Bill would nix advertising zoning changes
The City Council is considering a bill that would prohibit brokers or developers from advertising that a change in land use or zoning regulations for a particular area has occurred or will, or that the change may result in a decline in property values, the New York Sun reported. Some council members contend that that’s exactly what brokers or developers sometimes do: Tell homeowners that their property’s value is about to drop because of a zoning or land use change in order to induce them to sell.
Brooklyn Bridge Park to open ahead of schedule
The Brooklyn Bridge Park may be finished well ahead of schedule, according to the New York Daily News. Controversial for the luxury condos that will be inside it, the $150 million public park stretching from Atlantic Avenue to the Manhattan Bridge was originally supposed to start in 2008 and take four years to complete. Now, planners say, construction will start in the spring of 2007, and most of the park will be done by the end of 2010.
City Council tries to combat neighborhood noise
Responding to complaints from Downtown residents, the City Council in late December voted to revise the city’s noise code. The revision seeks to curb noise coming from bars and clubs, the Sun reported, but it did not address the noise created by people outside such clubs and bars. The revision also requires police responding to noise complaints to measure the noise with meters rather than by their own ears.
Planning Commission gives nod to Bronx mall
The city Planning Commission in late December approved a plan by the Related Companies to build a $394 million mall on the site of the Bronx Terminal Market just south of Yankee Stadium. The 16-acre mall would include 1 million square feet of retail space, a hotel, and a banquet facility. Final City Council approval is pending.
EPA to test apartments south of Canal
The Environmental Protection Agency announced that residents south of Canal Street can ask to have their apartments tested for four types of hazardous materials related to the building collapses of September 11. Apartments where contaminants exceed benchmark levels set by the EPA will be cleaned for free, the New York Times reported.
City to restore federally-owned properties
Starting early this year, the city will for the first time buy federally owned properties in distressed areas and turn them into homes for low-income families, Crain’s reported. Areas with low home-ownership rates or high numbers of foreclosures, including Bedford-Stuyvesant and Cypress Hills, will be targeted for the up to 360 one-to-three family homes.
HPD establishes forgivable home loans
The city’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development, as part of Mayor Bloomberg’s New Housing Marketplace Plan, has established the HomeFirst Down Payment Assistance program, Cityfeet.com reported. HomeFirst provides qualified homebuyers with a forgivable loan of up to 6 percent of a home’s purchase price. The loan can be applied toward down payment or closing costs on a new home, condo, or co-op in one of the HPD’s Homeownership Zones.
State names head for Moynihan Station effort
State officials last month announced that Robin Stout had been named president of the Moynihan Station Development Corporation, the government body behind the renovation of the Farley Post Office on Eighth Avenue into a major transit and commercial hub. Stout had spent four years negotiating leases for the Empire State Development Corporation’s 42nd Street Development Project, working on deals like the New York Times headquarters near the Port Authority Bus Terminal and the Bank of America Tower in Midtown. He’s also worked recently as the legal counsel for the ESDC’s Jacob K. Javits Convention Center Expansion Project. The Moynihan Station is expected to open in 2010, and will cost an estimated $818 million to build.
Silverstein postpones bid for Liberty Bonds
Developer Larry Silverstein in late December postponed his bid to get tax-free Liberty Bonds to help finance the new World Trade Center, the Daily News reported. Silverstein, facing stiff criticism from Mayor Bloomberg over building more housing rather than office space in Lower Manhattan, said he wanted more time to negotiate a building timetable with the city and the state.