Chelsea Market Upzoning Passes City Planning Commission, Moves to City Council

The City Planning Commission voted today to approve an amended proposition by Jamestown Properties to upzone Chelsea Market. This plan allows for new structures to be built atop the 9th and 10th Ave ends of the complex, a modification zoning regulations currently prohibit, according to a statement by the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation (GVSHP). The next step is for City Council to vote on the decision-the Council has 50 days to hold hearings. The Council's approval would be the final step in ratifying the plan. In 2007 the GVSHP got Chelsea Market listed on the State and National Registers of Historic Places. GVSHP claims the renovations would ruin this important landmark-the former NABISCO headquarters where the Oreo cookie was founded. GVSHP Executive Director Andrew Berman said the expansion would introduce more traffic and congestion to an area already "bursting at the seams." GVSHP is urging City residents to contact Speaker Christine Quinn and express their disapproval for the plan, which will be voted on by the Council in coming months. -Alissa Fleck