STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A Manhattan developer has proposed to build 750 apartments -- of which 225 units would be earmarked as affordable housing -- along with ground-floor retail in three high-rise buildings on the waterfront in St. George, the Advance has learned.

The three proposed apartment buildings would sit on a two-acre site owned by Madison Realty Capital at 170-208 Richmond Terrace and 8-26 Stuyvesant Place, according to a source with knowledge of the project.

Dubbed Liberty Towers, the buildings would range from 12 to 26 stories high, and there would be 23,000 square feet of ground-floor retail, said the source. There would also be about 366 parking spots for the development, the source said.

ZONING CHANGES NEEDED

The site is located within the Special Hillsides Preservation District and the Special St. George District, both of which have height and density restrictions for all new construction.

The plan would have to go through the Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP) process, which requires a host of approvals, including those from the Community Board 1, the City Council and City Planning.

For construction to move forward, the developer would need a change from the current lower density zoning to an R7-3 zone, which allows for apartment buildings of greater height, said Joseph Marvilli, a City Planning Department spokesman.

An Environmental Assessment Study has been submitted to City Planning by the developer, and a remote public scoping meeting is scheduled for Nov. 19 about the project, said Marvilli.

The developer is hoping to have the project fully complete by 2025, the source said.

AFFORDABLE HOUSING

The formula to determine the criteria for the units earmarked as affordable housing will be based on 80% of the areas median income, the source said.

The source couldnt say yet whether the citys Section 8 program would be accepted at Liberty Towers.

City regulations require all new housing developments include at least 20% of units reserved for affordable housing.

CONCERNS ABOUT THE PROJECT

Joseph Carroll, district manager of Community Board 1, said board members had an informal meeting with the developers several months ago, during which they unveiled their vision for the property.

At the time we commented that there were multiple zoning amendments that would have to be achieved, including relief from the St. George Special District and the establishment of [a more dense] zoning district, which currently does not exist on Staten Island, he said.

Local elected officials have expressed concern about the project, as well.

Borough President James Oddo, who previously met with the developers about the project, said he wont entertain the zone change needed for the development to take shape.

I am very passionate about this issue. I am calling for every current elected official on Staten Island and every announced candidate for this cycle and the 2021 cycle to completely go on the record about where they stand on the notion of a 26-story apartment building to be dropped in St. George, said Oddo.

To avoid construction of large apartment complexes, Oddo said elected officials fought several years ago to remove dense zoning on Staten Island. The Castleton Park Apartments, which are located behind the proposed Liberty Towers site, is zoned R6, he said, noting R7-3 will permit more density.

We are in favor of growth and investment. We know that needs to happen to keep Staten Island vital, but that can not be an excuse, yet again, to increase density without a care in the world about the impact on the infrastructure, said Oddo.

Councilwoman Debi Rose (D-North Shore) said she also saw preliminary plans for the project.

The developers presented their preliminary plans to me last year, and we are scheduled to meet again for an update. This development would be subject to intense public review process and a vote. I look forward to hearing from the community once this engagement process begins, she said.

Madison Realty Capital declined comment about the proposed zone change.

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750-unit high-rise apartment towers with affordable housing proposed for St. George - SILive.com

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October 24, 2020 at 10:57 pm by Mr HomeBuilder
Category: Apartment Building Construction