http://www.planNYC.org/ PlanNYC | New York City Planning Information Portal en-us ja3n@earthlink.net http://www.plannyc.org The 26 acre site development deal between Tishman Speyer Properties and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to develop the West Side rail yard is at a standstill. According MTA, Tishman Speyer wanted to change the terms of agreement that was originally agreed upon in March. Some are concerned that the standstill could jeopardize the project due to the slowing economy. Both the MTA and Tishman Speyer have indicated their commitment to the project and meeting the needs of the community. 2008-05-09 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org NY1 recently reported that former City Council Speaker Gifford Miller repeatedly contacted Speaker Christine Quinn several times through her personal email address to advocate the High Line development. It has been confirmed that Miller is acting only as a volunteer and not a lobbyist, but the group leading the High Line park received over $200,000 in council funding in 2007. 2008-05-08 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org The southern section of the No. 1 train tunnel that cuts through the World Trade Center site has been cleared of soil in order to construct an underpass connecting the eastern and western sides of the site. The underpass is being built under a network of steel beams on which the subway now rests. Eventually the entire area under the subway from Vessey Street to Liberty Street will be cleared and will be part of the underground, multilevel structure that will include shops, parking, and a PATH terminal. 2008-05-08 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org The Ikea furniture store is set to open in Red Hook in June. According to a representative from Ikea, the company has hired 300 employees from New York City, 60% of whom are from Red Hook. Some are skeptical of these hiring statistics. Co-chairman of the Red Hook Civic Association, John McGettrick, is doubtful in the validity of the hiring number released by the company and is critical of Ikea because their promise of local hiring was a large reason the project gained community support. 2008-05-08 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey plans to reduce the size of the centerpiece structure above the train station at the World Trade Center site. The Port Authority would like to keep the planned “winged” concept, but revisions to original design and building material will be made to keep the project in the $2.5 billion budget. 2008-05-08 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org MetroTech Center in Downtown Brooklyn has no vacant space. MaryAnne Gilmartin of Forest City Ratner Companies said that interest currently exceeded available space and noted that the types of tenants in the commercial building are shifting from large companies, typically needing at least 100,000 square feet of space, to smaller, more creative companies. She noted that this shift of tenants is representative of the type people who live in this area and tend to work for creative firms. Gilmartin also fielded some questions on the Atlantic Yards project at the real estate roundtable held in Brooklyn Heights. 2008-05-07 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org The man-made NYC Waterfalls project is under construction along the East River. The four 90 to 120 foot waterfalls located in Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Governors Island are expected to be running sometime in late June. The City expects the exhibit to increase tourism revenues by $55 million. 2008-05-07 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org The New York Court of Appeals rejected Atlantic Yards opponents most recent lawsuit. The plaintiffs filed suit in regard to the slow development of the project. The court also granted $100 in court costs to the Empire State Development Corporation, the defendant and agency behind the Atlantic Yards development. This is one of five lawsuits brought by Atlantic Yards opponents to court that have been dismissed. 2008-05-07 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org The City’s Board of Standards and Appeals (BSA) rejected an appeal by neighborhood groups and preservationists arguing that the Trump Soho Condominiums violated zoning regulations. This ruling was supported by the Buildings Department. Opponents of the towers have the ability to take their appeal to a state trial court, which they have indicated that they will do. 2008-05-07 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org Community organizations have announced that they plan to protest the revised rezoning plan for Coney Island at the May 22 opening of the neighborhood’s beach and amusement park. Protestors argue that the rezoning plan, which reduces the 15-acre amusement park to 9 acres, will turn the area into a “Mall of America.” The City believes the new plan will create a “significantly expanded and enhanced amusement district.” The city altered its plans when it was not able to acquire land from private owners. 2008-05-07 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org All 10 members of the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) said at a meeting yesterday that they did not approve of the current plans for the expansion of St. Vincent’s Hospital. The LPC disapproved of the plans to demolish the O’Toole Building, located on the west side of 7th Ave between 12th and 13th Street, stating that it was a significant example of modern architecture. Some commissioners also objected to plans to tear down eight buildings on the east side of 7th Avenue, which would allow the Rudin Management Company to build new residential buildings. St. Vincent’s has stated that it will apply for a hardship exemption from the LPC, because the O’Toole site is the “only location” where a new, state-of-the-art, green hospital can be built. To do so, St. Vincent’s must prove that the O’Toole Building is “financially or physically preventing the organization from carrying out its mission.” In general, nonprofit organizations applying for hardship exemptions have been relatively successful in earning them. 2008-05-06 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org Miss Brooklyn, the building designed by Frank Gehry as part of the Atlantic Yards project, has been renamed Brooklyn 1 and significantly scaled back in size. There is mixed support for the new design plans – some think the building is unstable while others appreciate its uniqueness. The building will be used solely for office space, a departure from original plans to have both housing and commercial space. 2008-05-06 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org The Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP) will begin for plans to rezone 110 blocks in the Lower East Side and the East Village. The rezoning, bounded by E. 13th Street, Avenue D, Grand and Delancey Streets, and Third Avenue and the Bowery, will lower height limits, require all building to line up to the street, and provide incentives for affordable housing and other residential projects. City Planning Commissioner Amanda Burden said that such a rezoning “respects and preserves these vitally important neighborhoods.” Community Board 3 has 60 days to review the rezoning. 