Land Use and Environmental Review
We have a leading practice in zoning, planning and land use with emphasis on large institutional projects. Our lawyers have extensive experience with the intricacies of federal, state and city land use, historic preservation and landmarks review, and environmental quality review (environmental impact statements). Our related experience includes construction, renovation, rehabilitation, historic preservation, master planning, air rights transactions and defense against legal challenges to client land use/development projects.
Representative Transactions
Represented Lower Manhattan Development Corporation on land use, design and construction of the World Trade Center area, including environmental and historic preservation review.
American Museum of Natural History – Rose Center for Earth and Space and North Side Project – developed public review strategy, advised as to substantive and procedural land use, landmarks and environmental matters.
New York Public Library – advised as to zoning and uniform land use review matters; environmental and landmarks reviews and related community concerns.
Mount Sinai Center for Science and Medicine – advised in development of a master plan and possible large-scale community facility zoning plan for Upper East Side Manhattan campus (including zoning, environmental and land use review analysis) and development of a 700,000 square foot medical research building and underground tunnel connecting the new medical school facility.
Represented Museum and Planetarium Authority, a state agency, in the successful defense of multiple lawsuits alleging Clean Air Act, State Environmental Quality Review Act and Uniform Land Use Review Procedure violations.
Represented Unilever throughout public and governmental review of its Lever House Renovation project.
Represented NYU Downtown Hospital as to land use aspects in planning for the sale of a parking lot site to a private developer for rezoning and redevelopment.
Advised a major US corporation on the acquisition of development rights, compliance with land use and zoning requirements, construction permits and licenses, and negotiated a land lease agreement in connection with construction of a manufacturing facility in the Moscow region of Russia.
Advised BP on the sale and remediation of 14 separate sites across the UK with historic contamination including the sale of a 460 acre petrochemicals site subject to an existing power station with rights for another to be constructed in 2011.
Represented Con Edison in the sale of four New York City blocks, described by The New York Times as “the largest tract of undeveloped land remaining in Manhattan”, along the East River just south of the United Nations. We advised on all aspects of this highly structured transaction and developed a cutting-edge environmental insurance risk transfer solution, which allows an owner to benefit from the increased value of a contaminated property.