reportedly lobbied two key mayoral aides, Deputy Mayor Alicia Glen and City Planning Commissioner Marisa Lago, to let the building reach its planned 64-story height — and the planning commission obliged.

The City Council later nixed that decision, but the BSA will now decide whether enough of the tower was built by then to shield it from the council’s action.

Even if de Blasio hasn’t tried to pay off his debt with political favors, his debt creates an appearance that the firm will be treated well by the city. What company lets a client not pay a bill (or even work out a payment plan, as de Blasio has yet to do) unless it’s getting something in return?

Manhattan group sues to stop too-tall tower

From AM-NY:

A new lawsuit has brought a skirmish over a residential skyscraper on the Upper East Side to new heights.

State Sen. Liz Krueger, City Councilman Ben Kallos, and two neighborhood groups are challenging the city’s approval of a residential building with an art gallery, currently under construction at 180 East 88th St.

DDG Partners’ structure is slated to rise 524 feet, when including mechanical equipment.

In a lawsuit recently filed in New York County Supreme Court, the Upper East Side groups claimed DDG Partners created a micro-lot to skirt zoning rules that would have otherwise limited the building’s height to about 300- to 350-feet, according to estimates from Kallos’ office.

The lawsuit alleges DDG Partners created a small zoning lot where its property borders 88th Street, which it transferred to an entity created exclusively to own the new buffer lot. DDG Partners then successfully argued the rest of the property does not border 88th Street, according to the lawsuit. This allowed DDG Partners to avoid zoning rules requiring buildings along 88th Street to use tower-on-a-base designs, where 55 percent of the building’s bulk is concentrated below a height of 150 feet, according to the lawsuit. The design standard can indirectly limit the overall altitude of buildings.

The Upper East Side groups have taken a number of steps to challenge the city’s interpretations of the zoning rules and attempt to halt the project, including appealing its decision with the city Board of Standards and Appeals.

Shady Whitestone spa shut down

From the Queens Tribune:

A Whitestone spa that had sparked concerns among neighbors who suspected it was a front for illicit activity has shut down.

The spa was set up in the basement of a two-story house at 150-53 14th Rd. For months, its only designation that it was a business was a flashing “open” sign. In its final few weeks, there was a sign in the driveway advertising its business as “Kiki Spa.”

Neighbors who spoke to the Queens Tribune feared that the spa was a front for illegal sexual activity, citing a large number of men entering the building at odd hours, the lack of signage, reports of lingerie in the backyard and highly explicit ads that demanded “no law enforcement” posted on Backpage.com.

The Department of Buildings issued two violations for the spa on Oct. 5, claiming that it was operating illegally without permission from the city’s Board of Standards and Appeals. The violations are now listed as “resolved,” and compliance with the law was first noted on Oct. 26. A DOB spokesman said that compliance was noted after the spa was removed.

Woodside Succeeds in Defending Against Megachurch in Larger Fight Against Gentrification and Displacement

PRESS RELEASE

In September 2016, the Universal Church, on 69th Street and Roosevelt Avenue, had proposed to expand itself right in the heart of the Woodside community. The proposed structure of the “megachurch” would stand 70-feet high, taller than any surrounding building in the area. Not only would such a development be out-of-context in Woodside, but it would also break New York City building code that limits the height of building construction. It would set a dangerous precedent for commercialization and future development in the Woodside Community. And as a result would encourage gentrification and the displacement of residents especially working-class immigrant families. Organizations in New York City, such as Queens Anti-Gentrification Project (QAGP), Filipino American Democratic Club of New York, National Alliance of Filipino Concerns (NAFCON), and Anakbayan New York (ABNY) had convened with the Woodside community in response and strong opposition to this proposed development. In turn, these progressive community organizations and allies formed the Coalition to Defend Little Manila, dedicated to fight against the construction and expansion of this “megachurch” and its threats of gentrification of Woodside and displacement of its working-class migrant residents.

On January 5th, Community Board 2 (CB2), representing the Woodside, Sunnyside, and Long Island City neighborhoods, held its regular meeting with the megachurch proposal on its agenda. At that time, ABNY mobilized its members alongside the Woodside community in a speakout and rally against the megachurch construction to emphasize that it is the community who will decide what happens in Woodside, and the megachurch proposal was pushed to February 3rd. On February 3rd, the Coalition alongside Woodside residents mobilized to voice their concerns and dissent against the megachurch, and CB2 unanimously voted against the proposal. The Universal Church had then submitted its application to the Board of Standards and Appeals (BSA), asking for a variance to expand the church beyond the jurisdiction of CB2 and bypassing NYC zoning laws and building code. ABNY had successfully submitted a request to BSA dismissing the application on June 7, 2017, making it even harder for the Universal Church to continue forward in their development.

