Zoning Board of Appeals

City of Mount Vernon Meeting Date Zoning Board of Appeals Meeting Minutes April 18, 2023 Zoning Board of Appeals Department of Planning & Community Development City Hall - Roosevelt Square Mount Vernon, New York 10550-2060 (914) 699-7230 Shawyn Patterson-Howard Michael Justino Mayor Chair ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS MEETING MINUTES APRIL 18, 2023 A regular meeting of the Zoning Board of Appeals was held at 6:30 PM on Tuesday, April 18, 2023 in City Council Chambers on the 2nd floor of City Hall. Applicants and members of the public were permitted to attend and make public comment in person and via Zoom. The Chair indicated that the roll call was the first item on the agenda. Item #1 – ROLL CALL The Chair called the roll: in addition to the Chair, attending were Commissioners Shez Darden, Elvira Castillo, and Henry Solly. Also attending were PCD Commissioner James Rausse; Katherine Mella, Associate Commissioner; Maria Pace, Land Use Board Secretary; Will Hyland, Senior Planner; and Nkechi Nwachukwu, Land Use Counsel. With a quorum of four members present, the Chair opened the regular meeting at 6:38 pm. The Chair read the notice for the Zoning Board of Appeals meeting for Tuesday, April 18, 2023. Item 2 - APPROVAL OF MINUTES The Chair asked if the Commissioners had reviewed the minutes of the March 21, 2023 meeting. The Commissioners indicated that they had reviewed them. The Chair asked for a motion to approve the minutes for March 21, 2023. Commissioner Castillo made the motion, seconded by Commissioner Darden. The motion was approved 4-0. 1 City of Mount Vernon Meeting Date Zoning Board of Appeals Meeting Minutes April 18, 2023 Continued Public Hearing The Chair read the description for Calendar # ZB- 22-3: 114 – 118 E. Third Street (Section 165.79, Block 3157, Lots 5 and 6) in the Neighborhood Business (NB) District. The Chair read into the record how the legal notice for this matter was published. The owner, East Third Street Equities, is represented by attorney, Mr. Neil Alexander, Esq. from Cuddy & Feder, and architect, Mr. Mohammed Badaly. The subject property is on the south side of East Third Street, approximately 335’ west of Franklin Street in the Neighborhood Business district. The NB district extends approximately nine blocks from South Fulton Avenue on the east to South 7th Street on the west. The subject property lots 5 & 6 are 7,162 sf or .16 acres. The property’s frontage is approximately 76’. It is occupied by a two story, approx. 3,000 sf commercial building, which is vacant. The Applicant is seeking a use variance as well as area variances to construct a new, 28,788 sf apartment building. The proposed multi-family building would be 8 stories and approximately 75’ in height with 49 units (21 studios, 21 one-bedrooms and 7 two-bedroom units). Applicant has provided a Zoning Analysis on the submitted site plan. The Plan Examiner’s Report indicates approvals are needed from the ZBA, the Planning Board, and the ARB. In the application, Mr. Alexander of Cuddy & Feder provided written Principal Points in support of the use variance and the area variances. The Attorney indicated that the owner has owned the property since June 19, 1972 (some 50 years). He provided a letter from RM Friedlander dated 11/11/22 which described the firm’s unsuccessful marketing efforts for the last three years along with their recommendations. Mr. Alexander also provided a description of the nature of the area, indicating that there are multi-family buildings at the northeast and southwest corners of East Third Street and Union Avenue (1/2 block to the west of the site in the NB zone). He also noted that the 13-story Randy Daniels Towers (20 East Third Street) is one of other mid-rise, multi-family buildings approximately 2 blocks to the west of the subject property. Applicant also provided a summary of construction and financing costs for the Zoning Board members. Area Variances Requested: (§ 267-Attachment 2) Item Required / Proposed Variance Permitted Requested 1.0 maximum 5.36 4.36 Floor Area 2 stories maximum 8 stories 6 stories Building Height (stories) 30’ maximum 74.67’ 44.67’ Building Height (feet) 2  City of Mount Vernon Meeting Date Zoning Board of Appeals Meeting Minutes April 18, 2023 60% maximum 67% 7% Lot Coverage – Building (%) 90% maximum 100% 10% Lot Coverage-Impervious Surface (%) 98 spaces 12 spaces 86 spaces # off-street parking spaces (2 per dwelling unit) SEQRA – The proposed action is a use variance and as such it is