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17 West 20th Street application to modify a storefront, to relocate a storefront entrance and to make a lobby entrance ADA compliant
WHEREAS, 17 West 20th Street is a six-story commercial building ("Building") with a 1920 brick facade that is designed in an early twentieth-century commercial style that is located in the Ladies' Mile Historic District; and
WHEREAS, The Building has a storefront on its west side ("West Storefront") and another one on its east side ("East Storefront") that were last constructed in the 1960s; and
WHEREAS, The applicant is proposing to relocate the West Storefront entrance in order to create space for a reconstructed Building lobby entrance that is ADA compliant; and
WHEREAS, The applicant is proposing to modify the West Storefront including existing fenestration to accommodate the aforementioned West Storefront entrance that is being relocated; and
WHEREAS, The Building lobby entrance will be lowered (7 3/4") and moved forward (2') in order to be level with the sidewalk and to provide ADA compliant access to the Building lobby; and
WHEREAS, The applicant is not requesting an ADA ramp on the outside of the Building but instead will provide ADA compliant access to the West Storefront and East Storefront via the Building lobby entrance and lobby; and
WHEREAS, The applicant's original proposal to modify the West Storefront and fenestration had an unfavorable impact on the Building's symmetry that was inappropriate for the Building; and
WHEREAS, The applicant's revised proposal to modify the West Storefront and fenestration is appropriate for the Building; and
WHEREAS, The applicant's proposal to modify the West Storefront includes handrails for the relocated entrance that are required by building code; and
WHEREAS, The applicant will be restoring brick fabric on the West Storefront pier; and
WHEREAS, Community Board Five commends the applicant for submitting a proposal that does not require an ADA ramp on the outside of the Building; and
WHEREAS, Community Board Five commends the applicant for submitting a proposal that provides ADA access to the East Storefront as well as the West Storefront and thereby negates the need for an additional ADA application at a future date; and
WHEREAS, Community Board Five commends the applicant for submitting a revised proposal that addresses the Board's original concerns about the appropriateness of the West Storefront modifications and their impact on the Building's symmetry; therefore, be it
RESOLVED, Community Board Five recommends approval of the application for 17 West 20th Street to modify its west storefront, to relocate a west storefront entrance and to make its lobby entrance ADA compliant.