Riverside Center ApprovedDecember 8th, 2010 - The New York City Council’s Land Use Committee has unanimously approved Riverside Center. This five tower, 2,500 unit residential development will stretch from West 59th to West 61st Street between West End Avenue and the West Side Highway (the last parcel of undeveloped land of the old Hudson Rail Yard). The final vote from the full City Council is expected by the end of 2010. This is the culmination of a multi-year process of negotiation and compromise which resulted in much needed concessions from the developer Extell. These successful concessions come from the tireless effort of Council Member Gale Brewer, Borough President Scott Stringer, and the leadership of Community Board 7. I want to thank everyone who signed BetterBuildingsNY’s petition advocating for much needed improvements in this development, including a larger school, more affordable housing, and sustainable construction practices. The final agreement resulted in important improvements on all three of these issues, including: • 25,000 square foot increase in the size of the school (core and shell only)
• 20% of residential floor area to be affordable housing (180-220 affordable units onsite)
• 10% less energy consumption than required by New York State building code
Other important improvements to the development include an increase in the amount of open space on the development, $20 million for Riverside Park South, and an increase in retail stores along West End Avenue. Read Council Member Gale Brewer’s full press release to learn more. Petition on Riverside CenterTo: New York City Planning Commission, New York City Council, Mayor Mike BloombergThe Extell Development Company is requesting major zoning modifications for their Riverside Center development. This development will single-handedly increase the population of the Upper West Side by almost 4% and add significant stress to our already overburdened infrastructure. The requested zoning changes will add tremendous value to this piece of property, with some estimates claiming that approval of the changes could be worth upwards of $1 billion to Extell. Despite this, the current Riverside Center proposal does not sufficiently address the hardships it will cause the Upper West Side. We, the undersigned, call for three modifications to the Riverside Center proposal to help mitigate these hardships:
Affordability – The price of housing on the Upper West Side has risen dramatically over the last few decades, while the pool of already scarce affordable units continues to shrink. Those hard-working residents that made the Upper West Side such a wonderful place to live shouldn't be forced to leave their community. We, the undersigned, call upon you to modify Extell’s Riverside Center proposal to follow the precedent set by Brooklyn’s Domino Sugar development and include 30% permanently affordable housing units. Over-crowded Schools – More than 160 families south of 81st Street are on school waiting lists. The Upper West Side's P.S. 87 has experienced a 60% increase in kindergarten applications over just the last three years. Art, music, and science classes are being eliminated. Despite this, Extell proposes to only provide the core and shell of a school half the size that the community needs. We, the undersigned, call upon you to modify Extell’s Riverside Center proposal to include a fully funded six-section per grade, K-8 public school of sufficient size to comfortably seat 1,500 students. Sustainability – Once built, the Riverside Center development will be with us for hundreds of years. So how is it that in this day and age we can still be considering the construction of a building without sustainability in mind? Our buildings are already our city's largest source of pollution. Despite this, Extell plans to power Riverside Center using Con-Ed steam generated from #6 oil - the dirtiest type. We, the undersigned, call upon you to modify Extell’s Riverside Center proposal to mandate that all buildings are built to LEED-Platinum standards and seek certification from the United States Green Buildings Council. Sincerely, Help Spread the Word...
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More Information: Riverside Centric Blog Borough President Report Manhattan Community Board 7 gbNYC |