2008-05-06 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org The New Yankee Stadium Foundation, set up as part of the Community Benefits Agreement (CBA) from the construction of the new Yankee Stadium, has begun to dole out funds to different community groups. The Foundation gave $500 grants to 24 Little League teams in early April and is hopeful to begin giving out money to larger projects and groups. Under the CBA, the Foundation will receive $800,000 in cash and $100,000 in baseball equipment every year for 40 years. The Foundation will also get tickets to Yankees games. 2008-05-06 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org The Department of Parks and Recreation announced that the floating pool, which was docked in Brooklyn last summer, will relocate to Hunts Point for this summer. Parks Commissioner, Adrian Benepe, says it will most likely stay there beyond this summer because the surrounding community is in need of pool space. The City’s Department of Environmental Protection is spending nearly $3 million to provide needed sewer upgrades on the Tiffany Street Pier that will house the floating pool. The City suggested that a second floating pool may be in the works as well. 2008-05-06 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org The New York Water Taxi will begin operating a new city subsidized ferry route from Far Rockaway to lower Manhattan via Brooklyn. New York Water Taxi is also restarting service from Pier 11 in Manhattan to Long Island City on the East Side and plans to begin service again to South Williamsburg after the completion of a new launch at Schaefer Landing. Mayor Bloomberg said that ferry service is “going to become an even bigger part of our city’s transportation network” because of the high costs of gasoline and waterfront revitalization efforts. 2008-05-06 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org Fifty 421a tax exemption certificates were sold for $1.35 million by Massey Knakal Realty Services. Due to the recent change in the program, developers are willing to pay large sums of money for certificates issued in 2006. 2008-05-05 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org The Municipal Arts Society (MAS) released drawings that it commissioned showing what the Atlantic Yards development could look like if developer Forest City Ratner is faced with continued construction delays. With delays stemming from numerous lawsuits from project opponents as well as from a slowing economy, the MAS is worried that a massive temporary parking lot will take the place of what should be residential and mixed use buildings. Forest City Ratner denies that this is the case and all of the project phases will be completed by 2018. 2008-05-05 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org The West Harlem Local Development Corporation says that it has been making progress towards a finalized community benefits agreement (CBA) with Columbia University over the past 4 months. While there is a memorandum of understanding in place involving funding from the university for the community, many have believed this to be a non-binding deal. With a community benefits agreement specifics on where funding is coming from and when it will be received as well as details on the number of jobs created are all being discussed at length by both parties. No timeline for its completion was given. 2008-05-05 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org Groundbreaking on the renovations for the UN headquarters happened today. A three-storey temporary building is being constructed on the North Lawn of the complex to house employees while the renovations are taking place. Thousands of other employees will be placed in temporary office space throughout the city. Renovations are expected to be completed by 2012 and cost $1.9 billion. 2008-05-05 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org Frank Gehry, Miss Brooklyn architect and designer, announced yesterday that the signature tower of the Atlantic Yards project will now be named B1 and will be 100 feet shorter, reaching just 34 stories. The tower will contain commercial office space only and has an asymmetrical stacked-block design rather different from the originally proposed design for Miss Brooklyn. No anchor tenant has been announced yet and project oppenents are skeptical that the necessary funding is available to complete all phases as planned and by the projected finish date. Residential units slated to be in Miss Brooklyn are now being shifted to other towers within the project. B2, a similarly designed residential complex on the site, will be built first to meet neighborhood housing needs. 2008-05-05 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org An Atlantic Yards opposition group, Develop Don’t Destroy Brooklyn (DDDB) responded to developer Bruce Ratner’s op-ed in the New York Daily News, saying that the piece and its accompanying column contained no facts to dispel the notion that the Atlantic Yards project is in jeopardy. DDDB criticizes the Daily News coverage for being biased and without context, and calls it part of a “damage-control campaign” launched by the developer. The column points out that Ratner still lacks financing and the development rights to much of the land needed for the project. The column also criticizes the developer for cost overruns and announcing an unrealistic construction timeline. 2008-05-04 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org In an op-ed piece in the New York Daily News, Bruce Ratner asserted that despite rumors to the contrary, construction at Atlantic Yards would begin this year and that the plans would eventually be realized in their entirety, including 2,250 units of affordable housing. Ratner also announced his new construction schedule, noting that he plans to break ground on the basketball arena later this year and a residential building shortly after. The first phase of construction will include 3 residential towers, containing in total about 1,500 units of housing, approximately 450 of which will be affordable. The rest of the project, including the iconic Miss Brooklyn building, is slated to be completed by 2018. Ratner blamed the construction delays on the lengthy public review process and a multitude of court cases that have been brought against the project. Ratner’s op-ed was also covered in an accompanying <a href=”http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/brooklyn/2008/05/04/2008-05-04_ratner_vows_to_break_ground_on_atlantic_.html”>Daily News regular column</a>. 2008-05-04 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org Construction at the Mets’ new Citi Field and the new Yankee Stadium has reduced game parking for both teams by about 2,000 spots each. Once the stadium projects are completed, parking for both stadiums will be increased, to 8,500 for the Mets and 9,000 for the Yankees. There are also plans for a new Metro North station at Yankees Stadium, serving the Hudson, Harlem and New Haven lines. 2008-05-03 00:00:00 http://www.plannyc.org In Mayor Bloomberg’s Fiscal Year 2009 executive budget, he has proposed spending $398 million on the redevelopment of Willets Point, Queens. The money would go towards land acquisition and infrastructure development and would be one of the biggest “direct city contributions to an economic development project” under Mayor Bloomberg. 2008-05-02 00:00:00