classified as an Unlisted action under SEQRA. The application has been referred to the Westchester County Planning Board for GML Section 239 review. At the March 21 meeting, prior to any presentation/discussion on the application, Commissioner Cutler disclosed that he has a minority business interest in this property and recused himself from involvement and discussion regarding this application. He was not present at the April 21 meeting. Daniel Patrick, an attorney with Cuddy & Feder, advised the ZBA that financial info had been provided by the applicant, East Third St. Equities LLC. He also submitted an estimated tax revenue based on comparable developments in the area. The property tax revenue is estimated to be 3x what it is now or about $110,000 generated by this site. He also advised that the applicant in its written submission confirmed that it had reached out to several city agencies, including the Mount Vernon Economic Development Office and Chamber of Commerce, but has had no luck leasing the property or generating any commercial tenants. He also said that since the property is located in a high-density area near the train station, it can deliver enhancements to the area. Mr. Patrick also felt that waiting for comments from the Planning Board and Architectural Review Board should not hold up this application. The Chair asked what the anticipated market value of the property would be. Mr. Badaly said he had visited the Assessor’s Office and it was approximately $10 million. He also explained that he had received the letter directly from someone at East Third St. Equities LLC but did not know who actually wrote it. Commissioner Rausse was then asked to read his comments and recommendations into the record regarding the application. He said that the proposed multi-family project was out of character with that section of Third St.; that the applicant has not provided sufficient evidence to show a hardship or that current zoning has created the hardship; that there is concern that this is a de facto rezoning given the number of variances requested; there are concerns regarding height and density of the building relative to the current zoning as well as parking variances. There are also concerns about unit mix being primarily studios and 1-bedroom apartments. Total development costs of the project seem very low so there is a concern about the quality of construction as well as whether the applicant would be hiring locally for construction jobs. Commissioner Rausse concluded by recommending that applicant wait until Phase I of the Comprehensive Plan is complete, which is targeted for September 2023. When the downtown 3  City of Mount Vernon Meeting Date Zoning Board of Appeals Meeting Minutes April 18, 2023 framework is released, the applicant should review it for alignment against proposals for density, zoning and design. Commissioner Darden asked about the Comprehensive Plan for December; will there be action or a plan? Commissioner Rausse explained that there would be a plan and that it would be presented to the City Council after which they can move forward with development or rezoning. Commissioner Rausse also explained that at least 10 Comprehensive Plan meetings had been held throughout the city for residents to attend. Once feedback has been collected and analyzed, the information will be shared. The Chair then asked Mr. Patrick if he would be resubmitting any changes to the application or would he be sticking with the same information previously submitted. Mr. Patrick advised that he would be sticking with the same information and would not be changing the short EAF. The Chair explained that he can’t accept the current short EAF as it is and that it needs to be changed and the parking issue also needs to be addressed. As there was no response from Mr. Patrick, the Chair asked again if he would be changing the application. Mr. Patrick replied that he would keep the application as is. Commissioner Castillo than remarked that there were too few parking spots: only 10 in a 49- unit building. She also commented that the ZBA must be careful with what kind of variances are requested and approved. Commissioner Darden commented that the Comp Plan is not a done deal, it is just a plan. She also said that Third St. has plenty of street parking. Mr. Patrick then asked if adding 25 parking spaces to the site plan would work. After further discussion, the Chair opened the meeting to public comments. Several residents voiced their concerns regarding: • School district and the taxes