DOB & LPC
I’m renovating a house that is currently calendared for landmark designation. My plans were approved prior to calendaring. Since we are converting the home to a three family, the only way my plans could be approved by DOB was if a handicapped ramp and railing were installed on the garden level and a handicapped accessible…
I’m renovating a house that is currently calendared for landmark designation. My plans were approved prior to calendaring. Since we are converting the home to a three family, the only way my plans could be approved by DOB was if a handicapped ramp and railing were installed on the garden level and a handicapped accessible full bathroom in the garden level as well, which I was very unhappy about. Since we are nowhere finished with the renovations, now that the house is calendared to be landmarked, do we have any recourse. Can the LPC help us get a waiver?
We are also upgrading the wiring and converting from oil to gas, so I guess this will also apply with the electrical and gas meters being placed outside my home. Since the house is calendared and not designated, I don’t know if the previous post below would apply.
http://tinyurl.com/ywyoly
Thanks.
awww, come on. there are some really good reasons why laws for handicapped access are in place…one of many being that there is a severe dearth of wheelchair accessible housing in this city (and in many urban areas). are you actually looking for a waiver? how about building it in a way that isn’t an eyesore.
reading your other posts, i bet you like being a good/considerate neighbor…hope you’ll consider a new view on this item.
I would say there is definitely hope that the DOB will grant you a waiver if the Reconsideration request is worded and presented properly to the DOB Commissioner.
Regarding your second question…about why the LPC wouldn’t want to be involved…well, the LPC is a city agency unto itself as is the DOB. They govern themselves with their own reference materials and tend not to involve themselves with each other to avoid governmental redundancies. I’m sure you can imagine what a domino effect this could have if the LPC started granting waivers to override Building Code issues and vice versa. It’s chaos enough right now with each agency just trying to abide by its own complex and subjective sets of laws, codes, local laws, updates, amendments, etc…It may not make sense to you thinking about it logically, but no one ever said that city administration offices are logic-based 🙂
Good luck.
Mila Goldman Moore
MGM Architectural Consulting
mila@mgmarch.com
So there is hope that DOB will give us a waiver? Why wouldn’t LPC want any involvement, especially if this ramp is going to change the exterior of a home they’re trying to preserve?
Hi, I’m an expediter and have been working with the DOB and LPC for the past 8 years. I would seriously doubt that the LPC would assist you in getting a waiver for your referenced issues. Even though they might want to, the DOB and LPC are separate agencies and do not regularly “help” each other out nor do they regularly intervene in each others business. The handicap ramp seems excessive, but the bathroom is a standard procedural issue. I don’t know whether your architect is the one meeting with the DOB for approvals or whether you have an expediter or if you are meeting with the DOB yourself, but if it were me, I would at least attempt to get a Reconsideration (waiver) for the ramp. The bathroom may also be negotiable depending on the specifics of the interior. If you have a single family brownstone and at least 1 other bathroom (must have a sink, wc and tub) on another floor is accessible, that should be sufficient. You’ll have to get a supervisor (either the Chief Engineer or Commissioner) to grant this to you under Reconsideration, but I’ve done this before. If there are multiple apartments in the brownstone, and the bathroom you reference is the only bathroom in the garden level apartment, it must be accessible. If there are 2 or more bathrooms in that apartment, only 1 of them must be accessible. I hope this helps…
Yes CHP, I’m the OP. I couldn’t agree with you more. If there is no one in my family that is disabled, thank God, why should I have to change the beautiful original facade of a 107 year old house. That is absurd. I will definitely be @ the 2/21 meeting. Thanks.
If this is faithful, please bring this question to the next CHNA meeting on Feb 21, 7 PM at St. Gregory’s. We are having a couple of speakers who may be able to help, also one of our board members is an expert on these things.
I have never heard of someone having to provide these things in a brownstone reno, unless needed for a family member or existing tenant. That would mean every reno in Brownstone Bklyn would have to be handicapped accessible, which is certainly not needed, and means substantially changing the nature of the homes. Seems like LPC would not be in favor of that.
Very interesting question. I have no idea of an answer, but why not phone LPC?