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Brooklyn, NY - Park Slope Mikvah, Bikur Cholim Room Faces Revocation Of Its Permit |
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The news comes after some neighbors of the building, on 15th Street between Sixth and Seventh avenues, told the city they feared it would generate traffic and parking congestion.
“This is a residential street and we already have a lot of problems with parking, and we have constant buses and delivery trucks,” said Kathryn Roake, a 20-year-resident of 15th Street, who organized a community meeting last Wednesday night.
The three-story structure, to be built by Chabad of Brownstone Brooklyn, is slated to have separate mikvah facilities for men and women on the first floor and in the basement — plus a conference room and two apartments that would be rented for short periods to observant Jews visiting the neighborhood.
The developer has said that the apartments were designed for overnight stays by people visiting relatives at nearby New York Methodist Hospital.
Although the plans approved earlier included the conference room and apartments, those facilities are now under review, said Buildings spokeswoman Carly Sullivan.
The department says the design violates the zoning and must be addressed within 15 days, or the permit would be revoked.
“We’ve raised objections to the use of the second and third floor,” she said. “The use … was not considered a ‘not-for-profit institution with sleeping accommodations,’ ” which would normally be permitted in a residential zone for religious institutions.
Sullivan declined to provide further details of the city’s objections.
Rabbi Shimon Hecht, who is both the head of Chabad of Brownstone Brooklyn and spiritual leader of Congregation B’nai Jacob on Ninth Street, declined to comment.
Mikvahs in other neighborhoods are not as controversial. In Brooklyn Heights, neighbors rarely — if ever — complain about traffic, said Community Board 2 District Manager Rob Parris.
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Read Comments (4) — Post Yours »
1
Oct 02, 2008 at 11:35 AM shmiel glassman Says:
its amazing : that despite all the good will, "embracing" & good PR chabad invests in flies out the window. these few nasty & selfish neighbors the amt of people using the hospital apt. will be less than a regular family living there
& the mikva maybe a dozen quiet people at nt. a real shame for a few individuals to paint a wonderful community this way
3
Oct 02, 2008 at 03:50 PM Conservative One Says:
This is pure and simple Anti-Semitism. Shame on those residents.
4
Oct 02, 2008 at 03:50 PM Conservative One Says:
This is pure and simple Anti-Semitism. Shame on those residents.
5
Oct 02, 2008 at 04:26 PM Anonymous Says:
y is this worse than what the boropark people dont want in their backyard ????
6
Oct 02, 2008 at 10:25 PM Anonymous Says:
# 5 how do u compare 2 apt and a mikva to 179 APT A HOTEL 225 SPACE PARKING GARAG. R U FOR REAL ??