Update: CB10 backs Home Depot

By Matthew Lysiak
The Brooklyn Paper

A developer’s plan to build a new Home Depot and 214 units of housing along a vacant Bay Ridge railyard got a big thumbs up from Community Board 10 late Wednesday night, despite weeks of controversy over the proposal.

The board vote was 30–11.

The vote came only a week after CB10’s Zoning and Land-Use Committee not only rejected developer Andrew Kohen’s request for a zoning change on the commercial land in the railyard at 62nd Street and Eighth Avenue, but also made him stand for two hours while members berated him.

The developer needs the rezoning so he can build the profitable residential units in the complex, which would consist of an 11-story building with 216 apartments, office space, and the 100,000-square-foot Home Depot (see rendering above).

On Wednesday night, CB10 members again complained about the project’s size, but the majority of members supported the project.

Board member Steve Harrison, an outspoken critic of Kohen’s, even flipped his vote, in part due to a strong call to action by Councilman Vince Gentile (D–Bay Ridge).

“This project will bolster the area, spruce up the surroundings and provide significant employment and housing,” Gentile said.

Kohen, who sent several minutes before the meeting praying quietly near the entrance, was gratified by the news.

“Unless people stop having babies and looking for jobs, then we need development,” said Kohen.