We are humbled by the support of the community in this fight. It was not CB2 nor the BSA that had defeated the megachurch development. It was the Woodside community, its residents and business owners, that had voiced their concerns by petitioning against it, by attending Community Board meetings, and sharing with members of the Coalition how they opposed such a development in their community. It was the community, and it is only ever the community, who can truly lead in its own defense, protection, and development. We understand that this small victory is but one step in a larger struggle against gentrification and displacement and that only with the support of the people can we achieve real victories in this fight.

Board of Standards and Appeals Reform Legislation Passes New York City Council

City Hall – Yesterday, the New York City Council passed a package of legislation aimed at reforming the New York City Board of Standards and Appeals (BSA). In the past developers have been able to circumvent city zoning laws restricting building forms, use, height, density, through the BSA even though local Community Boards and elected officials objected to their decisions. This legislation aims to reform applications, decisions, notifications, staffing and transparency around the BSA to be more accountable to the public. The BSA is a five-member body tasked with reviewing requests for variances and special permits related to affordable housing and city planning in the zoning law. The package includes nine bills and featured bipartisan support from sponsors including Governmental Operations Chair Ben Kallos, Majority Leader Jimmy Van Bramer, Minority Leader Steven Matteo and Council Members Karen Koslowitz (D-29) and Donovan Richards (D-31).

Application Reform:

Introduction 1392-A, by Kallos – Sets minimum application requirements for developers to show why zoning laws should not apply to them including key financial disclosures with analysis by real estate professionals, neighborhood studies showing unique conditions, and affirmations under penalties of perjury with fines for knowing violations of up to $15,000.

Decision Reforms:

Introduction 418-A, by Koslowitz – The BSA will be required to write decisions with responses to recommendations from Community Boards and Borough Boards.
Introduction 282-A, by Van Bramer - The BSA will be required to write decisions that respond to any relevant evidence and arguments submitted by the City Planning Commission, Community Boards, Borough Boards, lessees and tenants as well as owners.

Notification Reforms:

Introduction 1200-A, by Richards –Proof of service will be required for applications and materials mailed to Council Members, Borough Presidents, Community Boards and other city agencies, with verification of receipt to be posted online.
Introduction 514-A, by Matteo - Notifies property owners when variances are expiring and penalties will be incurred in the coming six months.

City Staffing Reforms:

Introduction 1390-A, by Kallos -The Department of City Planning will appoint a BSA coordinator to appear before the BSA to submit testimony in defense of the zoning resolution, and such testimony would be available online.
Introduction 1391-A, by Kallos - A state certified real estate appraiser with no less than 5 years’ experience will be available to work for or consult with the BSA to review and analyze real estate financials provided by developers.

Transparency Reforms:

Introduction 1393-A, by Kallos - The number of pre-application meeting requests, number of applications, number approved or denied, and an average length of time until a decision would be reported biannually.
Introduction 1394-A, by Kallos – The location of all variances and special permit applications acted upon by the Board since 1998 would be available as a list and a layer on an interactive map of the city.

“We are taking away the rubber stamp from a government agency that used it far too often over the objections of residents. Developers will have, to be honest in applications that include the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. The Board of Standards and Appeals will have to consider community objections and write decisions outlining why they disagree. The City Planning Commission will have to watch over our zoning laws,” said Council Member Ben Kallos, Chair of the Committee on Governmental Operations, which has oversight of the Board of Standards and Appeals. “Thank you to the Municipal Art Society and Citizens Union for their reports and guidance, Borough President Brewer, as well as Council Members Koslowitz, Matteo, Richards, and Majority Leader Van Bramer for their long-standing leadership on this issue, and our Community Boards who fight the Board of Standards and Appeals on behalf of all New Yorkers every day.”

Happy Valentine's Day from Tommy Huang

From today's BSA calendar:

252-12-BZ
Akerman Senterfitt, LLP
39-39 223rd Street & 223-01/15/19 Mia Drive, Queens
Variance (§72-21) to legalize four single family homes which do not comply with the rear yard requirements, ZR §23-47. R1-2 zoning district. Community Board #11Q

You can read the entire backstory on these houses here.

