Theater Row Bonus
Last night, Community Board 4 approved a letter to the Department of City Planning that recommended several changes to the city's zoning text regarding Theater Row, the area on 42nd Street between Ninth and 11th avenues.
The D.C.P. has been considering changes to "theater bonus" provisions in the area in part because of Related Companies' recent attempt to get a buildable-bulk bonus for constructing a 1,800-seat theater in a 60-story tower on 42nd Street at Dyer Avenue for Cirque de Soleil.
The D.C.P. invited the community to provide input on Feb. 8, 2006.
The zoning changes, whose "overarching purpose … is to ensure that the bonus is indeed an opportunity to facilitate small Off-Broadway theaters typical of Theater Row," are after the jump.
Community Board 4's Clinton Theater Floor Area Bonus (Zoning Resolution Section 96-25) RecommendationsThe board's recommendations are strictly advisory, but Community Board 4 has a pretty knowledgeable land-use committee--as evidenced by its strong showing with the Hudson Yards rezoning. So expect the D.C.P. to take at least some of these suggestions to heart.
-Matthew Grace
That's a really stupid thing to say. Matthew Grace must have a hole in his head if he thinks Community Board 4 has a "knowledgeable land-use committee." They are consistently ignored by City Planning, which is why they end up rubber-stamping most of what City Planning wants. Their favorite rationale is that "it will happen anyway, so we must approve it." In Chelsea-Clinton, Board 4 is a joke, not to mention filled with many conflicts of interest.
I really take issue with the comment dismissing the imput of Community Board 4, while not perfect, it has shown strong leadership in the neighborhood to preserve and create affordable housing opportunities during the Hudson Yards rezoning and provided many opportunities for community members to have imput. The March 3 comment by anonymous is by someone either extremely disturbed or ignorant of the purpose of a community board.
Perhaps Epstein should explain how his boss got appointed to Community Board 4 by politicians raking in landlord and developer campaign contributions, and then we will see the real purpose of community boards ... to provide political cover for their selling out neighborhoods. Board 4 wants everyone to believe it created affordable housing in Hudson Yards, but when the details are seen, it's illusory and luxury. It doesn't exist and it creates more displacement than the crumbs they got.
1:46/4:07 is probably disturbed, but he's not ignorant of community boards - he hates CB4 because he was kicked off of the Board for being a deranged malcontent who did nothing of any value but just pissed all over anything his neighbors tried to accomplish. No matter how much he vaguely speaks on behalf of "Chelsea-Clinton," he actually speaks only for one person: himself, aka Crazy John Fisher.
From the West Side to Brooklyn, community leaders like Epstein who do actual work know CJF as the self-appointed leader (and sole member) of a number of community groups that exist only in his mind. He serves the Doctoroffs of this world by tearing down anyone who actually tries to get any constructive community organizing done.
People without personal vendettas who have watched CB4 in action know how hard they work and how much of an impact they have. Objective, observant real estate reporters clearly see that. Sorry if it bugs you that not everyone sees things through your distorted bitter lens, CJF!