2856 Webster Avenue Senior Housing 2856 Webster Avenue Bronx, New York
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2856 Webster Avenue Senior Housing 2856 Webster Avenue Bronx, New York Environmental Review Record Environmental Assessment New York State Governor’s Office of Storm Recovery October 19, 2020 2856 Webster Avenue Senior Housing 2856 Webster Avenue Bronx, New York Environmental Review Record October 19, 2020 Project Name: 2856 Webster Avenue Senior Housing Project Location: 2856 Webter Avenue Bronx, New York 104 Block 3273, Lots 118, 122 and 128 Responsible Entity: New York State Homes and Community Renewal Responsible Agency’s Certifying Officer: Matt Accardi, Governor’s Office of Storm Recovery 25 Beaver Street, 5th Floor, New York, New York 10004 (212) 480‐6265, [email protected] Project Sponsor: JELB Webster, LLC 7 Penn Plaza, Suite 600, New York NY 10001 Primary Contact: Russell Lang (212) 991‐4545 Project NEPA Classification: Environmental Assessment Certification The undersigned hereby certifies that New York State Homes and Community Renewal has conducted an environmental review of the project identified above and prepared the attached environmental review record in compliance with all applicable provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (42 USC Sec. 4321 et seq.) and its implementing regulations at 24 CFR Part 58. Signature Matt Accardi Environmental Review Matt Accardi Prepared By: Associate General Counsel, Certifying Environmental Officer Governor’s Office of Storm Recovery 1 2856 Webster Avenue Senior Housing, Bronx, New York CERTIFICATION OF NEPA CLASSIFICATION It is the finding of the New York State Housing Trust Fund Corporation that the activities proposed in its 2856 Webster Avenue Senior Housing Proposal are: Check the applicable classification. Exempt as defined in 24 CFR 58.34 (a). Categorically Excluded as defined in 24 CFR 58.35(b). Categorically Excluded as defined in 24 CFR 58.35(a) and no activities are affected by federal environmental statues and executive orders [i.e., exempt under 58.34(a)(12)]. Categorically Excluded as defined in 24 CFR 58.35(a) and some activities are affected by federal environmental statues and executive orders. "Other" neither exempt (24 CFR 58.34(a)) nor categorically excluded (24 CFR 58.35). Part or all of the project is located in an area identified as a floodplain or wetland. For projects located in a floodplain or wetland, evidence of compliance with Executive Orders 11988 and/or 11990 is required. For activities excluding those classified as "Other", attached is the appropriate Classification Checklist (Exhibit 2‐4) that identifies each activity and the corresponding citation. October 19, 2020 Signature of Certifying Officer Date Matt Accardi Certifying Environmental Officer Print Name Title 1 2856 Webster Avenue Senior Housing, Bronx, New York Description of the Proposed Project [24 CFR 50.12 & 58.32; 40 CFR 1508.25]: The Proposed Project would comprise the redevelopment of an existing commercially developed site for the construction of a 12‐story residential mix‐use building containing a total of 188 units of senior affordable housing and approximately 12,787 gross square‐feet (gsf) of commercial space in the Bedford Park neighborhood of the Bronx. The Proposed Project would be located at 2856 Webster Avenue on a 15,612 square‐foot (sf) (0.36‐acre) site located at the southeast corner of Webster Avenue and Bedford Park Boulevard. The project site is bordered on the southeast by the right‐of‐way of the Metro North railroad’s Harlem Line. The site is located within the C4‐5D zoning district (an R7D equivalent) of New York City, which consists of a densely developed urban environment. The total built area on the project site at present comprises an approximately 15,616 gsf retail space, which was formerly operated as a laundromat. It is anticipated that a supermarket will ultimately occupy the proposed commercial space. The proposed building would rise to a height of approximately 119 feet. (See Figures 1 & 2.) On April 30, 2020, the New York City of Housing Preservation and Development issued a Finding of No Significant Impact pursuant to 24 C.F.R. 58 (see Attachment A). Subsequently, the Governor’s Office of Storm Recovery received an application for Community Development Block Grant – Disaster Recovery funding and has prepared this environmental review pursuant to 24 C.F.R. 58 acting under the auspices of the New York State Homes and Community Renewal’s Housing Trust Fund Corporation, a public benefit corporation and subsidiary of the New York State Housing Finance Agency. Statement of Purpose and Need for the Proposal [40 CFR 1508.9(b)]: The purpose of the Proposed Project is to meet an increasing elderly population’s need for affordable housing in the Bedford Park Neighborhood of the Bronx and to provide an opportunity for low‐ and very low‐income seniors to remain in their neighborhood and the city generally