Sherman Plaza Rezoning Will Not Have Support of Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez

INWOOD, NY — After months of debate, City Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez finally revealed his stance on a spot rezoning application for the 17-story development on the corner of Broadway and Sherman Avenue. Because the developer could not guarantee Rodriguez's requirements for rezoning, he will not support the application, the councilman said Monday night.

UPDATE: City Council votes down Sherman Plaza rezoning application on Tuesday.

Rodriguez made his announcement at a press conference on the site of the proposed Sherman Plaza development. Before he arrived with an entourage of community supporters, and a three-piece band, protesters flooded the area in a last-ditch effort to influence him to vote no before tomorrow's deadline.

After months of accusations that Rodriguez would sell out, and rebuttals that dissenters were shouting but not listening, it seems as though both sides are finally on the same page.

"I think that this is great news. I'm happy that Ydanis Rodriguez made the right decision," said Graham Ciraulo of the opposition group Northern Manhattan is Not for Sale. "We're really happy he listened to his constituents. I know it was a tough decision for him, I know that this has been a fight that divided the community and divided him for the community, but I think this is the first opportunity for some healing."

Northern Manhattan is Not for Sale is a coalition comprised of groups such as the Metropolitan Council on Housing, Uptown for Bernie and Riverside-Edgcomb Neighborhood Association, among others.

For how well things ended, Monday night's rally got off to a rocky start. The councilman was booed and interrupted as he began to speak and even threatened to leave before announcing his position.

But eventually the crowd quieted down, and amid technical problems, Rodriguez found help from an unlikely source. As the councilman's staff struggled with the microphone, one of the protesters passed over a bullhorn so the speech could continue.

First to take the mic was Carmen De La Rosa, Rodriguez's chief of staff and candidate for the New York State Assembly's 72nd district. After De La Rosa's introduction, it was Rodriguez's turn to speak. After the councilman began speaking, crowd members chimed in if he said something they perceived as support for Sherman Plaza.

"You used to be a socialist," shouted a woman from the crowd, implying that the councilman had gone from a fighter to a sellout.

During the speech, tension in the crowd began to build as though most protesters had previously concluded Rodriguez would end up supporting the rezoning. But suddenly Rodriguez eased those tensions.

"We have not been able to get to a point where I feel it is in the community's best interest to move this spot rezoning forward," Rodriguez said as cheers broke out. "Therefore I tell you that at this moment I will not be supporting the rezoning of Sherman and Broadway."

Some protesters cheered the councilman, some were stunned and some speculated that he would abstain instead of vote no. But no matter what the immediate reaction, the announcement that Rodriguez would not support Sherman Plaza seemed to take most everyone by surprise.

"It feels nice to win," said a woman wearing a Bernie Sanders T-shirt.

If passed, the building site would be upzoned and declared a Mandatory Inclusionary Housing (MIH) area. These changes would allow developers Acadia Sherman Ave LLC to build a 17-story mixed-use building containing 413 apartment units, according to an application filed with the city.

The MIH area would require the developer to offer 20 percent of the building's apartment units at a rate of 40 percent of the area median income or 30 percent of its units at a rate of 80 percent of the area median income ($62,150 per year for a family of three), which residents said was too much money.

The Sherman Plaza developers proposed offering 20 percent of units at permanent affordable rates under MIH guidelines and then an additional 30 percent of the units at various affordable rates that would expire after 30 years. The proposed additional rates were 10 percent at 60 percent of the area median income ($47,000 for a family of three), 10 percent at 110 percent of the area median income (90,000 for a family of 3) and 10 percent at 130 percent of the area median income ($110,000 for a family of three).

If the developer does not withdraw its proposal in light of Rodriguez's announcement, two city council subcommittees — Zoning and Franchises, and Land Use — will vote on the application Tuesday morning. It would be a break from convention should the City Council vote to approve the application without the support of the councilman from the home district.

Correction: It was incorrectly stated that the developer proposed an additional 30 percent of the units at 80 percent of the area median income. Under MIH the developer can propose 20 percent of the units at 40 percent of the area median income or 30 percent of the units at 80 percent of the area median income.

[Photo: Patch]