A lawsuit has been filed against the construction of a skyscraper in the Upper East Side of New York. The lawsuit, brought by a group of residents who live in the neighborhood, was filed with the New York County Supreme Court. The group that filed the lawsuit includes a state senator, a city councilman and two groups representing the neighborhood’s residents. It was filed against the city and challenges the approval of the project.
The project in question includes a skyscraper with apartment units and an art gallery that is located at 180 East 88th St. When you include mechanical equipment, the building is supposed to reach 524 feet. The lawsuit makes a claim that the developer of the building created a micro-lot in an effort to get around zoning laws in the city. The lawsuit claims that the zoning laws would limit the height of the building to no more than 350 feet.
The developer was able to create a small zoning lot that sits on 88th St. The lot was then transferred to another entity for the ownership of the buffer lot. The developer was then able to claim that the remainder of the property doesn’t actually border 88th St. The developer was able to argue this successfully, which led to approval by the city.
A public hearing by the Board of Standards and Appeals has yet to be scheduled. If the lawsuit fails, the project is slated to be completed sometime in 2019.
Construction lawsuits are not uncommon in New York. So many different people have interests when a construction project is approved or denied. You need to know the best way to work through construction litigation in Manhattan so that your projects continue to proceed.
Source: AMNY, “Upper East Side residents sue over 524-foot-tall development,” Feb. 08, 2018