Two Developers Take Proposals to Zoning Board

This story was corrected and updated at 7:50 a.m. on 10.27.12.

Two developers brought their individual proposals to build multiple-story apartments to the Long Beach Zoning Board of Appeals on Thursday, it what became a nearly five-hour meeting.

First, Joseph and Steven Iorio, Long Beach-based developers with several properties in the city, propose to build a five-story, 27-unit rental garden apartment on their vacant lot at 158 New York Ave., across the street from the Catholic Regional School.  

The second case involved Jan Burman and Steven Krieger of Engel Burman Group, Garden City-based developers who own the Aqua condominiums in the East End, who propose a mixed-use, 10-unit apartment building with a boardwalk-level restaurant at 50 W. Broadway, a vacant lot immediately east of the Allegria Hotel.

Last year the Iorios re-purchased their vacant lot for $1.1 million, and look to build a 60-foot tall apartment building with a total of 43 parking spaces, which they tout as the first “green”-certified building in the area. Rentals will range between $1,100 and $2,700, they said.

At Thursday’s meeting, the brothers faced only residents who oppose their development, most of them from California Avenue, mainly because they believe it would exacerbate existing parking problems, cast shadows on neighboring homes and pose as traffic safety hazard, with its proposed parking lot's exists and entrances on New York Avenue near the school.  

“You need to understand it’s going to have a crushing effect,” James Lynch, a Walks resident, told the zoning board about the project. “The West End is about to explode.”

Long Beach attorney Denis Kelly, who spoke on behalf of West End residents that neighbor the property, questioned the legality of the project, including its change of use from commercial to residential.

During the presentation, Dennis Berkowsky, the Iorios’ attorney, said that the development would benefit everyone in Long Beach, by creating affordable housing and generating tax revenue for the city. Joseph Iorio said the building would bring all utility wires underground, and that it was comparable in height the school’s gymnasium, which some residents disputed. His brother, Steven, noted that the top floor would be set back, out of view from immediate passers-by.

Some zoning board trustees, including Chairman Rocco Morelli, questioned whether the development was too large for the lot and “in character” with the surround neighborhood of many two-story homes, and contended that that parking spaces actually amount to 23, due in part to obstructions. Steven Iorio suggested he could reconstruct the building, at greater cost to their company, in order to eliminate columns to create more spaces in the ground-floor parking area.

Some board trustees suggested the developers consider scaling the project down to four to six individual homes. But Steven Iorio said that they need to borrow money from banks to build the apartments, and that they would likely not get a loan for home development, based on a projected rate of return.

“Financially unless we are able to go to the bank for 27 units here, we will not be able to get a building loan to do that project,” he said. “So scaling it down is not an option.”

Looking to Build Next to the Allegria

Meanwhile, Burman and Krieger, applying for a variance under the limited liability company BK @ Long Beach, purchased the 17,000-square-foot vacant property at 50 W. Broadway for $4.6 million. They plan to build a mixed-use building, at a height of 127 feet, comprised of 10 apartments, one on each floor with 2,700 square feet of living space, and a restaurant.

Each three-bedroom, three-baths unit, with a spacious terrace and panoramic beach view, would started at $2 million. The developers anticipate that all units would sell before the structure is built. 

Architect Angelo Corva said he designed the building to have 23 feet of unobstructed view between it and the Allegria to the west, and 84 feet between it and the White Sands apartment building to the east. The ground floor would have 25 parking spots.

Corva and attorney Albert Dagistino said the restaurant would seat 42 patrons and would be accessible only from the boardwalk, even for residents. They described it as a casual, hamburger-style restaurant and that would only sell liquor at tables, not at a bar.

Some zoning board trustees, as well as residents who oppose the project, expressed concern with the proposed 25 parking spaces, especially with the anticipated restaurant patrons and employees. Burman and Dagistino emphasized that they expect the restaurant would not be a "destination establishment," but rather one used mostly by beach- and boardwalk-goers and neighborhood residents.  

Mona Goodman, a former City Council member who lives across the street from the vacant property, spoke for about 20 fellow residents at the meeting who strongly opposed the project. They mainly believe it is too large and dense and would contribute to an already strangulating parking problem that was made worse after the Allegria Hotel opened more than two years ago.

“We’re choking on this block for parking,” she said. 

Goodman, who submitted a petition with 225 signatures opposing the project, also contended that the number of parking of spaces is only a third of what is required by law. But Dagistino insisted that the project was completely in compliance.

Unlike Iorios’ proposal, though, several people spoke in support of the project. Among them was Norm Brodsky, who said he was the original resident at the Aqua. He said he planned to buy an apartment at the proposed apartment building, in part because it was nearly impossible to find a comparable three-bedroom, three-baths unit in a beachside building on Long Island.

“I think this property will increase property values,” he said.

The zoning board is expected to vote on both proposals at the Nov. 29 meeting.