by Marilyn Dorato

New York City’s zoning law lets universities and hospitals expand without consulting their neighbors. Community facilities can build bigger than residential developers could on the same land, and they can do so “as-of-right”— without community review. New York University has used this zoning law to its benefit and the chagrin of its neighbors; many of its large buildings would be built smaller if the zoning laws were different. In the past 20 years NYU has used the community facility bonus to develop more than 10 high rise buildings. Some are more than twice as large as the surrounding residential buildings. Bleecker’s Circle in the Square Theater is being gutted and will be re-built to 8 stories, taller than its neighbors, because it will include 2 floors that will be made available to a college. The zoning law allows schools and similar facilities to build up to twice as much in residential districts than permitted for housing. This encourages expansion into residential blocks and has often produced buildings dramatically out of context with existing structures.

The City Planning Department and City Council are considering changes to the community facility regulations in the zoning law. There have been unsuccessful attempts to do so in the past. The affected institutions obviously don’t want more restrictions; their opposition is a major reason why the rules haven’t been changed. At a forum held by NYU President John Sexton, he was queried about the zoning bonus. Not surprisingly, he opposes any changes.

The zoning law was supposed to encourage institutions to concentrate their facilities instead of taking over neighborhoods; in Greenwich Village, it seems to have encouraged just the opposite. The average Villager often feels that he lives under the purple and white banner. Recently, the Village Nursing Home announced that it will use the community facility zoning bonus in its current plans to build on Houston Street.

Zoning changes alone will not resolve conflicts between big institutions and their neighbors. They occur because of a lack of planning by the institutions and by the city. Using zoning as “a substitute for planning instead of as an instrument for planning leads to conflicts” and ill advised building projects. Non-profit institutions pay no real estate taxes or make limited contributions to the city in lieu of taxes. Community facilities get healthy taxpayer subsidies for providing important services, Since the taxpayer pays the price, the public should be involved in making the policies that directly affect the communities in which these institutions are located. Changes in the community facilities zoning bonus are needed and long overdue.

Home Page GVBA News — Fall 2004