Hotel Construction Versus Housing In Dutch Kills Is Not Welcome
BY THOMAS COGAN

At the May meeting of the Dutch Kills Civic Association clarification of inclusionary zoning (IZ) as a means to guarantee affordable housing was delivered by Jenna Brienes, from the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (DHCR).

Penny Lee and Joy Chen of the Department of City Planning provided additional information and answered questions about the Dutch Kills rezoning plan, but the Q&As were seemingly lost in the heated discussion that transpired because of a spreading development in the neighborhood- the construction of hotels.

Brienes claimed IZ offers a density bonus to developers in exchange for the inclusion of affordable housing in what is otherwise a market-rate project. The bonus, a one-third increase in floor area ratio (FAR), will be allowed if one-fifth of the housing comprises affordable units, and will be available to those earning up to 80 percent of the area median income (AMI), which is a federally calculated figure. In New York, a family of four earning $56,720 would be able to rent a two-bedroom apartment for $1,418 per month, that rental figure being about one-third of the family's income. The units can be provided on-site at the project or off-site, within a half-mile radius; and the off-site units can be realized either through new construction or by the preservation and rehabilitation of existing affordable units.

Brienes said the preservation option is the developer's obligation to provide affordable housing and can be fulfilled by taking charge of an old building with affordable rents, making repairs throughout and setting money aside for ongoing repairs. The developer can buy the building or work with a non-profit group that specializes in such buildings. If the building has to be vacated before extensive repairs can be made, the developer must find temporary housing for the displaced tenants. The preservation project must be completed and have a certificate of operation before the market rate project can be issued a certificate of occupancy (C of O).

Some questioners wondered if what Brienes described about The Bronx preservation projects apply to Dutch Kills since there is not much city-owned housing in the area. She disclosed that the preservation option is easier to exercise if cityowned land and buildings are involved and Dutch Kills, in contrast to The Bronx where the city purchased land and buildings, doesn't have the property that the city could sell back to developers or nonprofit owners.

George Stamatiades, Astoria businessman and second vice chairman of Community Board 1, asked Lee how the Dutch Kills zoning plan was proceeding- she indicated that it should go into effect some time next year. There was some controversy among the attendees with the plan on the north side of 41st Avenue, between 29th and 23rd Streets, where some Dutch Kills residents think that City Planning should allow taller buildings to be erected than those currently allowed in its rezoning decision. Diane Martin, a resident, told Lee she had recently submitted a letter to the department raising specific objections. Lee told Martin that City Planning's departmental head for Queens, John Young, had decided the low-rise plan for 41st Street was unalterable.

The subject of hotels being built in Dutch Kills was a hot topic and it was asked if they could be converted later to condominium residences. Lee asserted that would be quite illegal; they are built as hotels and must remain so. Lee said that not only Dutch Kills but also the rest of Long Island City and immediately adjacent areas are providing sites for hotel construction such as The Comfort Inn near Queensborough Plaza and the La Quinta Hotel on Queens Boulevard in Sunnyside have gone up in recent years and have touted access to transportation as an incentive to check in. Lee emphasized that hotels would not have the same effect in Dutch Kills as apartment houses, because those staying in hotels are not permanent residents and don't affect parking and schools. Concern was voiced that a negative impact from all that transience could and would bring back the prostitution problem that has abated in the plaza and Dutch Kills in the last couple of years.