Reporter captures food pantry debacle

Great job by the Queens Chronicle's Ryan Brady in following up on our original story:

A Queens Crap blog post from last month featured a complaint from an anonymous person about the crowds that come when the synagogue gives out food and block the entrance to a nearby community driveway.

Nisanov said that people who come to the food pantry are encouraged to avoid blocking the community driveway.

“Whenever there’s cars coming by, we always ask the people to move,” he said. “Even when there is no car coming by, we always tell people, ‘Please, it’s a driveway; we don’t want anyone to get hurt.’”

But when the Chronicle went to the location on Wednesday morning during the time of the food pantry’s operation, an entrance to the community driveway was blocked by a number of people waiting in line.

The rabbi added that the synagogue being in the area has benefited it in other ways.

“A house of worship and especially a synagogue in the neighborhood has raised the values of homes tremendously,” he said.

The Board of Standards and Appeals issued a variance for the building to be a synagogue with an accessory apartment for the rabbi in 2007 on the condition that it get a new certificate of occupancy reflecting the usage, according to the agency’s executive director, Ryan Singer. The certificate was necessary for the variance to legalize the building’s usage as a synagogue. The building did not have one by 2011, the deadline to do so under the conditional variance.

BSA may actually give developer a hard time

From LIC Post:

The developers of the Paragon paint building who need a zoning variance in order to construct a 28-story tower on Vernon Boulevard may well struggle to get it, according to the executive director of the Board of Standards and Appeals.

The developers, Simon Baron Development and CRE Development, must adhere to several conditions in order to be granted a variance—one of which is that the structure does not alter the character of the neighborhood.

“We told them from a staff point of view that they would have a difficult time making that argument,” Ryan Singer, the BSA executive director said. “There are not a lot of buildings in that area that are that height.”

Singer said that his staffers told the developers that their case on this point “seemed like a stretch.”

The developers are continuing to press ahead with their BSA application. On Wednesday, Brent Carrier, of CRE Development, said that they are still on track. He said that they will not be changing the design in any significant way. He wouldn’t comment beyond this, other than saying it is “an exciting project.”

Council seeks to limit authority of the BSA

From Crains:

The City Council is set to discuss a package of bills Wednesday that would make it harder for property owners to bend the city's zoning laws, as they typically request in order to building bigger projects than would normally be allowed.

The 10 bills target the Board of Standards and Appeals, an obscure city body where owners argue that it is impossible to make a reasonable return developing a property without surpassing limits on things like the size and shape of buildings. A property might be oddly shaped, for example, preventing projects that conform to the zoning and are big enough to justify the investment. In order to make the economics pencil out, an owner might ask the board to relax height restrictions so more revenue-generating apartments could fit on the site.

According to the Manhattan councilman sponsoring five of the bills—which are to be heard Wednesday by the Committee on Governmental Operations—the board is persuaded too frequently. In 2011, it approved 97% of applications, many of which were opposed by local community boards.

A small victory in Astoria

Crappy,

Happy Birthday and thank you so much for passion, love and care you put into your blog each and every day.

I can't thank you enough for telling your readers about the Astoria Medical Center monstrosity behind our homes.

My neighbors and I scored a major victory when the BSA made Pali Realty move their parking garage exhaust vents from the rear to the front, preserving out yards and quality of life. It was due in part to the supportive letters from your readers.

One of my long-term goals is to establish the BSA Toolkit, which would empower residents and activists with the skills, resources, know-how, vocabulary, case studies and advice to fight developers successfully.

I'll let you know when I'm ready to roll it out and get feedback.

Enjoy the weekend and any celebrations you have planned!

Warm regards,

Norm

BSA approves overdevelopment in Staten Island

From SI Live:

A plan to build four new two-family houses at 122 Bard Ave. in Livingston has been approved and is awaiting building permits from the city before shovels can hit the dirt.

The vacant parcel, which measures 85 feet wide and 200 feet deep, used to be home to a two-story, single-family house. It has now been divided into four lots and will be developed for a total of eight families.

The city Board of Standards and Appeals granted the request by developer Glenn Yost of Staten Island-based Whitwell Properties LLC to build the four buildings.

Residents, the Community Board and other leaders have opposed the project, as it adds density to the site and the original plan didn't offer what they felt was appropriate parking for the four buildings. They feared that residents would park on an access road even though it's prohibited.

