November 23, 2008
Residents fear LES building boom
With the city considering new zoning laws for the Lower East Side, residents say they fear a mad rush from developers who want to build big before the rules change.
"The community will lose some sites while the developers rush in," said City Councilman Tony Avella (D-Queens).
"Nobody is against development, but let it be proper, keep it legal and let it be in context with the character of the neighborhood."
Most structures in the neighborhood are four or five stories tall. The new laws will limit most new construction to eight stories.
Avella has introduced a bill into the city council that would put a stop to all new construction after the Department of Planning has approved a zoning change but before the city council approves it.
Although his bill is co-sponsored by 20 other council members, Avella says the current administration is too pro-development, and that his bill is stalled in committee.
Representatives of builders and developers said it is wrong to suspend current zoning rules just because new rules are under consideration.
"That would just work to undermine new investment in the city," said Michael Slattery, Senior Vice President of the Real Estate Board of New York.
He also suggested that Lower East Side residents' fears may be overstated.
Even if it takes a year or more for the city to approve the new zoning laws, there will not be enough time for most developers to get a new project underway.
Still, any developer who has managed to pour a foundation on a new building before the rules change will be allowed to build a structure of any height.
So, while the zoning change could help preserve the character of the East Village in the long-run, it could initially spark a minor demolition and construction boom.
"The problem is that builders have been doing unsafe, illegal construction to get the foundation in before the zoning change," said Avella.
"You can imagine that years down the road that foundation will crack."
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