City To Reveal Final Inwood Rezoning Plan Thursday

INWOOD, NY — Representatives from the city Economic Development Corporation will present the city's final rezoning recommendations for Inwood during a Thursday night meeting of Community Board 12's land use committee.

The rezoning proposals presented Thursday night will be for areas west of 10th Avenue, which were added to the study after residents and officials raised concerns last year that contextual rezoning for the area was needed due to planned upzonings east of 10th Avenue, city officials said during a June roundtable with reporters.

During a June Community Board 12 land use meeting, several activist groups united under the Northern Manhattan Is Not For Sale coalition showed up to the meeting in force to push for medium-density zoning for the area. The favored zoning of activist groups — R7A — would set maximum building height limits but would not require developers to offer below-market housing options in accordance with the city's Mandatory Inclusionary Housing laws.

The city's rezoning plans for the area west of 10th avenue will attempt to protect the area's character while advancing the goals of the city's "action plan," for the Inwood neighborhood officials told reporters. The city has not changed its rezoning plans east of 10th Avenue, officials told reporters Thursday.

The action plan attempts to frame existing Inwood projects and proposals — including the Inwood Library redevelopment and a proposal to rezone the neighborhood — in the context of a complete plan, staffers from the city Economic Development Corporation said.

"This Action Plan outlines comprehensive strategies to address Inwood’s most pressing challenges, such as rising rents, antiquated zoning, lack of access to the waterfront and outdated infrastructure," EDC President and CEO James Patchett said in a statement.

Some highlights from the plan include:

• The Inwood Library redevelopment;
• Rezoning Inwood east and west of 10th Avenue;
• A $30 million renovation of Highbridge Park;
• Building a newWorkforce1 Center and legal services office in the neighborhood;
• $1.1 million in grants to Inwood nonprofits through the Neighborhood 360° program;

Thursday night's community board meeting will be held at the Russ Berrie Palivion at 1150 St. Nicolas Avenue, located between West 167th and 168th streets. The meeting starts at 7 p.m.

Photo by Teri Tynes via Flickr/Creative Commons