Thoughts on the new development where Staple's is currently located?
In the past 3 months, I have been hearing more about Staples' lease expiring, and the building at 9305 5th Avenue will be demolished and turned into an 11-story apartment building. The building was previously approved for 6 stories, but the developer is seeking approval to extend it to 11 stories. If approved, it will have 292 residential units, with only 88 of them being affordable. It will also feature only 75 underground parking spots.
I was able to watch the livestreamed meeting between the community board and the developers. The community board members all brought up very good points against the approval of the building, such as the fact that 5th Ave regularly backs up with traffic, and the site has Engine 242 and a school down the block, and there is also a bus line going up and down the Ave as well. They also want to remove parking spots on the streets to create a delivery loading area for trucks, as they want to have a grocery store on the 1st level. When one of the CB10 members brought up that this would just remove parking spots and increase street congestion, the developer quickly backtracked and said, "Fine, it could be a dry goods retailer", which basically means anything that doesn't sell food. The CB10 member reminded him that whether the retail sells food or dry goods, the loading dock would only increase congestion on the street. And on 4th Ave, many car dealerships have cars parked in parking spots as well. not a crazy amount, but it's still a considerable one. During the meeting, one of the developers admitted they hadn't even conducted any traffic studies, which makes me feel they don't really care about the outcome.
Another complaint was that the developers had no plan to combat flooding when asked about it, as many homes and businesses have been flooded during torrential downpours. Other CB10 members also complained that the building wouldn't fit the character of the neighborhood, considering how big it would be once completed.
I personally am not a fan of this project. The developer, BWH group, was previously approved for 6 stories, so why do they need an additional five? On top of this, another project was already approved at 9201 4th Ave on 92nd Street. It will also be 11 stories, will be mixed-use, and will only have 97 units. I actually like this project better. I am supportive of building more housing in Bay Ridge, but with the project on 9305 5th Ave, it seems like all the developers care about is making as much profit as possible. During the meeting, they had no answers for some of the questions they were asked. The building is in a very dense area of the neighborhood, as they are very close to schools, Engine 242, and multiple car dealerships. I would be more open to it if it were only six stories, but eleven is just overkill.
I just wanted to share my thoughts and hear others as well. Please don't crash out on me in the comments.