homeowners would have to pay; City Council should comment on this • The Comp Plan should not be part of the conversation; the application is not a problem, and neither is the parking • The building is out-of-character; should wait until Comprehensive Plan is complete or send to City Council • The applicant claims he is under hardship but yet he bought more property, thereby exacerbating the problem • All owners in the East 3rd St. Equities LLC should be identified 4 City of Mount Vernon Meeting Date Zoning Board of Appeals Meeting Minutes April 18, 2023 Mr. Patrick said he would come back to the next meeting in May with revisions to the application. The Chair then asked for a motion to keep the public hearing open and to adjourn the application to the May 16 meeting. Commissioner Castillo made the motion, seconded by Commissioner Darden. The motion was approved 4-0. Continued Public Hearing The Chair read the description for Calendar #1769-Z: 123 Haven Avenue (Section 165.73, Block 4009, Lot 09) in the R2-4.5 Zoning District The Chair read into the record how the legal notice for this matter was published. Theresa Martinez is the owner of the subject property located at the corner of Haven Avenue and Carpenter Place. The owner is represented by Mr. Shahin Badaly, PE. Applicant is requesting an area variance to increase the impervious area on the property. The Applicant proposes to install pavers on the two front yards as well as additional asphalt pavement to the existing asphalt driveway in order to create two additional parking spaces. Exterior alterations will also include a new retaining wall, new stone steps, new concrete sidewalk, and a new vinyl fence. The Applicant proposes to provide erosion control measures to prevent adverse effects to the environmental conditions of the neighborhood. Area Variance Requested: Item Required / Proposed Variance Permitted Requested Impervious surfaces coverage 70% maximum 96.91% 26.91% (%) SEQRA Determination: The proposed action is a Type II action based on 6 NYCRR 617.5(c)(17) “granting of an area variance for a single-family, two-family or three-family residence” (see SEQRA handbook). Mr. Shahin Badaly said that he revised the site plan and he is down to 86.6% impervious surface; there is also a new landscaping plan with additional grass (20’ W x 10’ L). The Chair asked if more shrubs could be planted instead of grass at the front right corner of the house and suggested that the side of the house be grass. 5  City of Mount Vernon Meeting Date Zoning Board of Appeals Meeting Minutes April 18, 2023 Commissioner Darden suggested that shrubs be planted instead of the wall or to cover the wall. The Chair asked that a motion be made to approve the application with the following conditions: 1) reduce the area of impervious surface so that it reaches the front steps using the width currently shown; and 2) in the southeast front corner of the property, install a planting bed in lieu of grass (for less maintenance) and include shrubs or other evergreens against the foundation of the house. Commissioner Darden made the motion, seconded by Commissioner Darden. The motion was approved 4-0. ADMINISTRATIVE ACTION Correction of Clerical Error in the ZBA Rules of Procedure In accordance with Article XXI(A) of the Zoning Board of Appeals Rules of Procedure, “these rules of procedure may be amended from time to time by an affirmative vote of a majority of the entire membership of the Board.” The ZBA Rules of Procedure as posted on the City’s website is missing page 10. The ZBA now seeks to include page 10, which was inadvertently omitted, so that the complete set of Rules can be posted on the City website. The rest of the ZBA Rules of Procedure remains unchanged. SEQRA Determination: This action is a “Type II” action in accordance with Title 6 NYCRR 617.5(26) of the SEQRA Regulations (“routine or continuing agency administration and management, not including new programs or major reordering of priorities that may affect the environment”); thereby, ending the SEQRA process. After a brief discussion, the Chair asked that a motion be made to accept the Administrative Action. Commissioner Darden made the motion, seconded by Commissioner Castillo. The motion was approved 4-0. Meeting Adjournment The Chair asked for a motion to adjourn the meeting. Commissioner Castillo made the motion, seconded by Commissioner Darden and carried by a vote of 4-0. The meeting was adjourned at 8:36 pm. Maria Pace Land Use Board Secretary Robert Galvin, AICP Planning Administrator 6