Rezoned Gowanus is now free from parking minimums. That doesn’t necessarily mean developers will take advantage of the change.
This week, the City Council will vote on the City of Yes for Housing Opportunity, which will eliminate parking minimums in parts of the city. Gowanus, where 80 blocks were rezoned in 2021 to pave the way for thousands of new housing units, is one such area.
Developers there rushed to qualify for the property tax break 421a before it expired in 2022, so some may be too far along to redesign their projects. Still, as long as a project has not been granted a temporary or permanent certificate of occupancy, a developer can use the new parking rules.
Parking garages can cost upwards of $100,000 per spot. Because of that, Open Plans, a group that advocates for the removal of parking minimums citywide, estimates that for every 1.2 parking spaces built, one unit of housing is lost.
Still, not all developers will shed parking even if they can. Rose Tilley, head of development at Charney Companies, told me that at its 827-unit project at 175 Third Street in Gowanus, the company “will optimize our parking strategy to meet demand, rather than relying solely on code requirements.” She indicated that this will be the case for all future Charney projects as well.
She also said that at a condo project in Fort Greene, the company will take advantage of changes that allow for more floor area.
Before the City Council altered the original City of Yes, City Planning Director Dan Garodnick expressed confidence that developers would still build parking in response to consumer demand, meaning that even if parking minimums were eliminated citywide, parking would still be built in transit deserts. The Council nonetheless retained parking mandates in much of the city.
What we’re thinking about: Do you have a project that will be affected by City of Yes? Tell me about it at kathryn@therealdeal.com.
A thing we’ve learned: Developer Bruce Teitelbaum’s project in Harlem, One45, restarted the land use review process on Monday. The City Planning Commission certified Teitelbaum’s rezoning application, kick-starting the Uniform Land Use Review Procedure. Teitelbaum withdrew his original plans for the development in 2022 because of opposition from then-Council member Kristin Richardson Jordan.
The latest version of the project includes three buildings with a total of 968 residential units, 291 set aside as permanently affordable. Teitelbaum previously said that half of the units would be affordable. During the City Planning hearing on Monday, a representative for the developer indicated that the breakdown would likely change as a result of negotiations with Council member Yusef Salaam.
“This is an important milestone for an important project that will create almost 1,000 new homes in Harlem, and with the continued support of Council member Salaam and city officials, we are confident this project will finally get done,” Teitelbaum said in a statement.
Elsewhere in New York…
— Sen. James Skoufis is throwing his hat in the ring. Skoufis announced this weekend that he will run to head the Democratic National Committee, the New York Times reports. The current chair, Jaime Harrison, is not seeking re-election.
— The highest number of New York students since at least 2009 reported being homeless at some point in the school year, the Times Union reports. The New York State Technical and Educational Assistance Center for Homeless Students reports that more than 155,000 public school students reported experiencing homelessness during the 2022-2023 school year.
— The Broadway League has tapped Jason Laks as its new president, Crain’s reports. Laks has been the trade group’s interim president since February.
Closing Time
Residential: The priciest residential sale Monday was $12.9 million for a condo unit at 500 West 18th Street. The One High Line Residence has 236 units and is 36 stories tall. The sale is one of many at the building since the beginning of last year.
Commercial: The largest commercial sale of the day was $26.9 million for an office building at 79-97 North 10th Street in Brooklyn. The Williamsburg property is two stories.
New to the Market: The highest price for a residential property hitting the market was $19.5 million at 13 East 94th Street. The Upper East Side home is 6,800 square feet. Sotheby’s International Realty has the listing.
Breaking Ground: The largest new building application filed was for a 757,430-square-foot project by the Related Companies at the Revlon Building site, 613 Madison Avenue in Manhattan. It shares an address with 625 Madison Avenue. Gloria Glas of SLCE Architects is the applicant of record.
— Joseph Jungermann