By Stephen Stirling
Department of City Planning Commissioner Amanda Burden announced Monday that the long-awaited Waldheim and Laurelton rezonings have officially started the public review process, which could end up with the pair of plans being approved by the City Council by year's end.
Burden said the two rezonings are designed to protect the neighborhoods' character from excessive overdevelopment. The start of the public approval process means that Community Board 7 will have 60 days to issue its recommendation on the Waldheim rezoning, while Community Board 13 will have the same period of time to do the same on the Laurelton rezoning.
Both proposals will then move to the borough president's office and the City Planning Commission before heading to the City Council for a final vote.
"In 2004, Mayor [Michael] Bloomberg and I stood with Borough President [Helen] Marshall and promised that we would work with Queens neighborhoods and revisit decades-old zoning designations throughout the borough" Burden said.
"We've delivered on our promise to preserve the character of lower density residential communities while providing opportunities for growth, where appropriate," she said.
The Waldheim rezoning, which mainly covers southeastern Flushing, has been in the works for more than a decade and a controversial topic in the neighborhood.
The area proposed for the Waldheim rezoning is roughly bordered by Sanford Avenue to the north, 45th Avenue to the south, 156th Street to the east and Kissena Boulevard to the west, although small sections also extend out to Colden Avenue.
The bulk of the proposal would change a large swath of land currently zoned as R3-2 residential zoning and change it to R3X.
R3-2 zoning, widely used across the city's small, residential neighborhoods, provides extensive flexibility to builders by allowing a multitude of housing types, including single-family detached homes, low-rise attached homes and multi-family apartment houses.
R3X, however, is far more restrictive, allowing only one- and two-family detached homes.
Reach reporter Stephen Stirling by e-mail at Sstirling@timesledger.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 138.
