When the Domino Sugar refinery ceased operations at the end of last year, it marked the loss of approximately 300 well-paying jobs and ended over 130 years of continuous sugar refining on the Yonkers Hudson River waterfront.
Without taking the time to study the issue, the Yonkers City Council is now considering a zone change to the 25-acre property from “I” for industrial to “D-MX,” a zone specifically designed for the downtown central business district. The D-MX zone as applied to this site would allow apartment buildings with a maximum height of 150 feet or 15 stories. The vote on the change is scheduled for as soon as Jan. 27.
Rubbo is on Board
According to the City Council Majority Leader and Real Estate Committee Chair John Rubbo, the change will send a message that Yonkers wants to encourage residential development.
Residential development brings far more daily benefit to residents than replacing one industrial use with another. By acting now, before the property is sold, the City Council is setting clear expectations that this waterfront should serve families, neighborhoods, and the future growth of Yonkers. – John Rubbo
Astonishingly, if it approves the zone change now, the Council would be giving up its almost unfettered power to shape the size and scope of any future development on the site.
Nonetheless, Rubbo believes that time is of the essence, because Yonkers needs to fast-track development in the City to address the housing shortfall he and others on the Council prioritize. While it’s true that the approval process for new housing in New York State can easily bog down, Rubbo does not address the consequential political costs to the Council and the surrounding neighborhoods if the Council relegates itself to the sidelines before an actual development proposal is on the table.
Zoning is a Powerful Tool in the Hands of the Council
Under New York zoning law, the Yonkers City Council has the power to determine, as a matter of policy, what zoning restrictions are appropriate for the Domino Sugar site, and what kind of redevelopment fits in with the surrounding neighborhood. After the zoning decision is made, however, the Council’s role largely ends, and the authority over the redevelopment shifts to the Yonkers Planning Board, a part of the executive branch of government, whose job is not to revisit policy choices that the Council already made, but to simply make sure that a new development follows the restrictions of the zone Council established.
The time for community engagement is when zoning decisions are before the City Council. That is when people can voice their support or objections to their elected representatives. After receiving input from the community, the Council can approve, change or reject a proposed zone change based on what it deems to be in the best interest of the neighborhood and the City at large.
The problem with changing the zoning designation at the Domino property to a D-MX now is that the new zone could allow developers to build 1,000 or more housing units as a matter of right, and then neither the Council nor the Planning Board would have the power to insist on substantial changes.
Giving Up Prior to Proposals is Irresponsible
Zone changes are one of the most important powers that the City Council wields. Giving up that power now, before a builder has submitted a development project, would be an abdication of the Council’s responsibilities.
The Council would fulfill its duties under the zoning laws, however, if it were to ask to see development proposals prior to voting on a change. This would give the Council the leverage to assure that an approved project is appropriate for the site and that specific community concerns were considered and addressed.
Last year the City Council failed to exert its zone change authority for a proposed project for Woodworth Avenue. Instead, the Yonkers Zoning Board of Appeals approved two 32-story towers in a low rise, disadvantaged neighborhood on a very small street. There was little or no meaningful input on the project from the residents who will be most acutely affected. The Council failed to protect this community from the many issues that accompany high rise development.
If the Council approves the D-MX zone change now, there will be no safeguards to prevent a similar bad result for the communities near the Domino Sugar property. The Council needs to stay involved to ensure their constituents’ voices are heard.
The Yonkers Ledger recently interviewed former Council Member Anthony Merante, who lost his reelection bid last November. In a parting shot at his former colleagues, Merante asserted that the Council had become a “rubber stamp” for Mayor Spano, but hoped that the Council would prove him wrong.
It is no secret the Mayor has dominated the redevelopment of the Yonkers waterfront and downtown, and has done so by exercising his considerable influence over the Yonkers Planning Board and Zoning Board of Appeals. The Council now has the opportunity to exert its independence to shape the waterfront’s future. This is not the time for the Council to bow out of the process. Instead, it should step up and do its job.
