Bay Street Corridor Neighborhood Plan

The Bay Street Corridor Neighborhood Plan calls for rezoning an approximately 14-block area along Bay Street bounded by Victory Boulevard to the north, Van Duzer Street to the west, SIR tracks to the east and Sands Street to the south, and the rezoning of the Canal Street Corridor, a two-block area along Canal Street located approximately four blocks southwest of the Bay Street Corridor. The Plan also calls for the disposition of City-owned property at 55 Stuyvesant Place to allow job creation, and an Urban Development Action Area Project approval to facilitate mixed-use redevelopment of city-owned property at 539 Jersey Street including affordable housing. The zoning text will be amended for the northern phase of the Stapleton Waterfront sites (subareas A and B1 of the Special Stapleton Waterfront District) to allow greater flexibility in building envelopes to enhance waterfront views and to create the Special Bay Street Corridor District. This new special district will tailor underlying use, setback, height, bulk, parking regulations, view corridors and street wall provisions. In total, the Plan encompasses the St George, Tompkinsville, and Stapleton Communities of Staten Island’s Community District 1.

This area of Staten Island developed primarily during periods of rapid growth in the 19th and 20th century, particularly due to construction of transit infrastructure during this period, including the St. George Ferry Terminal and the Verrazzano-Narrows bridge. The current land use pattern along the Bay Street corridor dates back to 1961, when the modern zoning resolution was adopted. The corridor is zoned M1-1, a manufacturing district that permits light manufacturing uses. Today, the Bay Street Corridor remains well-connected to transit, but contains few active manufacturing uses and serves as a barrier between St. George, Stapleton, upland communities and the waterfront. M1-1 zoning does not allow for mixed-use development or contribute to the overall goals of the Bay Street Corridor Plan, limiting the range of options for a pedestrian-friendly and walkable corridor.

The existing zoning within the proposed rezoning area is comprised of seven zoning districts:

• M1-1: The Bay Street Corridor is predominantly zoned M1-1. M1-1 districts are light manufacturing districts, designed for a range of light industrial and commercial uses, including repair shops and wholesale service and storage facilities at a maximum floor area ratio (FAR) of 1.0 and community facilities with a maximum FAR of 2.4.
• R3X: Portions of the Bay Street Corridor are mapped within an R3X zoning district. R3X districts are lower-density residential districts, designed for one and two-family detached homes on lots at least 35 feet wide with a maximum FAR of 0.5.
• R3-2: Portions of the Canal Street Corridor are mapped within an R3-2 zoning district. R3-2 districts are lower-density residential districts that allow a variety of housing types, including low-rise attached homes, small multi-family apartment houses, and detached and semi-detached one and two-family residences. The maximum FAR is 0.5.
• R4: Portions of the Canal Street Corridor are mapped within an R4 zoning district, which allows all types of housing permitted in an R3-2 zoning district but at a slightly higher density with a maximum FAR of 0.75.
• C2-2: The Canal Street Corridor is mapped with a C2-2 commercial overlay, which permit neighborhood retail uses including grocery stores, movie theaters, restaurants and beauty parlors, as well as funeral homes and repair services. When mapped in R1 through R5 districts, the maximum FAR is 1.0.
• C4-2 (SSGD): The City-owned site to be disposed of at 55 Stuyvesant Place is located within a C4-2 zoning district and within the Special St. George District. C4 districts allow commercial uses, including offices, at a maximum FAR of 3.4. Residential uses are also permitted at a maximum FAR of 3.44. The SSGD modifies the height and FAR provisions of the underlying zoning district to encourage continuous ground floor commercial uses with large windows and wider sidewalks, as well as special parking configurations and landscaping to enhance commercial streets.
• C4-2A (SSWD): Stapleton Waterfront Phase III Sites A and B1 are located in a C4-2A district within the SSWD, which facilities medium-density development in a contextual district that allows commercial and residential uses at a maximum FAR of 2.0. The SSWD include street wall requirements and building heights intended to respect the scale of Stapleton’s upland areas.

The Bay Street Corridor Neighborhood Plan calls for the following land use actions:

• Creation of the Special Bay Street Corridor District to establish customized urban design and bulk controls that are responsive to the unique context of the Bay Street Corridor, modify the underlying use, setback, height, bulk, parking regulations, view corridors, street wall provisions and vehicular access provisions
• Establish Mandatory Inclusionary Housing within the proposed R6B and R6 zoning districts in the Bay Street Corridor and Canal Street Corridor rezoning areas (MIH Option 1, 2, 3, and 4)
• Modify the Special Stapleton Waterfront District to amend the underlying building height regulations for the future Northern Phase (Sites A/B1) in order to allow flexibility in site planning and enhance waterfront views; and
• Zoning Map Amendments as indicated below:
  • Rezoning the Bay Street Corridor M1-1 and R3X to R6B and R6 to allow medium density residential uses at a maximum FAR of between 2.2 and 4.6 for residential uses mapped with MIH, as modified by the SBSCD
  • Rezoning the Canal Street Corridor from R3-2 and R4 to R6B to allow medium density residential uses at a maximum FAR of 2.2 for residential uses mapped with MIH
  • Mapping C2-3 and C2-4 commercial overlays over portions of the proposed R6B and R6 zoning districts. C2-3 and C2-4 commercial overlays allow for local retail uses and commercial development up to 2.0 FAR, including Use Group 1-9 and 14. In some locations, Use Group 6b (commercial office) may be permitted up to the maximum residential FAR, as modified by the SBSCD.
• Disposition of City-owned property at 55 Stuyvesant Place and 539 Jersey Street to facilitate job creation and mixed-use development, including affordable housing.
  

  Bay Street Corridor Existing Zoning Map

  

  Bay Street Corridor Proposed Zoning Map

Public review of the Bay Street Corridor Neighborhood Plan started on November 13, 2018. During the public review process (Uniform Land Use Review Procedure, or ULURP), the public has a chance to comment formally on the propose. The proposal will now be referred out to Staten Island Community Board 1 for 60 days to review and hold a public hearing, after which it will go to the Borough President, the City Planning Commission and the City Council.

ULURP Milestone	Target Dates
Department of City Planning Certification	November 13, 2018 – View the presentation and press release.
Community Board 1 Hearing	January 8, 2019
Borough President Recommendation	February 21, 2019
City Planning Commission Hearing	February 27, 2019
City Planning Commission Vote - View the CPC Reports	April 22, 2019
City Council Hearing	May 14, 2019
City Council Approval With Modifications *	June 26, 2019

* On June 11, 2019 the Land Use Committee of the City Council recommended modifications regarding the Bay Street Corridor Neighborhood Plan and related actions. The modifications to the above reference text amendment impact the action as follows:

• Require that the exemption of floor area for #school# uses within subareas A & B1 of the Special Stapleton Waterfront District be limited to public schools operated by the Dept. of Education
• Clarify that the use and applicability provisions of ZR 135-045 of the Special Bay Street Corridor District (SBSCD) be limited to uses that support “public transportation”
• Modify height, density, and street wall location of Subdistrict A of the SBSCD to be limited to 125 feet maximum building height and a 4.0 FAR for MIH developments.
• Establish Subdistrict D2 of the SBSCD to reduce height and density of developments that share a zoning lot boundary with the adjacent R3X district. Subdistrict D2 is proposed to have a maximum building height of 65 feet and a 2.75 FAR for MIH developments.
• Modification to MIH Options, as shown in Appendix F, to permit Option 1 and Option 3 (Deep Affordability) in the Bay Street Corridor and Canal Street rezoning areas.