Project Description
The proposal involves an application by HPD, on behalf of the project sponsor, Common Ground Community II Housing Development Fund Corporation (HDFC), for several actions subject to City Planning Commission approval, including the disposition of City-Owned property, designation and approval of the project site as an Urban Development Action Area Project (UDAAP), a special permit pursuant to Zoning Resolution (ZR) Section 74-903, a Mayoral zoning override, and a zoning map amendment. The proposed actions would facilitate the development of a new supportive and affordable housing building in the Brownsville neighborhood of Brooklyn, Community District 16. In addition to the above actions, the project sponsor is seeking construction financing through HPDs Supportive Housing Loan Program (SHLP). The project site is located at 3 Livonia Avenue, between Grafton Street and Howard Avenue. The City-owned project site is approximately 20,000 square feet in area and is currently vacant. The proposed actions would facilitate the conveyance of, the project site by HPD to the project sponsor, and the redevelopment of the project site with a new eight-story residential building containing approximately 122 units of affordable and supportive housing, approximately 5,000 square feet of on-site social services for building residents, and approximately 4,000 square feet of space to be used as either community facility or local retail. Of the 122 units, approximately 58 units would be studios of which approximately 55 units would be for formerly homeless individuals; the remainder of the units are anticipated to be occupied by families, including 19 units for formerly homeless families and one unit reserved for a live-in superintendent. All 122 units would be affordable at or below 60% of the Area Median Income (AMI). The project site is currently zoned R6, a residential zoning district which allows for medium density residential uses constructed to an FAR of 0.78-2.43. The proposed zoning map amendment would map a C2-3 commercial overlay on the project sites existing R6 zoning district, which would allow for commercial uses constructed to an FAR of 2.0. The proposed zoning map amendment would also make the project site consistent with neighboring block frontages to the east and west, which are currently mapped R6/C2-3. The boundary of the new C2-3 overlay would match the boundary of the project site and no additional properties would be affected by the rezoning. The proposed special permit pursuant to ZR Section 74-903 would modify the FAR requirements of Section 24-111 to increase the allowable community facility FAR from 2.43 to 4.80 in the existing R6 district. The requested zoning override would allow the proposed building to have a street wall height of 61 feet, 8 inches, an exceedance of the maximum street wall height of 60 feet.
