COBBLE HILL — In the wake of community opposition, developer Fortis Property Group said it would lower the height of the tallest towers it's proposing to build at the Long Island College Hospital site, according to an updated version of its plans publicly released Tuesday.
Fortis has proposed two plans for the site, one it can build without special permissions, and another that would require rezoning to allow it to build more units in exchange for amenities such as affordable housing. Both plans would bring high-rise towers to the neighborhood and would also include a new medical center from NYU Langone.
This past summer, Fortis presented an early draft of proposals for the hospital site, which angered local residents opposed to soaring residential towers, which they say could cause a drastic surge in population density and traffic congestion.
On Tuesday, Fortis published a website with modified versions of the proposals.
In the first new option, an as-of-right scenario that does not require any public approval, the tallest tower would be 35 stories built closer to the neighborhood boundary and surrounded by 28-, 16- and 14-floor buildings. Fortis had previously said the tallest tower in this proposal would be 44 stories.
As-of-Right Plan for LICH site (Credit: FXFOWLE/www.lichproject.com)
This plan will not include a public school, affordable housing, neighborhood retail or any increased public park space. There would be 562 parking spots.
The developer said Monday it is also considering adding 262,555 square-feet of student dorms in a building at Hicks and Amity streets. City Councilman Brad Lander called the dorms "a horrible use for Cobble Hill."
The competing plan would rezone the former hospital site through the city's Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP) and would require community and city approvals to move forward.
The rezoning plan includes greater public amenities, including a much-needed K-5 school for the district, but it would almost double the amount of residential square-footage in the development.
Fortis can build 528,935 zoned square-feet of market residential space without further city approvals, but with rezoning, the developer is proposing 900,000 zoned square-feet.
All of the changes made to the rezoning plan were a result of community feedback, the developer said.
Rezoning (ULURP) Plan for LICH site (Credit: FXFOWLE/www.lichproject.com)
In the new rezoning scenario, the tallest tower at 37 stories (down from 40, which had been presented in May) would be situated near the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway within the LICH land parcel, bound by Atlantic Avenue, Henry and Congress streets and the BQE. In this option, the bulk of the development will be placed further away from the Cobble Hill Historic District.
This plan would also include a public school on Henry Street, local retail, 225,000 square-feet of afforable housing and more public park space. The towers would also be set back above the cornice line for a "contextual design." There will also be 750 parking spots.
The project has long been on the radar for Mayor Bill de Blasio, a strong advocate of affordable housing who was arrested in 2013 while protesting the planned closure of the Long Island College Hospital.
"We’re presented with a choice between securing community needs like affordable housing, a school, an open space, and a scenario that delivers none of those benefits,” the mayor’s office said in an email sent to DNAinfo Tuesday afternoon. “There is no question which one the administration would rather pursue."
Norvell did not return calls for comment for this story.
The Cobble Hill Association, a local community group, has been working with Fortis and Lander for months on a compromise, they said in an emailed statement Tuesday afternoon.
"We recognize that change is inevitable, but from the beginning the community has consistently maintained that the buildings proposed were too tall and that the population density would overwhelm the existing neighborhood," according to the group, which recently elected a new executive board.
"Unfortunately, [Fortis has] steadfastly refused to significantly lower the height or scale back the density of the plans."
