‘Like Godzilla Through Tokyo’: West Broadway Development Faces Local Backlash At Zoning Board Meeting

LONG BEACH, NY — The request for variances to clear the way for a 106-unit apartment complex at the former Hebrew Academy of Long Beach site faced stiff backlash from residents Thursday night, with members of the community spending about 90 minutes objecting to parts of the development plan during a Zoning Board of Appeals meeting.

The developers for the former Hebrew Academy site are seeking variances from height, building area, front yard, side yard and density ordinances in the city's zoning code as they progress with a plan that would construct an eight-story building at 530 W. Broadway. That building, developers said, would hold 106 apartments — 16 one-bedroom units, 42 two-bedroom units and 48 three-bedroom units — as well as parking and amenities.

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Attending the meeting on behalf of West Meridian Partners, the Manhattan-based developers seeking to build on the property, was Garden City-based attorney Greg Alvarez. Alvarez said the project has about a decade of history at this point, first coming before the zoning board of appeals in March of 2017 and receiving a positive State Environmental Quality Review Assessment (SEQRA) declaration in June of that year.

The positive declaration, Alvarez said, set off a years-long chain of environmental impact study proceedings, culminating in a 60-page impact study document that was submitted earlier this year. In the six years since pandemic-era public hearings over the site were held on Zoom, Alvarez said there have been a few changes to what's being proposed: In 2020, the developers sought variances to build 126 apartments, now they seek to build 106; the gross height of the building, Alvarez said, has also been reduced by about 35 feet, to a gross height of 88.5 feet. Under city code, which requires the first floor of buildings to be elevated to comply with FEMA regulations, the gross height amounts to 79.5 feet when removing that first-floor elevation, Alvarez said.

Representatives for the developers added that the initial project proposal in 2017 was for an 11-story building. This version of the proposal, they said, would see an eight-story building constructed if approved.

"In many ways, the development, as we are presenting tonight, is completely consistent with the comprehensive plan," Alvarez said.

In a marathon of public comment after Alvarez's presentation, many Long Beach residents expressed their disagreement with Alvarez's assessment.

First up for public comment was Dina Fiore, a West Broadway resident and lifelong Long Beach resident who said "many residents, locally" were "upset" at the advance notice that had been given of the meeting, saying residents had previously been able to organize more thoroughly and "pack [city hall] with 300 people."

10 years on from the first board meetings about this plan, Fiore said little of what was being proposed had changed.

"I can't believe it has been 10 years, to come back and say it one more time: Build but don't destroy," Fiore said. "This project is out of character, and against the very fiber of why this city was created in the first place. I'm not suggesting we live in the past, I'm only trying to preserve what remains of our landscape, and, most importantly, our infrastructure for the future generations to enjoy."

Fiore cited issues with the city's sewers, pipes, street and water supply as adverse conditions that the development would exacerbate. She added that the added population that could come with a large development like this one could add stress to emergency evacuations and emergency response in a city with a finite amount of first responders. Finally, the self-described daughter of a Long Beach police officer said "the legacy" of the city rested with the zoning board, urging them once again to, "build, don't destroy."

Next up was Eileen Heschen, of 516 West Beach Avenue, who said there are "feasible alternatives" to the proposed development, and chided the developers for not holding enough meetings with members of the community.

"A lot of the experts who were up here talked about all of the meetings they had with so many people, but they didn't have meetings with the community, and that's what we needed to have," Heschen said. "We don't want this…[The plans] have not changed enough…there are 106 units, but there are 244 bedrooms, if you count how many one, two and three-bedroom apartments there are. That means we possibly have 400 new neighbors, and I hate to think of what the roads would look like in the morning when they all set out to work."

West Broadway resident Dave Garfinkel, who lives across the street from the site, also stepped up to give comment on the proposal Thursday night. In his comments, Garfinkel said some of the adjustments being touted by developers were moot when considered alongside the base size of the proposal.

"We sat through this meeting talking about a minor variation here, a minor variation there, [while] this project tramples on the zoning regulations like Godzilla through Tokyo," Garfinkel said. "I moved to this block, I put all of my money, every penny I had [into moving to Long Beach]…and I moved to this block for this zoning, because it's a nice block. This will destroy the block."

Maura Turner, of Lindell boulevard, also commented on the development proposal Thursday night, raising issues with the proposed height of the building, the shade it would create, the removal of a section of boardwalk railing and the removal of memorial benches along the stretch of the boardwalk in front of the West Broadway property.

"My family has lived our lives on the sand and the boards in front of this property since 1975. Washington Beach, summer sun, winter walks, bike rides, jogging," Turner said. "My mother, sister, brother, nieces and nephews own at least nine homes in Long Beach. Six of them are betweenLaurelton and Lindell Boulevards. This is our neighborhood, we know what is in keeping with the neighborhood and what is not. This proposal is not in keeping with our neighborhood...This will be a blank slate once it is demolished, so why can't this blank slate be treated like any other blank slate in Long Beach and stay to code?"

While there was considerable opposition voiced at the meeting, there was also a voice in favor of the development. Susan Frushtick, of West Broadway, said the development could serve as a "breath of fresh air" in the city.

"I'm thrilled that this building is coming," Frushtick said. "It's about time that we had something new, good-looking and modern, and I think all of the objections come from people living in private homes who don't understand how wonderful it is to live in a high rise with views of the ocean."

In her comments, Frushtick said the years since the Hebrew Academy vacated the property had been "absolutely depressing."

At the end of the public comment session Thursday night, the zoning board said the public hearing would be adjourned to the board's Sept. 24 meeting, where developers would have the opportunity to address concerns raised by Long Beach residents and give Long Beach residents who could not attend Thursday's meeting to contribute their thoughts to the board's record. Those thoughts, the board said, could be submitted to the zoning board in writing between now and the Sept. 24 meeting.