Judge Forces Long Beach To Hold Superblock Zoning Hearing

A judge has given the City of Long Beach's Zoning Board of Appeals 90 days to hold a hearing on the iStar development at the Superblock site.

According to Newsday, Nassau County Supreme Court Justice Stephen Bucaria ruled that the zoning board had to have a public hearing on whether the building permit that was granted to iStar should be extended or nullified.

The Superblock is an empty lot that sits directly on the beach. iStar Financial, the company that currently owns the parcel, most recently wanted to construct two 15-story towers on the site. The parcel has been sitting empty for decades, and is prime beachfront realty.

iStar wants the city to accept its Payment In Lieu Of Taxes (PILOT) application, and threatened the city last year with a law suit if it didn't write a letter to the Nassau IDA expressing its support of the PILOT. According to the city, if the lot stays vacant, it will generate $5.4 million in taxes over the next 20 years. But the iStar PILOT will generate $15.9 million, as well as $18.4 million in other expenses, for a total of about $34.7 million.

The developer has twice had its application for tax abatements rejected, and says it cannot build without tax breaks. Still, there has been much public backlash to the development, with many residents not wanting the apartment buildings constructed there.

Photo: Patch