Turning a 1-Family Dwelling into a Commercial Property in Gowanus

Thanks, for some reason I thought you couldn’t tear down an existing residence unless it met some sort of criteria, such as being vacant for more than x number of years. A neighbor once mentioned something along those lines.

bradeichmann

in About Brooklyn 10 years ago

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bradeichmann | 10 years ago

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I live on a mixed zoned street in Gowanus. On one side there are homes and on the other a mix of homes and commercial buildings. There is a house for sale that is listed on the department of buildings as a A9-1 Family Dwelling, but the home owner recently put up a sign that is advertising it as being in a M2-1 Zone (which we are in) and that it has the potential to become a commercial space. It was my understanding that you can’t just make this switch from residential to commercial, but I don’t know the full law here given our specific zone. Anyone out there have any expertise in this area? Thanks Gowanus Res

jcarch | 10 years ago

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If your neighbor’s property is in the M2-1 zone, then the building can be converted an allowable commercial or manufacturing use. Most likely the residential building existed before the zoning went into effect. So it was grandfathered in even though residential use is not allowed in a manufacturing zone. You can go to the city’s [digital tax map](http://gis.nyc.gov/taxmap/map.htm), select ‘address’ for the search type on the upper left, and enter the neighbor’s address. Then click on the ‘show more information’ tab on the upper left, and then click on ‘building and property information’ below that. The information displayed will include what zone the property is in. jcarch ???????? [James Cleary Architecture](http://www.jcarchitecture.com)