City Approves 45-Story Trump SoHo 'Condo-Hotel' GVSHP and Community Groups Vow to Continue Fight, Call for Long Overdue Zoning Changes to Prevent More Such Developments
City Approves 45-story Trump SoHo Condo-Hotel: GVSHP uncovered and revealed yesterday that the City approved plans for construction of the planned 45-story Trump SoHo 'Condo-Hotel,' finalizing their decision, which GVSHP first reported in November, to allow this project to be built. GVSHP and a broad coalition of community, planning, and business groups and elected officials and literally thousands of New Yorkers argued that the planned development would violate the zoning for the area and therefore cannot be permitted by the City. Zoning restrictions for the area do not allow residential or residential hotel development, which is in essence what a 'condo-hotel' is; GVSHP and elected officials such as Borough President Stringer caught the developers advertising the planned development as a "residence" with "living spaces" on numerous occasions, and yet the City approved plans for the development regardless.
See coverage of the city's approval in Metro NY, AM NY, New York Magazine, the Daily News, and Crains NY.
GVSHP also uncovered a copy of the voluntary "restrictive declaration" the developer has filed with the City to supposedly ensure compliance with the law; however, our reading of the document is that it will provide no meaningful protections against abuse of the law, and is no substitute for the City enforcing the law as written and preventing this development from moving ahead.
With this decision by the City, among the few recourses left to stop the project is to file a lawsuit based upon the City not enforcing its own laws. GVSHP is working with a coalition of neighbors and other concerned citizens to explore just such an option. If you are interested in financially supporting such an effort, please reply to this e-mail. GVSHP also continues to pursue other issues regarding the propriety of the development's 'condo-hotel' plan.
Beyond allowing this totally inappropriate 45-story development, the City's decision swings open the doors to similar types of previously prohibited development in any area with similar zoning, such as the Meatpacking District, West Chelsea, northern Tribeca, NoHo, SoHo, western Hell's Kitchen, the Flatiron, the Garment Center, etc. (CLICK HERE for map). Additionally, the Hudson Square neighborhood in which the Trump development will be located continues to allow 45-story buildings. GVSHP has consistently urged city officials to close this supposed "loophole" in the zoning against Trump-Condo-Hotel-type developments, and to change the zoning for Hudson Square to prevent 45-story buildings of any sort (CLICK HERE and HERE). GVSHP is continuing to push hard for zoning changes to protect our neighborhoods from further similar developments.
CLICK HERE for a press release on the City's decision.
HOW TO HELP:
* WRITE TO THE CITY TO LET THEM KNOW HOW OUTRAGED YOU ARE BY THE DECISION TO ALLOW THE TRUMP SOHO 'CONDO-HOTEL' TO MOVE FORWARD, and to urge them to move ahead with long-overdue zoning changes we have been calling for to prevent similar developments.
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