The Land Use Committee of Community Board 1 voted against the project, citing concerns with parking and the access road.

The Full Community Board 1 also voted against it.

Borough President James Oddo also opposed it, alleging that it doesn't comply with zoning requirements in the Lower Density Growth Management Area Zoning Amendment, regarding open area for residences in the zoning district and the location of parking.

Mosque variance going to court

From the Queens Chronicle:

The Kissena Park Civic Association and state Sen. Tony Avella (D-Bayside) are considering filing an Article 78 lawsuit over a controversial plan to build a mosque in Flushing at 46-05 Parsons Blvd.

The group behind the plan, Masjid e-Noor, sought approvals for variances from the Board of Standards and Appeals, which has not yet published the resolution that includes the waivers and conditions for the project. All of the waivers sought were approved, according to BSA spokesman Ryan Singer.

“They got what they were asking for,” Singer told the Chronicle.

The site is a small, unusually shaped lot at the corner of 46th Avenue and Parsons Boulevard.

The lawsuit — which would aim to overturn the BSA’s decision — has to be filed within 30 days after the agency publishes its resolution with the waivers and conditions for the project, which it will do early next week, according to Singer.

“The Board of Standards and Appeals approved the applicant’s request to waive regulations pertaining to maximum floor area regulations, front yard and height and setback to permit a house of worship to be built at 46-05 Parsons Blvd in Queens,” Singer said in an emailed statement. “The building did not change during the hearing process although waivers were added to accommodate the proposed dome.”

The variances sought were for parking, floor area ratio, sky exposure plane, side yard and other construction regulations. Community Board 7 rejected the plan after members of the board tried to get the applicants to consider another site.

Singer insisted that the proposal was considered as any other would be.

“The Board treated this application with the same rigor as any other before it and found that it met the findings for a variance,” he said.

“We have a situation where the city is letting this particular group and this mosque go forward by waiving the building codes applicable to them,” Carsten Glaeser, the vice president of the KPCA, said.

The civic association, he added, is “trying to come up with money” for representation in court. According to Glaeser, other civic associations might get involved with the lawsuit.

Glendale yeshiva tries for BSA variance

From the Queens Tribune:

After clearing their violations with the City Department of Buildings, the Yeshiva Gedolah at 74-10 88th St. in Glendale is once again seeking variance to expand its dormitory quarters to accommodate 1,050 students with an additional 50,000 square feet of space.

At a land use hearing at Borough hall last Thursday, attorney for the yeshiva Jay Goldstein said that the goal is to keep more students on site so they can take advantage of early morning classes and decrease busing to and from the site, which is a major complaint in the neighborhood.

Goldstein noted that the current dorm only allows for 282 students to stay on site. He added that with rising rent costs, parents of the students who have in the past lived in Queens and Brooklyn have now moved upstate. “That number will increase,” said Goldstein.

He said if they do not receive this variance, the school will continue to operate as a Use Group 9 trade school and find facilities for the dorm elsewhere.

The school does not have a C of O for dorms and was vacated last year for that reason. They also still have active building violations. How about building a yeshiva upstate where these kids live instead of in the middle of Glendale where they require busing?

BSA Chair attends grand opening of mosque she approved

This isn't a conflict of interest or anything...

Margery Perlmutter, Chair of the Board of Standards and Appeals, which decided in favor of an oversized mosque that a Brooklyn community opposed, not only attended the grand opening of said mosque, but presented a proclamation to the congregation on behalf of the de Blasio administration.

With a track record like this, it seems the deck is stacked against those opposed to an oversized mosque in Flushing.

BSA grants variance for 17-story QB hotel

From LIC Post:

Defying the wishes of Community Board 2 and Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer, the Board of Standards and Appeals has given the all clear to a developer to construct a 17-story hotel building at 32-45 Queens Blvd.

The BSA’s approval stems from the YMCA’s application to transfer commercial air rights to Fongtar, a Bronx-based developer that owns a 10,000 square foot lot next door to the YMCA’s Long Island City facility, which intends to construct a hotel.

The YMCA needed the approval of the BSA to modify its existing variance in order for it to sell its air rights. The BSA had to weigh in on the variance since the Queens Boulevard facility was only allowed to be built in the first place as a result of a zoning waiver.

The April 5 approval by the BSA now permits Fongtar to build a hotel three times the size of what would have been allowed on the site without the air rights transfer.

The five BSA board members unanimously approved the YMCA’s application to modify its variance. Meanwhile, in March, every Community Board 2 member rejected it.

