JACKSON HEIGHTS — The Landmarks Preservation Committee has scheduled a public hearing for a historic district building's proposed rooftop extension that has been repeatedly denied by the local community board.
The owners of 84-11 through 84-23 37th Ave. will present their plan to build a four-story residential building on top of the ground-floor retail at a June 16 hearing at LPC's Manhattan office.
It will be the first time the proposal will go before the LPC after the architects made five bids to the community board over the past two years, and failed to win its favor, according to Howard Weiss, the lawyer for building owner Charlie Patel.
Most recently, on April 17, Community Board 3 unanimously voted to reject plans to build a new apartment building in an art-deco style, with curbside bioswales and a courtyard for residents.
Designers tried to maintain the original character of the historic district, they argued, which was designated in 1993 to preserve the original vision of Jackson Heights as a planned community with spacious apartments and plenty of green space.
But community members, and the board, disagreed. They said it would change the neighborhood and set a precedent for other ground-floor buildings to build up.
The hearing on June 16 begins at 9:30 a.m., on the 9th floor of 1 Centre Street in Manhattan.
