The developer of a seven-story 125 unit apartment building at 56 Prospect St. in Yonkers is back before the city’s Planning Board seeking amended site plan approval for changes that were made during construction without prior city approvals. The applicant 56 Prospect Holdings LLC had received an initial site plan approval for the building in 2017. The project did not proceed at that time as had been planned. In 2020, a new site plan approval was received.
Attorney Steven Accinelli of the Yonkers-based law firm Veneruso, Curto, Schwartz & Curto LLP told the Planning Board, “During the construction phase a number of issues were encountered by the developer and builder that resulted in changes to the exterior and the facade elements of the building. The building is essentially complete. It’s already constructed. The applicant is working with the Building Department towards obtaining a Temporary Certificate of Occupancy.”
Accinelli said that there had been a number of meetings with city officials regarding the circumstances surrounding the construction that led to elements not conforming to the approved site plans. He said that some changes are being proposed that would help mitigate some of the concerns about what was done.
The building offers a mix of studio, one and two bedroom apartments, a ground level entrance lobby, mail room, laundry facilities and indoor and underground parking for 133 cars. The building has two separate entrances, one on Prospect Street and a second on Buena Vista Avenue. There is a private internal landscaped courtyard located on the first floor residential level for residents. This courtyard is equipped with benches, picnic tables and landscaping. Security for the area will be provided by a decorative fence around the perimeter.
Accinelli outlined changes that were made as including changes to the color of the upper portion of the building and windows, the geometry of the parking structure grills and different material used for the courtyard instead of the pavers originally specified in the plans.
The Planning Board Chair Pauline Galvin reminded the applicant that every Planning Board Approval Resolution says that any modifications to the approved site plan shall be submitted to the Planning Board for a site plan review. The board is expected to continue reviewing the as-built condition and proposed mitigation measures during the process leading to a vote on whether to approve the amended site plan.