as they age in place. Existing Conditions and Trends [24 CFR 58.40(a)]: Project Site The approximately 15,612 square‐foot (sf) development site is located at 2856 Webster Avenue (Bronx Block 3273, Lot 118) in the Bedford Park neighborhood of Bronx Community District 7 (see Figure 2). The mid‐block site fronts Webster Avenue to the north (approximately 100 feet of street frontage) and is part of a larger approximately 53,372 square foot zoning lot consisting of Lots 118, 122, and 128 (Project Site) located at the southwest corner of Webster Avenue and Bedford Park Boulevard (see Figure 1). The Project Site is bordered on the southeast by the right‐of‐way of the Metro North railroad’s Harlem and New Haven Lines (approximately 250 feet of right‐of‐way frontage). The Project Site is located within a C4‐5D zoning district, which is a contextual zoning district. The residential district equivalent is R7D. The C4‐5D district permits residential, commercial, and community facility development at a maximum floor area ratio (FAR) of 4.2. Typical commercial uses within this zoning district include specialty and department stores, theaters, and offices, all of which service larger geographical areas and generate more traffic than local shopping areas. 2 2856 Webster Avenue Senior Housing, Bronx, New York The total built area on the zoning lot is approximately 37,434 gsf, and the three lots comprising the Project Site are currently occupied by commercial uses: the development site (Lot 118) contains a 15,616 sf vacant commercial building formerly occupied by a laundromat; Lot 122 contains a 21,818 sf commercial building occupied by a supermarket and a portion of a 45‐space accessory parking lot (accessible from Webster Avenue), and Lot 128 contains the remaining portion of the 45‐space surface parking lot. There are four existing curb cuts that provide access to the property. Surrounding Area Context The Project Site is located in Bedford Park, in central Bronx. As shown in Figure 2, land use in the vicinity of the Project Site is predominantly comprised of residential and mixed commercial/ residential uses, reflecting the residential zoning districts mapped throughout the surrounding area. Mapped residential districts in the vicinity of the Project Site include R6 (mapped to the south of the site on Block 3272), R7D/C2‐4 (mapped to the north of the site on lots with frontage along Webster Avenue) and R7A/C1‐4 and R7B (mapped to the north of the site on lots with frontage along Bedford Park Boulevard), as shown in Figure 3. R6 zoning districts are widely mapped in built‐up medium‐density areas in the Bronx and can range in character with a diverse mix of building types and heights, including large‐scale “tower in the park” developments. The maximum permitted residential FAR in R6 districts ranges from 0.78 to 2.43, with a maximum community facility FAR of 4.8. R7D districts serve to promote new contextual development along transit corridors, resulting in eight‐ to ten‐story apartment buildings built near major transit routes. The maximum permitted FAR for both residential and community facility uses in R7D districts is 4.2, and when the parcel is zoned R7D and located in an Inclusionary Housing Designated Area the FAR is increased to 5.6. C2‐4 commercial overlays permit 2.0 FAR of commercial uses when mapped in R7D districts. R7A districts are high‐density contextual districts where Quality Housing regulations are mandatory, typically resulting in seven‐ and eight‐story apartment buildings with high lot coverage. The maximum permitted residential FAR in R7A districts is 4.0. C1‐4 commercial overlays permit 2.0 FAR of commercial uses when mapped in R7A districts. R7B districts are medium‐density contextual districts where Quality Housing regulations are mandatory, typically resulting in six‐ and seven‐story apartment buildings with high lot coverage. The maximum permitted residential FAR in R7B districts is 3.0. Residential uses in the area surrounding the Project Site represent a variety of building typologies, including three‐story attached and semi‐attached row houses occupying smaller lots, some of which feature ground floor retail uses, older five‐ and six‐story multi‐family residential buildings with ground floor retail uses, and the nine‐story Rose Hill apartment building located southeast of the project site, across the right‐of‐way of the Metro North railroad’s Harlem and New Haven Lines. Apart from residential uses with ground floor retail, the surrounding area contains several one‐story commercial/office buildings. Directly north of the site, along Webster Avenue, a Family Dollar is present in a one‐story commercial building. Parking uses in the surrounding area are located in older, one‐story buildings and in parking lots along Webster Avenue. The parking garage for the New York Botanical Garden is located just north of the Project Site, at the northeastern corner of Webster Avenue and Bedford Park Boulevard.