An end to developer loophole?

From Brooklyn Daily:

The city must repeal provisions letting Ridgites drastically increase the size of their houses, because homeowners are turning the neighborhood into a hodgepodge of McMansions, local leaders say. The Department of City Planning is considering no longer extending so-called “special permits” to residents who want to enlarge their one- and two-family homes bigger than zoning allows. The agency created such permits to help families grow in place — so homeowners could build an extra bedroom for a child instead of moving out of the neighborhood, for example. But in practice, greedy speculators use it to make a quick buck, one critic said.

“It is used rampantly by people to buy property, build it up, and flip it for a profit,” said Michael Bistreich, legislation and budget director for Councilman Vincent Gentile (D–Bay Ridge). “Repealing it will help keep neighborhood character and the housing market in the area intact.”

Community Board 10 opted into the program 20 years ago under the belief that the Board of Standards and Appeals — a city planning sub-agency that grants the permits — would ensure that any expansions would not “alter the essential character of the neighborhood,” and that the community board would have some say in what permits were granted, according to a 1996 board report.

But since then, the city has rubber-stamped wildly inappropriate home expansions, according to a board honcho.

Woodside crap developer seeks variance extension

From Sunnyside Post:

Developers who had a Woodside Avenue project approved against the community’s wishes several years ago are now asking for help to push back their construction deadline.

The Board of Standards and Appeals gave the go-ahead to a development company to construct a seven-story, 27-unit apartment complex at 64-01 Woodside Ave. in 2011, overcoming the objections of Community Board 2 and Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer.

Joe Conley, who was chairman of Community Board 2 at the time, said that a one-family house was torn down in order for the seven-story development to proceed.

Last week, a representative for the developer went before CB 2’s Land Use Committee and said the builder ran out of time completing the project and is seeking the approval of the BSA to grant it an extension so it could get a certificate of occupancy.

The Board was not sympathetic given the project’s storied history.

It actually was a warehouse-turned-church that was torn down. This crap sits right on top of what may be the historic Shaw Hotel, which surprisingly has been renovated and not demolished.

Mega hotel will sit next to YMCA

From the LIC Post:

A hotel is likely to go up at 32-45 Queens Blvd. significantly higher than zoning permits, due to a planned deal with the adjacent YMCA.

The hotel will be constructed on a 10,000-square-foot lot, which would ordinarily permit only 20,000 square feet of building space for a hotel. When interviewed by the Sunnyside Post in December, developers said plans were only for a 12-story hotel.

However, the YMCA, located on a 40,000-square-foot property at 32-23 Queens Blvd., plans to merge its zoning lot with the adjacent hotel site.

This maneuver would allow the hotel to stand 17 stories as of right – or 100,000 square feet of building space – according to Jessica Rubenstein, an attorney with Eric Palatnik, representing the YMCA.

Rubinstein also said that the YMCA could transfer its air rights to the hotel, which could bring the total building space up to 140,000 square feet.

The YMCA was granted a zoning variance in the 1990s to open this Queens Boulevard location in the middle of a manufacturing/hotel zone.

Therefore, in order for its deal with the hotel developers to go through, the YMCA needs approval from the Board of Standards and Appeals to modify that variance.

Neither Rubenstein nor the BSA were able to explain exactly how the air rights transfer would work in conjunction with the zoning lots merger.

Loophole for developers in zoning plan

From Crains:

A de Blasio administration proposal requiring developers to include affordable apartments in their market-rate projects includes a legislative escape hatch that critics say would let builders too easily dodge the mandate.

The mandatory inclusionary housing policy is meeting opposition as it moves through the public-review process. Should the City Council approve it, developers would be required to devote up to a third of new projects' apartments in the city's affordable-housing program if the value of their property is increased by the city allowing more floor space or a change of use.

The proposal, which aims to shift the burden of building affordable housing to the private sector, also includes a passage describing when mandatory inclusionary housing isn't actually mandatory. If developers believe that the affordable housing would prevent them from making a reasonable profit, they can appeal and have the requirements reduced or eliminated.

And on top of this, people are asking where the Environmental Impact Statement is for this plan.

Developer walks away from project

"FYI, the front construction fence around this house has (finally) been taken down, and there is activity (people going in and out):

On 11/13/15: APPLICATION HEREWITH FILED TO RESTORE EXISTING GAS SERVICE TO DWELLING." - Anonymous