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Land Use, Housing & Zoning
Request from 215 West 28th Street Property Owner LLC and 225 West 28th Street Property Owner LLC, for two special permits pursuant to Sections 13-45 and 13-451 of the New York City Zoning Resolution, to allow two accessory off-street parking facilities
At the regularly scheduled monthly Community Board Five meeting on Thursday, October 13, 2022, the following resolution passed with a vote of 31 in favor; 0 opposed; 1 abstaining; 1 present not entitled to vote:
WHEREAS, The special permit is for a portion of the ground floor and sub-cellars of a proposed mixed-use development under construction at 213- 219 W. 28th Street (Block 778, Lot 31) (“Building A”), with 20 maximum accessory parking spaces, and one on portion of the ground floor and sub-cellars of a proposed mixed-use development under construction at 221-227 W. 28th Street (Manhattan Block 778, Lot 25) (“Building B”), with 24 maximum accessory parking spaces; and
WHEREAS, The applicant is seeking approval to construct a total of 41 spaces in building A, and a total of 36 spaces in building B, for a total 33 additional spaces; and
WHEREAS, The Zoning Lot is located in Manhattan Community District 5 in northern Chelsea on the north side of West 28th Street between 7th and 8th Avenues; and
WHEREAS, The Zoning Lot was rezoned from an M1-5 district to an M1-6D district in 2011 (C 100063 ZMM and N 110285 ZRY). The rezoning encompassed the mid-blocks beyond 100 feet from 7th and 8th Avenues, extending from the north side of West 28th Street to the south side of West 30th Street; and
WHEREAS, Construction of Building A and B is substantially complete, and a 25-space licensed public parking facility previously occupied the western portion of Lot 31 of development site A; and
WHEREAS, The Applicant proposes to construct a new, 11.9FAR, 20-story rental apartment building (Building B) with 30% affordable units, that would contain ground floor retail with residential use above and a 36-car accessory residential parking garage with an entrance on the ground floor and spaces in the building’s sub- cellars (the “Garage”); and
WHEREAS, The Applicant proposes to construct a new, 11.9 FAR 20-story condo apartment building (Building A) that would contain ground floor retail with residential use above and a 41-car accessory residential parking garage with an entrance on the ground floor and spaces in the building’s sub- cellars (the “Garage”) ; and
WHEREAS, The applicant intends to make all accessory off-street parking spaces in the Garage, available for residents of the buildings, thought a 99 year lease at an offering price of $500,000, but if any parking space is not requested by a resident of the Buildings such space shall be made available to the public; and
WHEREAS, The Zoning Lot is located in an M1-6D zoning district for which ZR 44-024 determines the applicable parking regulations. For residential uses in M1-6D districts, the parking regulations applicable in R10 districts will apply; and
WHEREAS, The Garage will not have any parking spaces located on the ground floor. Rather, only the Garage entrance and exit, and necessary reservoir spaces, are located above-grade. The Garage’s parking spaces will be located in Building A’s subcellars; and
WHEREAS, No portion of Building A’s automated Garage will be located above the building’s ground floor; and
WHEREAS, The accessory off-street parking spaces in Building A will be accessed by a single curb cut measuring 20 feet wide, including splays, which complies with the requirements for C6-4 districts in Section 36-53 (for R10 equivalent districts such as M1- 6D districts), made applicable by Section 44-024; and
WHEREAS, The Garage would have 41 parking spaces, and therefore must provide reservoir space for 5% of those spaces, or 2.05 spaces, pursuant to Section 13-25(a). Building A will have two ground- floor reservoir spaces at the entrance/exit of the parking garage, and each reservoir space would be 8.5 feet wide and 18 feet deep; and
WHEREAS, the buildings are located in a transit-rich district well served by subway, bus and close proximity to Penn Station; and
WHEREAS, according to census data, 83% of residents in the census tracts do not have access to a vehicle; and
WHEREAS, the as-of-right parking spaces shall satisfy the needs of residents and additional parking spaces by special permit is not justified; therefore, be it
RESOLVED, Community Board Five recommends the denial of an application by 215 West 28th Street Property Owner LLC and 225 West 28th Street Property Owner LLC to construct 33 additional parking beyond the 44 parking spaces permitted under the zoning resolution.