Upland Areas:
• Neighborhood Scale and Context
• Proposed Upland Zoning Districts
• Proposed Upland Zoning Map

The Department is proposing a range of residential zoning districts to match the distinct context and scale of each well-established neighborhood and to require that scale in adjoining underbuilt areas where new development is possible. The table below summarizes the specifications of each residential district:

R6B districts are contextual zoning districts that permit a maximum floor area ratio (FAR) of 2.0, a maximum building height of 50 feet, and a maximum street walls base height of 40 feet. Typical buildings are four to five stories. Buildings are required to line up with the streetwall of neighboring buildings, curb cuts are prohibited on small lots, and the Quality Housing program is mandatory. R6B districts are applied in areas characterized by three- to four-story residential buildings (e.g., portions of Bedford Avenue, Berry Street, Oak Street and Calyer Street) and to adjoining underbuilt areas.

R6A districts are contextual zoning districts that permit a maximum floor area ratio (FAR) of 3.0, a maximum building height of 70 feet, and a maximum streetwall base height of 60 feet. Typical buildings are six to seven stories. R6A districts are proposed in areas with a five- to six-story context (e.g., near Berry and N. 11th Streets, Wythe and N. 3rd Streets, and along West Street) and to adjoining underbuilt areas, as well as along major streets such as Union Avenue, and near McCarren Park.

R7A districts are contextual zoning districts that permit a maximum floor area ratio (FAR) of 3.0, a maximum building height of 80 feet, and a maximum streetwall base height of 65 feet. Typical buildings are six to eight stories. This district is proposed for an area in Williamsburg where Bedford Avenue meets McCarren Park, and where a vacant site offers significant potential for new housing development.

R6 districts allow a maximum FAR of 2.43 (without the Quality Housing option), or a maximum of 2.2 FAR on a narrow street and 3.0 FAR on a wide street (under the Quality Housing option). Under Quality Housing, height limits are similar to those for R6B districts (on narrow streets) and R6A districts (on wide streets). Without Quality Housing, height is regulated by the sky exposure plane, which relates building height to distance from the street and can produce buildings of vaious heights, up to 14 stories tall on large lots.

R6 districts are proposed where height limits would be inappropriate, including areas characterized by tall buildings or a mix of heights, as well as sites where the district’s more flexible regulations are needed for site planning -- on irregularly shaped sites, and near large structures such as bridges or elevated highways. Examples of locations where R6 districts are proposed are near the Williamsburg and Pulaski Bridges and the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway.

Res. District	Maximum FAR	Max. Base Height	Max. Total Height	Quality Housing
R6B	2.0	40'	50'	Mandatory
R6A	3.0	60'	70'	Mandatory
R7A	4.0	65'	80'	Mandatory
R6	- 2.43 (height factor option) - 2.2 on narrow street, 3.0 on wide street (Quality Housing option)	n/a (sky exposure plane)	n/a (sky exposure plane)	Optional

Special Mixed Use District (MX). The Special Mixed Use District is a special zoning district that is currently mapped in several locations throughout the city, including Dumbo and Red Hook in Brooklyn, Port Morris in the Bronx, and West Chelsea in Manhattan. It combines a light industrial (M1) district with a residential district, and permits a mix of selected light industrial, commercial, residential, and community facility uses under the applicable regulations. The MX district permits mixed-use buildings, and includes an expanded definition of “home occupations,” permitting a broader variety of live-work accommodations than is allowed in standard zoning districts. In Greenpoint-Williamsburg, an MX district combining an M1-2 district with R6B, R6A, and R7A districts is proposed for mixed-use areas identified in the land use framework.