Rendering of Trinity Church’s proposed Parish House as part of its project at 68-74 Trinity Pl. received a much warmer reception at Community Board 1 than a variance application for a Tribeca project at 100 Frankilin St.
BY DUSICA SUE MALESEVIC | It is the tale of two variance applications — with two very disparate endings.
On the one hand is Trinity Church, whose application went relatively smoothly at Community Board 1’s Financial District Committee on Nov. 5. On the other, the developer for 100 Franklin St., whose presentation a week later to the board’s Tribeca Committee was meet with anger from residents.
A variance allows a developer to bypass certain zoning requirements if it can prove that complying with code is an economic hardship or presents practical difficulties. The developer goes before the community board, which will make its recommendation to the Board of Standards and Appeals. The board then decides whether to approve.
Trinity Real Estate was applying for a yard wavier for their mixed-use 45-story tower they are planning to build at 68-74 Trinity Place. The base of the tower will house the Parish House and commercial space, and the above floors will be residential.
Since the property is irregularly shaped, the church wanted a waiver to not have a rear yard, which is a zoning condition of the interior lots, said Zachary Bernstein, of Fried Frank, their land use council.
The Parish House will occupy seven floors of the tower, said Rich Gladstone, the architect and project manager.
The current building, he explained, has classrooms, church administration offices, and space for counseling, meeting and congregational events.
“The building is made up of two older buildings that were never designed for this use,” said Gladstone. “So they don’t really accommodate any of those things particularly well.”
It is bit difficult to move between the spaces, said Gladstone, who also said that the floors do not align. With its low ceilings and columns all over the place, it is not ideal for any large congregational use.
“As right now it is something of a bunker,” he said. “It is certainly not an inviting space to say the least.”
The new building would better accommodate the church programs and expand its outreach effort, said Gladstone.
When Trinity came before the Financial District Committee in September of last year, the community expressed disapproval of a tall tower being built behind the church.
“The building’s going to be there,” said Edward Sheffe, committee chairperson. “No matter how we vote, no matter what we say.”
The church can build as-of-right, which means it does not need approval.
Trinity Church staff has already moved out of 68-74 Trinity Place. A developer has not yet been chosen. The new building will likely be completed by early 2018 and during that time, some of its programming — including Charlotte’s Place — will be put on hold, said Bernstein.
The committee passed a resolution that approved the application.
Tribeca Project
The application of DDG Partners, the developers of 99-100 Franklin St., met a different fate at the Tribeca Committee meeting, which started off contentious.
In a packed room, Peter Braus, the committee chairperson, wanted to give the developer and the Tribeca residents 10 minutes apiece to make their case. This was met with an argument and Braus then agreed to 15 minutes each — although the discussion lasted much longer.
DDG wants to build two mixed-use buildings for commercial and residential use on the irregular, two triangular-shaped lot, said Valerie Campbell, a land use lawyer of Kramer Levin.
Campbell went over the history of the lot, which is currently a parking lot, and the hardship that would be created if the developer would have to comply with the requirements for lot coverage, height of the building, setback of the building from the street and the minimum width of the open area along the side lots.
The city’s Landmarks Preservation Commission approved a design, in January, said Campbell.
Campbell indicated that it was only after her clients went through the lengthy landmarks approval process, did they then conclude they would lose $4 million on the project and apply for the waiver. She did not explain the reasoning.
According to the B.S.A., there are five requirements for variance: a unique physical conditions that led to practical difficulties in the development of the lot; that there is “no reasonable possibility that the development…will bring reasonable return;” “will not alter the essential character of the neighborhood; that the hardship has not been created by the owner; and that “the variance, if granted, is the minimum variance necessary to afford relief.”
Mayor Bill de Blasio has appointed a new chair to the B.S.A., Margery Perlmutter, but the other three commissioners were appointed during the Bloomberg administration.
David Schoonmaker, a resident of neighboring 17 White St., refuted DDG’s case.
“The irregular shape is a benefit, it’s not a hardship,” he said. “You can still make plenty of money without these variances. The variance process is not a vehicle to maximize profits.”
Eileen Bermingham, also a resident of 17 White St., said she has been opposed to the development since the beginning and questioned DDG’s numbers about how much square footage would go for in Tribeca.
“With the respect to the financial analysis, you really question the economics, the comparables are fictitious and it skews the entire analysis,” she said. “They’re coming up with an average of $1,656 per square foot in Tribeca, at the low end they got $1,422, at the high end $1,867. If you can show me anywhere where I can buy real estate at $1,422, you better believe I would be there with my checkbook right now.”
For another 17 White St. resident Brad Lindenbaum, the problem is not with the development itself, but with “the utter cynicism” of it.
“The cynicism is in the variances. That a property developer can go out there and pay at least $3 million higher than the next two highest bidders,” he said. “The only reason they did it is they figure they can ramrod this whole process and get every variance possible.”
Campbell reiterated that they have been to several public hearings.
“To imply that we’re doing this cynically is unfounded,” she added.
“Under conservative estimates they are making a preposterous amount of money,” said Lindenbaum.
Michael Ferry, a senior vice president with DDG, said that they have applied to the Dept. of Transportation Plaza program to improve the Barnett Newman Triangle, which is in front of the project on Sixth Ave.
The committee passed a resolution that opposed the granting of the variance.
At the C.B. 1’s monthly meeting on Nov. 20, it passed two resolutions, one that opposed DDG’s application and one that approved Trinity Church’s.
