George Hebronik, President of Spencer State Civic Association, on opposition to City of Yes and concerns about Town Center Development, ADUs, and parking mandates
8:11:13
·
3 min
George Hebronik, representing Spencer State Civic Association and affiliated groups, expresses opposition to the City of Yes initiative while acknowledging its likely approval. He outlines specific concerns from the communities he represents regarding various aspects of the proposal.
- Highlights concerns about Town Center Development in low-density neighborhoods, commercial overlays, and Transit-Oriented Development's impact on areas like Pelham Bay
- Expresses opposition to the elimination of parking mandates, emphasizing that low-density communities are car-centric
- Raises questions about Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs), apartment conversions, and shared apartments, as well as the potential loss of the land review process and council member deference in land use matters
- Communities represented are adamantly opposed to the City of Yes plan
- Concerns over town center development in low density neighborhoods
- Concerns about commercial overlays on Ampere and Layton Avenue
- Concerns about preexisting conditions on Westchester Avenue and transitory infant development
- Integration of businesses within strictly residential areas, especially smoke shops
- Questions about ADUs, apartment conversions, and shared apartments
- Strong opposition to elimination of parking mandates
- Concerns about the removal of parking spaces for Zipcars in Pelham Bay
- Worries about the potential elimination of the land review process and council member deference
- Increase in absentee landlords in neighborhoods
[EXPERIMENTAL]
Which elements of City of Yes for Housing Opportunity were discussed in this testimony?
- Residential Conversions
- Town Center Zoning
- Parking Mandates
- ADU
- Transit-Oriented Development
- Small and Shared Housing
The following are AI-extracted quotes and reasoning about which elements of the proposal were discussed in this testimony.
This is a quick, close approximation. Occasionally, the connection between a testimony's transcript and specific elements of City Planning's proposal is tenuous.
Read about this AI-generated analysis here.
Residential Conversions
"We also have a little bit of questions on what we consider opaquely defined ADUs, apartment conversions, shared apartments or what we can what might be looked at is single room occupancy units."
The speaker mentions 'apartment conversions' in the context of discussing various housing types, which relates to the residential conversions element of the proposal.
Town Center Zoning
"The town center development specifically in the small or low density neighborhood, it's the commercial overlays on currently on Ampere and Layton Avenue."
The speaker directly mentions 'town center development' in low density neighborhoods, which relates to the town center zoning element of the proposal.
"Also, integration of business within strictly residential areas is a primary concern, especially with all the smoke shops that are popping up."
This quote further elaborates on concerns about mixing commercial and residential uses, which is a key aspect of town center zoning.
Parking Mandates
"Now both communities are adamantly against any elimination of parking mandates because bottom line is the low density community is a car centric neighborhood."
The speaker directly addresses the proposal to remove parking mandates and expresses opposition to it, indicating that this element is being discussed.
"Now in the Pelham Bay area, which is also clocking deprived and of a higher density, they are actually taking away clocking spaces with Zipcars."
This quote further elaborates on the parking situation in specific neighborhoods, showing that the speaker is discussing the implications of removing parking mandates.
ADU
"We also have a little bit of questions on what we consider opaquely defined ADUs, apartment conversions, shared apartments or what we can what might be looked at is single room occupancy units."
The speaker directly mentions ADUs (Accessory Dwelling Units) and expresses concerns about their definition, which indicates discussion of this element of the proposal.
Transit-Oriented Development
"In the Pelham Bay area, it's the preexisting conditions on Westchester Avenue, which also would include the transitory infant development that would end from the Hutch Hutchton Road Parkway Service Road all the way to Brooklyn, the Boulevard because you're going a half mile in each direction."
The speaker mentions 'transitory infant development' (likely meaning transit-oriented development) and discusses its potential impact on specific areas, indicating that this element of the proposal is being discussed.
"It's not a transit, does it These communities are an oasis."
This quote, while somewhat unclear, seems to be arguing against transit-oriented development in certain communities, further indicating discussion of this element.
Small and Shared Housing
"We also have a little bit of questions on what we consider opaquely defined ADUs, apartment conversions, shared apartments or what we can what might be looked at is single room occupancy units."
The speaker mentions 'shared apartments' and 'single room occupancy units', which directly relates to the small and shared housing element of the proposal.
About this analysis:
This analysis is done by AI that reasons whether or not a quote from the testimony discusses a particular element of the proposal.
All the prompts and data are open and available on Github.
You can search for testimonies that mentioned a specific element in the table on the main meeting page.
When an element is explicitly stated in the testimony (e.g. "Universal Affordability Preference" or "UAP"), the analysis is accurate.
But the connection between a quote from the testimony and an element of the proposal is sometimes implicit.
