4 NOVEMBER 16, 2017 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
CB looks to rezone Ridgewood zoning. districts
BY ANTHONY GIUDICE
AGIUDICE@RIDGEWOODTIMES.COM
@A_GIUDICE
With more and more large-scale
developments being built all
across Ridgewood, the members
of Community Board 5 (CB 5) are
looking to again rezone parts of the neighborhood
to preserve the historic look and
feel of the buildings in the community.
During the board’s Nov. 8 meeting at
Christ the King High School in Middle
Village, the board’s Zoning and Land
Use Committee presented the full
board with a proposal to create the
neighborhood’s fourth rezoning in
order to curb overdevelopment that
would be detrimental to the character
of the community.
In the proposal, Zoning and Land
Use Committee Chair Walter Sanchez
asked the board to vote on a planned
down-zoning of the residential sectors
in Ridgewood, while allowing an
up-zoning in the community’s manufacturing
districts.
The full board voted 32 to 1 in favor
of the committee’s proposal on rezoning
Ridgewood’s manufacturing and
residential districts.
“We have an opportunity right now
to rezone Ridgewood and really downzone
some of the beautifully designed,
constructed residential blocks, while
at the same time … we look at another
zoning designation for some of those
manufacturing properties that would
allow for the value to increase,” Sanchez
told the board. “They could build
residential as well as preserving some
of the manufacturing.”
The proposal asks to rezone two-and
three-family R6B zones to R5B zones,
which limits building height to 33 feet.
Many of the homes in the R6B zone conform
to R5B zoning regulations. However,
there are four apartment buildings on
Madison Street between Fresh Pond Road
and 60th Lane which are currently zoned
as R5B. These, the committee recommended,
become an R6A zone.
The proposed rezoning also looks to
change the two- and four-family houses
in the R5B zone to an R4B zone, with
a building height of 24 feet. The homes
in this zone are consistent to R4B
zoning regulations as attached and
semi-detached, two-story, two- and
four-family, fl at-roofed row houses.
The committee is also looking to
rezone the small R4 zone along Cypress
Avenue from DeKalb Avenue to Troutman
Street to an R3-2 zone. According to
the committee, the New York City Zoning
Handbook describes an R4 district as
usually producing three-story buildings.
This area currently has mostly
two-story, one- and two-family detached
and semi-detached homes, with only a
few three-story buildings—which more
closely adheres to the R3-2 regulations.
“Basically, we’re proposing rezoning
districts of Ridgewood to match what
is actively built there and maintain the
character,” Sanchez said. “The present
zoning in most cases would allow the
height of the buildings and the number
of units to increase; and this could increase
the population by as much as
60 percent.”
The committee, however, is conscious
of the neighborhood’s growing
need for housing, which is why they
have included an up-zoning of Ridgewood’s
industrial zones.
In their proposal the committee
gives the following recommendations:
• converting all M1-D and M1-1 districts
within Ridgewood to M1-4
with an MX overlay;
• mandate manufacturing uses on the
fi rst three fl oors; allow residential
uses, up to two additional fl oors,
with at least 50 percent of the residential
units made available under
Mayor Bill de Blasio’s inclusionary,
affordable housing criteria and
sold to the owner occupants as low/
moderate-income condominiums;
• require the entire building to be a
condominium where the occupants
of both the residential and industrial
units must be the owners, in order to
reduce “fl ipping” of the properties;
and not allowing subletting by any
owner.
M1-4 Districts allow for high tech industrial
and light manufacturing uses,
while excluding community facilities,
hotels, self-storage facilities and a host
of other uses.
According to the committee, the MX
Designation would create as many as
1,000 new units of aff ordable housing.
The lone “no” vote on the proposal
came from CB 5 chair Vincent Arcuri
because he doesn’t not agree with
the premise of the MX district and
does not believe they can mandate
a property owner must create a
condominium.
GREATER RIDGEWOOD
HISTORICAL SOCIETY
“Researching Your Ancestors’ Occupations”
Anthony Laurino, Guest Lecturer
Saturday, November 18, 2017 from 2-4 PM
Admission: Adults - $5, GRHS Members,
Active Service Members and Veterans - Free
At the ONDERDONK HOUSE,
1820 Flushing Ave. corner Onderdonk Ave.
Ridgewood, Queens
718-456-1776
www.onderdonkhouse.org
Open to the Public on Wednesdays 3:00-6:00 PM and Saturdays and Sundays 12:00-4:00 PM
This event is funded in part from public service grants from the
Department of Cultural Affairs, City of New York, obtained through the efforts of
Council Members Antonio Reynoso, Elizabeth Crowley and by members of the Society
RESEARCHING YOUR ANCESTORS
OCCUPATIONS – AT THE ONDERDONK HOUSE
On Saturday, November 18, 2017, the Greater Ridgewood Historical Society will
host Anthony Laurino who will discuss “Researching Your Ancestors Occupations -
Late 19th Century to the 1940's “at 2:00 PM at the Onderdonk House, 1820 Flushing
Avenue, Ridgewood, Queens. If you have attended Mr. Laurino’s previous lectures,
you can be sure that this newest topic will be just as informative and interesting. So
if you are curious about whether your great-grandfather/mother was a butcher,
banker or baker, plan on attending this fascinating lecture. Mr. Laurino is a graduate
of University of Florida and St. Francis College, Brooklyn and has been lecturing since
2007 to bring his lifelong love of history and genealogy research to the public.
Donation of $5.00 for this lecture also includes entrance to the Onderdonk House,
grounds and current exhibits.
Since the early 1990’s, the Society has been active in genealogy research. The
Society has maintained a genealogy resource room that concentrates on the
immigrant populations that came to the greater Ridgewood area. Administered by
George Miller, the Society’s historian, the resource room has city directories, Census
Indexes, selected Church records and over 200,000 vital card records on individuals.
With the addition of Wi-Fi at the Onderdonk House, web research is also possible.
After the lecture, visitors can get a behind the scenes peek at the Society’s
genealogy resource room.
The Onderdonk House, 1820 Flushing Avenue, Ridgewood, is open to the Public on
Saturdays and Sundays from 12:00 to 4:00 p.m., and on Wednesdays from 3:00 to
6:00p.m., or by reservation. For information on this and the other programs
conducted by the Society, please call 718-456-1776 or visit the web site:
www.onderdonkhouse.org. The Onderdonk House can be reached by public
transportation. Bus: Q-54 passes two blocks away on Metropolitan Avenue. B-57
passes the house on Flushing Avenue. Subway: "L" line to Jefferson St. (Brooklyn)
stop; proceed five blocks North (right) along Flushing Ave. On street parking is
available, plentiful and free.
This event is funded in part from public service grants from the Department of
Cultural Affairs, City of New York, supported by NYC Council members, Antonio
Reynoso and Elizabeth Crowley and by members of the Society.
