Bayside Hills Dreads The New Neighbor

Bayside Hills Civic Association President Michael Feiner says he has a lot of irate neighbors right now.

Over 30 of them filled a chartered bus in June to testify before the city’s special zoning board against the construction of a home at the corner of . This Tuesday, that project was given the go-ahead by the board.

Architect Paul Bonfilio was requesting special permission to build a home in Bayside Hills that neighbors say would be into a small lot, ruining the neighborhood's aesthetics, and taking away street parking. His plans have incurred the ire of a persistent crowd of through several , and in the press.

"Nobody has attempted to build a house here in over 80 years for a reason; there is simply not enough room to build one without infringing on the neighboring properties," wrote State Sen. Tony Avella, D-Bayside, earlier this year in a letter to the Board of Standards and Appeals.  "Approving an application like this sets a dangerous precedent for the entire neighborhood and the City," he added.

Neighbors told the BSA that the new home would depart from the unique architecture of Bayside Hills homes, which were all developed by builder .

"No one should be forced to give up any piece of their private property for someone else's pleasure," Joe Farruggio, a Bonfilio associate said in March. "; period, he added. " Faruggio said that case precedent has already been set, in any case.

To garner permission in the form of a "variance" from the BSA, Bonfilio had to prove that existing zoning created a "hardship," on the owner. Council Member Dan Halloran, R-Whitestone, testified that the owner of the home, Denis Forde, created his own hardship in buying the adjacent house, and subdividing the lot to build—while knowing that the standard zoning would not accommodate a second home.

Bonfilio was himself a member of the BSA 10 years ago, leaving some to wonder if that gave him an 'in' with current board members.

Feiner said he was struck that all six board members voted for the project. “Ask six intelligent people to make a decision, and usually there’s some disagreement,” he said.

Feiner said the group may hire a lawyer for an appeal, but believes his chances are “one in a million.” He said only one civic group in the Flushing area has ever succeeded in overturning a decision by the BSA.

Councilman Dan Halloran, R-Whitestone, in August introduced community boards and the borough president to fight decisions made by the BSA.

Halloran said he proposed the bills because he has observed a pattern of the city agency ignoring community input before granting variances to developers.

“Zoning variances are a powerful tool, which some developers have used to fundamentally change our neighborhoods,” the councilman said. “Our current laws let developers run wild with variances and doesn’t provide us with a way to keep them in line and preserve the character of our communities,” Halloran said.

Additional reporting by Nathan Duke.