In these cases, the AI might eagerly label a testimony as discussing a proposal when the connection is tenuous, or it might omit it entirely.
Follow-up discussion/remarks
Chair Garodnick clarifies misconceptions about City of Yes proposal
8:14:43
·
33 sec
Dan Garodnick, Chair of the City Planning Commission, addresses concerns raised by George Hebronik about the City of Yes proposal. He encourages a closer examination of the actual proposal, emphasizing that it does not eliminate the Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP) or significantly reduce community input.
- The proposal maintains Council and community board jurisdiction on most matters
- Only three specific areas will see changes from special permits to lesser degrees of review
- These areas include landmarks transfers, supportive housing in two districts, and railroad right of way
- Communities represented are adamantly opposed to the City of Yes plan
- Concerns over town center development in low density neighborhoods
- Concerns about commercial overlays on Ampere and Layton Avenue
- Concerns about preexisting conditions on Westchester Avenue and transitory infant development
- Integration of businesses within strictly residential areas, especially smoke shops
- Questions about ADUs, apartment conversions, and shared apartments
- Strong opposition to elimination of parking mandates
- Concerns about the removal of parking spaces for Zipcars in Pelham Bay
- Worries about the potential elimination of the land review process and council member deference
- Increase in absentee landlords in neighborhoods
[EXPERIMENTAL]
Which elements of City of Yes for Housing Opportunity were discussed in this testimony?
- Residential Conversions
- Town Center Zoning
- Parking Mandates
- ADU
- Transit-Oriented Development
- Small and Shared Housing
The following are AI-extracted quotes and reasoning about which elements of the proposal were discussed in this testimony.
This is a quick, close approximation. Occasionally, the connection between a testimony's transcript and specific elements of City Planning's proposal is tenuous.
Read about this AI-generated analysis here.
Residential Conversions
"We also have a little bit of questions on what we consider opaquely defined ADUs, apartment conversions, shared apartments or what we can what might be looked at is single room occupancy units."
The speaker mentions 'apartment conversions' in the context of discussing various housing types, which relates to the residential conversions element of the proposal.
Town Center Zoning
"The town center development specifically in the small or low density neighborhood, it's the commercial overlays on currently on Ampere and Layton Avenue."
The speaker directly mentions 'town center development' in low density neighborhoods, which relates to the town center zoning element of the proposal.
"Also, integration of business within strictly residential areas is a primary concern, especially with all the smoke shops that are popping up."
This quote further elaborates on concerns about mixing commercial and residential uses, which is a key aspect of town center zoning.
Parking Mandates
"Now both communities are adamantly against any elimination of parking mandates because bottom line is the low density community is a car centric neighborhood."
The speaker directly addresses the proposal to remove parking mandates and expresses opposition to it, indicating that this element is being discussed.
"Now in the Pelham Bay area, which is also clocking deprived and of a higher density, they are actually taking away clocking spaces with Zipcars."
This quote further elaborates on the parking situation in specific neighborhoods, showing that the speaker is discussing the implications of removing parking mandates.
ADU
"We also have a little bit of questions on what we consider opaquely defined ADUs, apartment conversions, shared apartments or what we can what might be looked at is single room occupancy units."
The speaker directly mentions ADUs (Accessory Dwelling Units) and expresses concerns about their definition, which indicates discussion of this element of the proposal.
Transit-Oriented Development
"In the Pelham Bay area, it's the preexisting conditions on Westchester Avenue, which also would include the transitory infant development that would end from the Hutch Hutchton Road Parkway Service Road all the way to Brooklyn, the Boulevard because you're going a half mile in each direction."
The speaker mentions 'transitory infant development' (likely meaning transit-oriented development) and discusses its potential impact on specific areas, indicating that this element of the proposal is being discussed.
"It's not a transit, does it These communities are an oasis."
This quote, while somewhat unclear, seems to be arguing against transit-oriented development in certain communities, further indicating discussion of this element.
Small and Shared Housing
"We also have a little bit of questions on what we consider opaquely defined ADUs, apartment conversions, shared apartments or what we can what might be looked at is single room occupancy units."
The speaker mentions 'shared apartments' and 'single room occupancy units', which directly relates to the small and shared housing element of the proposal.
About this analysis:
This analysis is done by AI that reasons whether or not a quote from the testimony discusses a particular element of the proposal.
All the prompts and data are open and available on Github.
You can search for testimonies that mentioned a specific element in the table on the main meeting page.
When an element is explicitly stated in the testimony (e.g. "Universal Affordability Preference" or "UAP"), the analysis is accurate.
But the connection between a quote from the testimony and an element of the proposal is sometimes implicit.
In these cases, the AI might eagerly label a testimony as discussing a proposal when the connection is tenuous, or it might omit it entirely.