Group Sues To Block Tallest Planned Tower On UWS

UPPER WEST SIDE, NY — An advocacy group and neighbors of Extell Development's planned Upper West Side tower filed a lawsuit in Manhattan Supreme Court to block the development.

The lawsuit, filed Thursday by the City Club of New York, claims that plans for Extell's 50 W. 66th Street violate the city's zoning regulations in two ways. The first violation is due to the building's use of large mechanical voids and the second violation is due to developer ignoring zoning rules of the Special Lincoln Square District, according to the lawsuit.

"Extell’s building is hundreds of feet taller than allowed in the Special Lincoln Square District, driven by greed and the desire to build ever-higher apartments with commanding views and higher prices. The zoning violations are blatant," the lawsuit reads.

The City Club alleges that Extell Development is ignoring two zoning rules — the "bulk packing" and "tower coverage rules" — that apply to buildings in the Special Lincoln Square District in order to limit the height of towers. One side of Extell's building site, on West 65th Street, is located inside of the district and the other, on West 66th Street, is located outside the district.

Instead of applying the standards of the Special Lincoln Square District to 50 W. 66th St., Extell's building adheres to the "tower on a base" zoning regulation. Tower on a base buildings are allowed to rise to great heights as long as the majority of the building's density is located below 150-feet-tall (the base).

"Extell attempts to evade the Bulk Packing Rule by taking advantage of the fact that its zoning lot straddles two zoning districts: one in which tower-on-a-base buildings are allowed and one in which they are not. Extell properly calculates both total allowable floor area and tower coverage based on the portion of its lot where towers are allowed," the lawsuit reads.

The group's other argument against the tower has to do with its large mechanical void spaces. The city Department of Buildings approved revised building plans submitted by Extell this month that cut 16 feet of void space from the building, and split the large mechanical floor into three separate floors on the 17th, 18th and 19th stories of the building.

Despite the city signing off on the new plans, the lawsuit claims that the void spaces are still much larger than required for mechanical equipment.

"Their real purpose is to raise the height, and the prices, of the apartments above them," the lawsuit claims

The City Planning Commission voted this month to approve a regulation that would count mechanical spaces against a building's floor area when they are larger than 30 feet or if two mechanical spaces are located within 75 feet. It appears as though projects like 50 West 66th Street, which received city permits before the rule change, will not be affected.

Extell development first revealed plans for 50 W. 66th St., located between Columbus Avenue and Central Park West in 2017. Since plans were released, the tower has provoked backlash from local preservation groups and elected officials. The West 66th Street building will rise a planned 775-feet-tall.

In addition to the City Club of New York, several neighbors of 50 W. 66th Street are listed as plaintiffs in the lawsuit. A building at 10 W. 66th Street, located adjacent to the building site, is listed as a plaintiff as are five private citizens who live within view of the planned development.

Check out the full lawsuit below: