Sherman Plaza Zoning Application Vote Postponed

INWOOD, NY — Residents eagerly awaiting the City Council's decision on a spot rezoning application in Inwood will have to wait a little longer. Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez announced that the Sherman Plaza rezoning application vote will be postponed in order to discuss the project further within the Inwood community.

"As we are discussing complex issues which impact our community, it is important that all voices in this community are heard," Rodriguez said in a statement.

Rodriguez said that the decision to postpone the vote originally scheduled for Tuesday morning was made after reading emails sent to him by both detractors, and supporters of the Sherman Plaza development. The proposed development, a 17-story apartment complex with both market-rate and affordable-rate housing, is planned for the corner of Sherman Avenue and Broadway.

The city subcommittee on zoning and franchises was planning to vote on a spot upzoning for the development as well the establishment of a Mandatory Inclusionary Housing area on the property, according to the meeting agenda. 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.

While Rodriguez has not yet taken an official position on the Sherman Plaza development, the councilman has said that a "no" vote would mean that the developer would not be obligated to provide any affordable housing at the location. In fact, the developer has already proposed a 14-story apartment building should the spot rezoning not be voted through.

"The choice is not a simple one, by voting no, there is absolutely no opportunity to build desperately needed affordable housing at this site. The developers will be further empowered to build a luxury tower at a minimum of 14 stories, with 200 units at fully market price," Rodriguez said in the statement.

Rodriguez's office is in talks with the Sherman Plaza developer to ensure that 50 percent of the units end up being offered at affordable rates, with 30 percent at deeper affordability rates. Of those affordable units half would be reserved for residents of Community Board 12, which spans the Washington Heights and Inwood neighborhoods.

But not everyone is convinced that rezoning and development is a good thing in Inwood. Both the Sherman Plaza proposal and the Inwood NYC Neighborhood Plan — a larger proposal to rezone entire sections of the neighborhood — have drawn the ire of a number of neighborhood groups opposed to development out of fear of hyper gentrification and the displacement of current residents.

On Saturday these groups held a rally to protest the Sherman Plaza development, saying it would destroy "the last affordable working-class neighborhood in Manhattan."

"I don't think the planners are being fully honest," rezoning opponent Clay Smith told Patch in July. "But I don't entirely blame them because it's part of a bigger deal between the mayor and developers."

The city has an Aug. 16 deadline to vote on the Sherman Plaza applications, said Russell Murphy, chief of staff for Rodriguez. The councilman will alert his constituents both when the official vote will take place and when he takes his final position on the plan, Murphy said.

[Rendering: Sherman Acadia Ave LLC/DCP]