Political arena

Fight with Hebrew Home looms

Posted

As Riverdale activists tried to fight Mayor Bill de Blasio’s sweeping zoning changes last year, they were particularly incensed by a provision that allowed exemptions for a certain kind of senior housing to be built in areas zoned R1, the designation for single-family homes. Many came to feel that the mayor’s Department of City Planning had crafted a category called continuing care retirement communities, or CCRCs, at the behest of the Hebrew Home at Riverdale, which has long sought to build hundreds of new units on a R1 lot — all, activists alleged, an effort to circumvent local opposition to the construction.

As the Hebrew Home girds for a fight to build those units (see story), the organization’s CEO insists that the creation of the CCRC category had nothing to do with any lobbying on his part.

“We did not do any lobbying,” Dan Reingold said in a recent interview at the Hebrew Home. “The concept of a CCRC was of interest to New York City long before Mayor de Blasio was elected… I take umbrage at the idea that it was lobbying [that led the CCRC provision to be passed].”

City records show that the Hebrew Home spent $36,217 for a firm called Connelly McLaughlin & Woloz to do lobbying from 2013 to 2015, although the database did not specify the purpose of the activity. Mr. Reingold said he was not aware what those payments were for. Gary Tarnoff, a lawyer from that firm who was present at the interview, said the Hebrew Home had to file legal fees to his organization as lobbying since members of his firm were registered as lobbyists with the city.

“To us, it’s legal fees. There is lobbying and there is lobbying,” said Mr. Reingold. “We were not, you know, giving money for political donations in exchange for getting zoning changes, ever.”

Still, plans to build three buildings with more than 400 units of senior housing will be a tough sell to the Hebrew Home’s neighbors. They say the buildings will not just hurt views of the nearby Hudson River, but also increase congestion and set a precedent for more construction in other parts of Riverdale that are zoned R1.

Martin Zelnik, a leader of the grassroots Riverdale Community Coalition that has opposed the Hebrew Home’s plans, was skeptical of Mr. Reingold’s claim that the nursing home didn’t do any lobbying to get CCRCs included in the mayor’s Zoning for Quality and Affordability (ZQA) proposal, which passed in March.

“Clearly somebody got to the mayor’s office or the City Planning Commission and said, isn’t this a great idea to help out the Hebrew Home?” said Mr. Zelnik.

He added that members of his coalition were scheduled to meet on Wednesday, after The Press went to print, to discuss their response to the Hebrew Home’s recently revised plans. State departments of health and financial services must approve them before the Hebrew Home can file for a city permit to build the CCRC. The plans then face review by Community Board 8, the Bronx borough president’s office and, lastly, the City Council.

“I think this is a big problem for Riverdale,” said Mr. Zelnik. “If they get this approved in the way it’s designed… this is going to be the domino effect for the rest of Riverdale.

“Down the road, you may not see private homes anymore,” he added. “It’s just opening up Pandora’s box.”

Hebrew Home, ZQA, Political arena, Shant Shahrigian

Comments