Hannah Sennesh Shalt Not Build on Courtyard
On Friday, Hannah Senesh, a 152-seat private Jewish day school in Carroll Gardens, announced it was officially dropping its plans to try to circumvent a 160-year-old zoning law in an effort to erect a two-story building on an empty lot at the corner of Smith Street and First Place. News that the school had hired…
On Friday, Hannah Senesh, a 152-seat private Jewish day school in Carroll Gardens, announced it was officially dropping its plans to try to circumvent a 160-year-old zoning law in an effort to erect a two-story building on an empty lot at the corner of Smith Street and First Place. News that the school had hired a lobbyist in December to gain an exemption to the city law that treats all front yards on the “Place” blocks of Carroll Gardens as public space resulted in a huge backlash from area residents and lots of bad publicity for the school and outgoing City Council Member Bill de Blasio, who had sponsored the change. We were most afraid that once law changed for [Hannah Senesh] other people would get the same idea and it would be changed again, and the signature courtyards would vanish, corner by corner, Triada Samaras, a member of the group Carroll Gardens Coalition for Respectful Development, told The Brooklyn Paper. Since then State Senator Daniel Squadron, State Assemblywoman Joan Millman, and Councilman Brad Lander have all come out against amending the law. “Their plan would have set a dangerous precedent,” said Millman in a statement on Friday. “The courtyards are an integral part of Carroll Garden’s charm and character and must be protected.”
School Comes to Its Seneshes [Brooklyn Paper] GMAP
Hannah Sennesh Backs Off Plans to Expand [PMFA]
Photo from Pardon Me For Asking
as much as I don’t like PMFA (on many issues, I certainly don’t know her personally),
I find it very unfair to tag her as xenophobic and impy she as anti-semitic because she was born in Germany. That is what is xenophobic and bigoted.
bkre:
You strike me as having an agenda but playing the do gooder to make yourself feel better about yourself (don’t feel bad, lots of people delude themselves that way). If you have kids I wonder if they go to private school or to public school. Or that school! Or if you just have a giant persecution complex.
“We should all do what we can to make sure that schools have all the resources they need, whether they are public or private.”
Now, who in the world is going to do all they can to make sure that public schools have all the resources they need? Are you? What have you done recently to do that? That answer doesn’t need to be asked of the private schools, who have advocates like you and get all the resources they need from the people who can afford to send their kids there.
You give a self-serving answer that suits yourself, disguised as a gushing liberal viewpoint. You can’t have it both ways, so why don’t you just say: “Who cares about the public schools! The people who send their kids there can’t even afford to hire lobbyists to get more land or resources, so let them figure it out themselves!” At least be honest with yourself.
And by the way, who profits? Let the school list the staff salaries and let’s see.
There’s a couple of misconceptions taking place here. The “empty lot” is a fenced, locked parking area. No one except for school members can use it, so yes, they should do a better job of keeping it clean.
What is really disturbing however is according to the article on the link that the Oliver House developer put a caveat into the sale that if the lot gets re-zoned, he gets half of the FAR. Coincidently, Oliver House is finally being erected and is at the stage where additional height could easily be added. Maybe I’m being paranoid, but I have to think that if this zone change goes through, we will very quickly see amended plans for Oliver House which already got away with a dubious zoning ruling. The fact that this rider was even put in indicates that both parties had ideas of applying for a zone variance from the start. On some level I don’t blame the developers, or the school, it’s their job. I do however blame the elected officials who let it happen and the fact that the school hired a lobbyist highlights how the systems is repeatedly compromised by individuals with power and access.
can the city not own an ‘easement’? perhaps I’ve got my terminology wrong, but the fact remains – it’s city property, actually considered part of the street. That is how the zoning resolution was exploited that allowed the CG streets to be considered ‘wide streets’
vanessa –
if the city has an easement, that means the underlying property is owned by someone other than the city. if the city owned it, it would not need an easement.
with all due respect to what has been stated above, the space in question is not a vacant lot, and it is not a setback. It isn’t even a part of Hannah Senesh’s property! it is a city-owned easement, as are all of the deep front yards in Carroll Gardens. The lotline on these houses actually begins at the front face of the building
The ’empty lot’ which is really the part the rest of the lot with no bldg on it just like part of my lot has no bldg on it and I can’t build on it. But it is serving (rudely) as a parking lot (which of course I could not do with mine) for the school.
You don’t live in the area and don’t care about the open line down the length of these blocks which is one of the reason made historic district. And the community does not want to grant an exception for this institution.
I am not part of the anti-development contingent of the neighborhood but I completely understand wanting to keep the lot line for the block. I see reason why this school should be given an exception. This is not case where developer is entitled by right and people protest…this is where don’t have a right and they want to be above it.
Epiphany – you strike me as an extremely distasteful and angry person. Besides that, you should recognize that there is a difference between a “business” and non-profit educational facility. Please, I mean really. Comlaining about how entities “profit”. You know who “profits” the kids who get a little more space.
Also, As I understand it, this piece of land is currently owned by the City, not the school, so don’t blame the school for it being trash strewn.
There is difference between a private homeowner adding space to their living room and school expanding its facilities. We should all do what we can to make sure that schools have all the resources they need, whether they are public or private. If this were a catholic school I’d feel the same way on this issue. I get the sense that PMFA and Epiphany can’t say the same.
And yes, the satmar hassidim in williamsburg are very xenophobic and I condemn that as well. This is not a satmar institution. Or do all those jews look the same to you?
It’s not a vacant LOT!!!!!
It’s a SETBACK…a controlling zoning regulation, the same as FAR or height or parking.
This “lot” is no different than a garden in the middle of a place block, and sets a precedent for all of Carroll Gardens’ gardens.