Council Passes Clinton Air-Rights Plan
by John FisherAmid boos and hisses from Clinton/Hell’s Kitchen residents directed at Speaker Peter Vallone and Councilmember Stanley Michels, the City Council approved the controversial Theater Subdistrict Rezoning Proposal August 6 by a 32-6 vote.
The plan expands the existing midtown Theater Subdistrict to parts of the west side of Eighth Avenue in the Clinton neighborhood and allows developers to buy “air rights” from already-protected Broadway theaters in order to construct buildings up to 44% larger than normally allowed. This is a radical departure from normal air-rights practice. Instead of transferring air rights solely to adjacent buildings, owners can now sell them anywhere in the unprecedented vast "receiving area" from 42nd to 56th Streets.
New development will also be “as-of-right,” without the normally required Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP). Incredibly, the Council gave up its own power—to review, temper and rationalize the size of buildings—to the Mayor without a fight.
Although the plan threatens the entire neighborhood character, small business and the environment, tenants will be the first to feel the brunt of development changes. According to Sarah Desmond, acting director of Housing Conservation Coordinators, Clinton “landlords are already stepping up harassment to force out low-income tenants or making illegal conversions from residential to commercial use.”
Even though parts of the west side of Eighth Avenue were removed in the final vote, developers were able to break into the Special Clinton District that has protected the low-rise, low-density and low-to-moderate income Clinton/Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood since 1973. According to Desmond, “they kept 42nd to 45th Streets on the west side of Eighth Avenue in the plan. This is the most vulnerable part of the Special Clinton District, given the redevelopment of Times Square. It’s the foot in the door developers needed, and they’ll be back for more in a few years.”
A broad five-borough coalition of neighborhood, housing, civic and preservation groups fought the proposal. But that wasn’t enough, as Mayor Giuliani proposed to “save the theater” through a “Broadway Initiative” group to receive part of the air-rights revenue. Scrutiny revealed the Broadway Initiative was a scam; even Councilmember Walter McCaffrey stated it deserved “damning criticism.” Any money from the sale of air rights would take up to 20 years to accumulate, and even then would only represent 5-7% of the money needed to run the Broadway Initiative. The rest, it seems, would come from salary givebacks from theatrical unions—a critical detail kept from many unions’ rank-and-file membership.
Speaker Vallone had refused to even speak with Clinton residents, although at the same time he was wining and dining with theater owners and the Broadway Initiative lobbyist at a June fundraiser, where they made substantial contributions to his gubernatorial campaign.
But the money delivered to Vallone in June is only a drop in the bucket. Insiders say the “deal” was that Broadway Initiative lobbyist Ethan Geto and Albany lobbyist Peter Piscitelli (reportedly hired by the Shubert Theater Chairman Gerald Schoenfeld) would use their considerable political fundraising skills for Vallone’s gubernatorial campaign if he forced the approval of the zoning plan. Schoenfeld had admitted to the City Council that the entire exercise was so the Shuberts could get a new theater out of the air-rights revenue they will realize, estimated at $66 million.
Vallone made it a “speaker issue” where many councilmembers were afraid to vote their conscience. Councilmembers Tom Duane, Ronnie Eldridge, Margarita Lopez and Sheldon Leffler fought hard against the plan, and were joined by Kathryn Freed and Anthony Weiner, who also voted against it. Others who would be expected to vote with tenants didn’t: Guillermo Linares, Phil Reed, Adolfo Carrion, Jr., and Bill Perkins.
But things often happen in steps. Initial opposition from the community boards and civic groups was intense. Both the Observer and Crain’s reported the plan was “in trouble.” But the Manhattan Borough Board’s resolution, which echoed Community Boards 4 and 5’s intense opposition, was watered down by Councilmember Stanley Michels at a meeting where both Board 4 and 5 were excluded. A week later, Manhattan Borough President C. Virginia Fields ignored the Borough Board’s resolution and approved the plan with modifications, leaving in many of its horrendous aspects. The final provisions passed by the Council were even worse than what Fields had proposed.
Perhaps the most disturbing event at the City Council’s August 6 meeting was watching Councilmember Michels speak in favor of the zoning and the Broadway Initiative. Perhaps that explains why his office would not return phone calls prior to the vote. Even though Michels made it easier for Fields, and Fields, in turn, made it easier for Vallone, the final result, breaking into the Special Clinton District and killing our special neighborhood, was because Peter Vallone forced the vote in return for campaign money.