Design improvements, more open space, friendlier pedestrian environment, and reduced parking to bring more "human scale" to West Side project

Wednesday, February 25, 2009 (New York, NY) —Manhattan Borough President Scott M. Stringer announced today his recommendation in favor of a compromise development plan for Fordham's planned West Side expansion that will reduce the overall size of the project, including the towers planned for Columbus Avenue; improve public access to the campus; widen sidewalks and increase street-level activity; and reduce vehicular traffic by cutting planned parking spaces by more than 50 percent.

Borough President Stringer said, "Our great universities are part of what makes Manhattan special, and we need to support them in their efforts to meet the demands of the 21st century. But at the same time we must do everything we can to involve the local community and improve the quality of our neighborhoods. I want to thank Fordham for its willingness to work with us and the community to improve its design. The compromise we recommend will help Fordham meet its goal of becoming an even greater center of learning while protecting the best aspects of its neighborhood."

Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president of Fordham, said, "We are delighted with Borough President Scott Stringer's support in crafting this suggested compromise. We believe that the resulting plan is a good one that serves both our neighbors and the University. In addition to thanking Borough President Stringer for his effort, we are grateful for the hard work of his staff Anthony Borelli, Brian Cook and Sari Bernstein. We also want to acknowledge the effort and help of the leaders of community board 7 including Helen Rosenthal, Richard Asche, and Ethel Sheffer."

City Council Member Gale A. Brewer said, "I would like to congratulate Borough President Stringer and Fordham University on all that has been accomplished in reaching a compromise for this new expansion plan. There is still much more that needs to be done and I look forward to working with all parties and continuing this dialogue."

Congress Representative Jerrold Nadler, said, "I want to commend Borough President Stringer and Fordham University for their successful work in making serious changes to a plan that will now fundamentally alter Fordham's Lincoln Center campus and make it more harmonious with the community, particularly along Columbus Avenue.  I am also pleased that this agreement means that Fordham will be making new, substantial contributions to the community -- from security cameras at Amsterdam houses to working with local schools.  I do, however, hope and expect that additional modifications will be made to the plan regarding Amsterdam Avenue, and to address other community concerns, before the City Planning Commission and City Council grant final approval."

Helen Rosenthal, Chair of Community Board 7, said, "CB7 would like to thank Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer for working with Fordham and the community to realize meaningful accomplishments on a number of important community priorities, including: height, density, parking garages, open space and the staircase.  The Borough President and his staff worked tirelessly to achieve significant concessions in all of these areas. We look forward to continuing our work with Fordham, the Department of City Planning and our City Councilwoman, Gale Brewer, as the land use process moves forward."

Fordham currently has three buildings on its Manhattan campus between Amsterdam and Columbus Avenues and 60th and 62nd Streets near Lincoln Center.  The expansion plan envisions a total of 10 buildings on the campus, including libraries, classroom space and dormitories, along with market-rate housing.

Fordham also has a major campus in the Bronx.

Under the rules of the city's Uniform land Use Review Procedure (ULURP), major projects requiring public approvals must be reviewed by local community boards and then by the office of the Borough President. Borough President Stringer's office in the last year brokered a compromise rezoning/expansion plan for Columbia University north of 125th Street in West Harlem and played an important mediating role between New York University and its Greenwich Village neighbors on its expansion plans.

The significant changes to the Fordham proposal reached as part of the Borough President's negotiation include:

• Significant reduction in the overall size of the 3-million square foot-project by 206,000 square feet:
• 153,000 square feet by reducing or eliminating floor plates, and redistributing floor area to below grade cellar space;
• 53,000 equivalent square feet by reducing floor to floor heights
• New design guidelines to prevent slab-like towers on Columbus Avenue;
• Lowered street walls of the Columbus Avenue buildings by 70-85 feet (7 or 8 stories) to give the buildings a more human scale;
• Tightened zoning envelopes (the outer most parameters for new building designs) to ensure the buildings ultimately constructed conform closely to reduced envelopes;
• Widened sidewalks on Columbus Avenue to bring more open space to the street and accommodate additional pedestrians;
• Expanded entryways to staircases leading to the interior publicly accessible open space at the center of the campus plan;
• Consultation process to provide community input on the design of buildings not yet designed as they enter the architectural design process;
• Three-quarters of the ground floor street walls of Columbus Avenue buildings will be transparent (windows) and include active uses. At least half of the street walls of academic buildings on 62nd Street will be treated the same way;
• Total parking spaces have been reduced by 56%;
• Design review of the landscaped stairways to interior open space will follow City Planning certification process similar to that for privately-owned public plazas, with referral to the community board for input; this interior space will be publicly accessible with appropriate signage installed at entry points;
• Access from the Alfred residential building to West 62nd Street will be maintained through a minimum 10-foot wide walkway;
• Fordham will expand its academically oriented, after school programs in School District 3; and
• During construction, the highest standards of pollution and noise control measures will be employed.