Proposed height of condo towers at HALB site reduced

Amid an outcry from residents, developers looking to build two luxury condominium towers along the boardwalk on the Hebrew Academy of Long Beach property have scaled back the proposed height of the buildings.

Kurt Wittek, of Wittek Development, spoke at the West End Neighbors Civic Association meeting last Wednesday, nearly three weeks after his company’s plan for twin 15-story towers connected by eight townhouses — totaling 166 units — was shot down by angry attendees of a Westholme Civic Association gathering. Though presenting a new proposal that scales back the project at 530 W. Broadway to 12-story towers with 130 units, residents pointed out that the buildings would still far exceed the size of existing structures in the area, and cited the same concerns of increased traffic, lack of parking and overcrowding in Long Beach.

“There are people concerned that Long Beach is going to start looking like the Rockaways and there are people that don’t want that to happen,” West End Neighbors president John Bendo told the Herald, noting a divide between opponents of the project who are lifelong Long Beach residents and “transplants” who he described as more open-minded to change.

HALB — a three-story school — which is relocating to Woodmere in the Fall, is in the midst of selling the property to the developers, as Wittek said at the Westholme meeting last month that his company had laid out a significant down payment to acquire the land.

Though cutting the proposed structures by three stories due to residents’ reaction at the first meeting, the space is only zoned for four stories, as builders would still need a variance from the city’s Zoning Board of Appeals to begin the project. Former State Assemblyman Jerry Kremer, a former Long Beach resident who is serving as counsel to Ruskin Moscou Faltischek P.C., the Uniondale-based law firm representing Wittek, said he expects them to go in front of the zoning board in late summer, and that he thinks the shorter proposal has helped some residents to become more accepting of the possible development.

“As you go along the boardwalk, there hasn’t been a building built in Long Beach in the last 50 years that doesn’t exceed the height limits that are in the code,” Kremer said. “People are recognizing the fact that a tall building is a fact of life, I think they just want to know about parking and all those other issues, which they have every right to ask.”

Wittek told the meeting’s attendees that the parking garage would remain 292 spaces, despite the decreased number or units. He also reiterated his plan for public amenities on the boardwalk, including seating areas, surfboard storage and a café, which a majority of residents voiced their opposition to. According to Bendo, Wittek backed down and said that if they didn’t want such features, he could build a brick wall there instead and save millions of dollars.

“There were some people in the room that were going to be against anything that was presented,” Bendo said, who added the majority at the meeting disapproved of the revised 12-story towers. “There were others there that were actually trying to find out what this was about and then make a judgment.”

As iStar Financial continues to seek tax abatements for similar-looking apartment towers on the Superblock, Bendo said he urged residents not to take out their “iStar anger” on the HALB developers, as the projects are completely different.

Wittek has stressed the distinction as well, and told residents they are not requesting a payment in lieu of taxes, or PILOT, and plan to pay about $3 million in property taxes per year. He instead proposed to pay full taxes on each unit as it sells, with a time limit on however long that is, rather than pay full taxes on the property at its completion. Many residents at the meeting thought that idea was reasonable, according to Bendo.

“The fact that the reaction is mixed is good, because we’re not getting the same type of flack as the iStar proposal is,” Kremer said. “It’s comforting to know that there are two sides to the issue as opposed to everybody being against.”

Bendo said some residents who complain about rising taxes in Long Beach are also opposed to development in the city, which would increase the tax space, and that such people cannot have it both ways. The civic association president believes in some type of development for the space, and said that he thinks a seven-story proposal — the size of the building currently next to HALB — would be “more palatable” to residents. He added that residents against the project should focus more on sending a message to the city, not to Wittek and his company.

“Coming here and yelling at the developer is a little bit pointless because the developers are business people, they’re looking to make money,” Bendo said. “Are they greedy? Maybe, but if the city is letting them do these things it’s really the city you should be mad at…because the developers are just trying to get away with anything they can.”