After Woodhaven-Richmond Hill went through the long process of rezoning its streets, Ozone Park is set to go through the same thing, according to a local city councilman.
Councilman Eric Ulrich (R-Ozone Park) announced at the Our Neighbors of Ozone Park civic meeting on Tuesday, May 1 that Ozone Park is in the early stages of the city’s process of rezoning, which will see its commercial and residential streets changed after it is finished.
Although many details of the rezoning process are unknown at this point, Ulrich said that elected officials, community officials and the New York City Department of Planning (DOP) have met about rezoning in Ozone Park.
Ulrich said that the rezoning is something that’s long needed for the neighborhood. Ulrich added that he has heard many complaints through the years of underdevelopment in the area and they are going to look to upsize commercial streets and downsize residential streets. According to a spokesperson from the DOP, Ozone Park’s zoning has been in place since 1961.
One area in particular that Ulrich pointed out was Liberty Avenue from City Line to 91st Street, as an area where the zoning needs to be updated.
“That could use some sprucing up,” Ulrich said. “But the zoning is so outdated and so strict, that the only thing you’re allowed to open along that corridor is a bar, a chop shop or a laundromat.”
He pointed out that this is an area where there are a lot of places to park and a subway right above that neighborhood, making it a good place for up-zoning.
Ulrich also said that there are residential communities that they want to see downzoned so that they can prevent developers, that aren’t from the area, from building multiple-story homes.
“It’s a strain on our resources,” Ulrich said. “Some of these houses are really an eyesore if you think about it. They don’t match anything that’s on the block, and it brings down the character and integrity of the community.”
According to ZoLa, an application on the DOP’s website that lists the zoning districts, Rockaway Boulevard and Liberty Avenue are both listed as C1-2, which is a commercial overlay within residence districts.
Like the Woodhaven-Richmond Hill rezoning that took almost 10 years to finish, Ulrich warned the residents at the meeting that it’s probably going to take a long time, he estimated about three to five years, before everything is all set and done, but he anticipates that the whole process will be streamlined because everyone involved in the rezoning agrees it’s something that needs to happen.
“We already know what we like and what we don’t like. We already know what we want to see and what we don’t want to see,” Ulrich said.
A DOP spokesperson said that they are meeting with community and elected officials about the rezoning, but that there is no specific proposal yet because the rezoning study has just started.
The process of rezoning goes through the city’s land use review process, and also includes public hearings and reviews by the Community Board, Borough President, City Planning Commission and the City Council.
The DOP spokesperson confirmed that there will be another meeting with elected and community officials in June, but that will not be a public hearing.
The spokesperson also said that there is currently no public hearing about the scheduled rezoning because there has been no proposal created yet.
By Luis Gronda
