The Lower Density Growth Management Areas are certain zoning districts within Staten island and Part of The Bronx where additional zoning codes exist to limit development and prevent an increase to the density of the neighborhoods. This is meant to limit what was considered “over development” by NYC City Planning.
In NYC the Lower Density Growth Management Areas are Staten Island and Community District 10 in The Bronx. The regulations apply to R1, R2, R3, R4A, R4-1 and C3A zoning districts. It also applies to lots with buildings on them accessed by private roads within R1, R2, R3, R4, R5, and C3A Zoning. In Staten Island they will also include C1, C2, and C4 Zoning Districts. In Community District 10 in The Bronx it also includes R6, R7, C1 and C2 for parking regulations.
What is the Point of Lower Density Growth Management Areas
The Department of City determined that these areas where building overbuilt so they added additional zoning restrictions for these areas. The primary focus of the additional zoning restrictions was to:
- Limit the Increase in Density. density mean how many people in a given area. More people is more dense.
- Add Parking
- Increase the open space on properties
- Increase Yard Size
Lower Density Growth Management Areas
As an architect I study Building and Zoning Codes closely, but these are complicated and quite involved issues. In this article we reviewed some of the basic concepts with regards to the NYC Lower Density Growth Management Areas. This post does not assume to cover every possible issue or condition, but provide a general overview of the topic.
Thank you for reading our blog post on Lower Density Growth Management Areas.
I hope this was helpful. If you would like to speak with an architect, you can contact us at Fontan Architecture directly.
This post was written by Jorge Fontan AIA a Registered Architect and owner of New York City architecture firm Fontan Architecture. Jorge Fontan has earned 3 degrees in the study of architecture including two degrees from the City University of New York and a Masters Degree in Advanced Architectural Design from Columbia University. Jorge has a background in construction and has been practicing architecture for 20 years where he has designed renovations and new developments of various building types.
