Zoning, Land Use, and Municipal Law
NY Supreme Court Dismisses ULURP/SEQR Challenge to American Museum of Natural History’s Gilder Center Project
In a decision dated December 10, 2018, Hon. Lynn Kotler of the New York Supreme Court, New York County, dismissed in its entirety litigation challenging the legality of the American Museum of Natural History’s Richard Gilder Center for Science, Education, and Innovation for failure to comply with New York City’s Uniform Land Use Review Procedure…
New York Supreme Court Dismisses Challenge to CEQR Technical Manual and Bedford Union Armory Redevelopment
In a decision dated July 11, 2018, Hon. Carmen Victoria St. George of the New York Supreme Court, New York County, dismissed in its entirety litigation challenging the legality of the City Environmental Quality Review (“CEQR”) Technical Manual and the environmental review of the Bedford Union Armory Redevelopment project (the “Project”).[1] The CEQR Technical Manual,…
DEC Releases Flood Risk Management Guidance Affecting the Flood Hazard Area Applied to State Permit Applications
On June 20, 2018, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (“DEC”) released two draft flood risk management guidance documents intended to advise New York state agencies on how to incorporate the consideration of future climate risks, including risks of sea-level rise, storm surge, and flooding, into existing regulatory processes. The non-binding guidance is…
New York City Proposes First Stormwater Management Program Regulating Construction Runoff
For the first time, the City of New York has proposed a Stormwater Management Program (SWMP) to describe how the City will satisfy the requirements of its SPDES Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) Permit. This means that, as soon as this fall, certain large construction projects in the City will need City Department of…
Federal Agencies Commit to Streamlining Environmental Reviews for Major Infrastructure Projects
On April 9, 2018, the heads of 12 federal agencies signed a memorandum of understanding (“MOU”) that aims to streamline and shorten federal environmental and permitting reviews for major infrastructure projects. The MOU implements President Trump’s One Federal Decision (“OFD”) policy established in Executive Order 13807 (“EO 13807”), signed on August 15, 2017 and described…
Court Dismisses Article 78 Proceeding Against the Village of Tuckahoe
The New York State Supreme Court (Westchester County) has dismissed an Article 78 proceeding that challenged the Village of Tuckahoe Planning Board’s State Environmental Quality Review Act (“SEQRA”) determination and Site Plan Approval, as well as the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s (“NYSDEC’s”) selected New York State Brownfield Cleanup Program (“BCP”) remedy for…