The planned rezoning of East Harlem could add 3,500 new apartments to the neighborhood, zoning documents released by the city last week have revealed, YIMBY reports.
The rezoning concerns a 95-block stretch that is generally bounded by East 104th Street on the south, East 132nd Street to the north, Second Avenue to the east, and Park Avenue to the West.
The zoning documents don’t provide specifics on the number of affordable units except to say that a “substantial portion” of the new units will be affordable. The rezoning will also add 151,000 square feet of commercial space—this includes restaurants, offices, supermarkets, and retail. In addition, the plan calls for 132,400 square feet of manufacturing space, and 98,900 square feet of community facilities.
In order for this new development to take place, the neighborhood will have to lose about 53,800 square feet of warehouse or storage space, 33,000 square feet of hotel space, and 10,600 square feet of auto-related developments.
Concurrently, the city is also examining another massive, full city block site right next to the planned rezoning area. The site is located between East 111th and East 112th Streets, and Madison and Park Avenues, and is currently home to several community gardens. The site was cleared in the first half of the 20th century to make way for housing, but the city never followed through on that plan.
With that site, the numbers would go up to 4,162 new apartments, 158,922 square feet of community facilities, and 110,133 square feet of retail, among several other additions. YIMBY notes that the zoning documents don’t say anything about displacement except to note that “more than 500 residents,” could be displaced.
If the area is rezoned for this development, the city’s new rules will guarantee that at least 25 to 30 percent of the new development will be comprised of affordable units. It’s still in the very early stages however. For the next step in this effort, the city’s Department of City Planning will host a public scoping meeting on December 15 at the Silberman School of Social Work at Hunter College at 2 and 6 p.m.
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