STAPLETON — Drivers would actually have to drive up a pedestrian crosswalk to access new homes planned on Staten Island, Borough President James Oddo said.
Oddo called on the city to reject the application to build three single-family attached townhouses at 680 to 684 Van Duzer St. because their driveway would come out directly onto a crosswalk at the junction with Broad Street.
"This is the kind of development that, after it's built, Staten Islanders see it and say 'How did they allow it to happen?'" said Oddo.
"This will be a dangerous situation for pedestrians, for motorists who traverse this corridor, for the very people who buy those houses who try to get in and out of their misplaced and ill designed driveways."
In era of Dont Block the Box/Vision Zero agencies OKing a project that has drive way empty directly into crosswalk? pic.twitter.com/wMiu8Khywz
— Jimmy Oddo (@HeyNowJO) August 31, 2016
The planned development will take over an empty lot at the "T"-shaped intersection.
Builders need a variance to put up the homes because the area is zoned for only a single-family detached home, Oddo said.
Developers filed an application on the city's Uniform Land Use Review Policy (ULURP) for the variance and the project was signed off on by the Department of Transportation even with the potential of cars reversing into the crosswalk.
"DOT’s proposal calls for two driveways for three townhouses at this location since we believe that not many vehicles will come out of these driveways in a given day," a spokesperson for the agency said in a statement.
"The vehicles also can utilize the existing traffic light at Van Duzer and Broad Street to allow time to back in or back out. In all situations involving all crosswalks, we urge caution on the part of motorists, pedestrians and bicyclists."
Earlier this month, Oddo sent a letter to Commissioner Polly Trottenberg asking for her to reject the application and called on the Board of Standards and Appeals to do the same last year.
With Mayor Bill de Blasio pushing his Vision Zero safety plan to end traffic deaths, Oddo said approving this project goes against that initiative.
"This violates the spirit of Vision Zero," he said. "The agency that is out advocating for pedestrian safety, for increased safety on our roads, needs to be heard on this issue."
The owner of the property listed on Department of Buildings records, John Massamillo, did not respond to a request for comment.
This is the third development seeking a variance in the North Shore that Oddo has spoken out against this summer.
In July, he called on the city to reject a proposal to build a private road through a swath of Grymes Hill forest to lead to five single-family homes on a separate plot of land.
