Long Beach residents say they worry about neighborhood overdevelopment

A developer’s plan to alter a two-family home and create a subdivision on a lot on East Beech Street has united a group of residents in opposition to the proposal, who are citing overdevelopment in Long Beach’s Eastholme neighborhood.

At a virtual Zoning Board of Appeals meeting last month, attorney Scott Cohen, who represents developer Charles Rafimayeri, addressed the developer’s application for a variance to subdivide the lot at 355 E. Beech St. Rafimayeri plans to convert an existing two-family home into a one-family home and build another two-family house on the property. The new two-family home, Cohen said, would not need a variance.

“This is strictly an investment,” Cohen said. “Mr. Rafimayeri is the principal. He owns a number of properties in Long Beach. I’m sure the board is familiar with his work and reputation.”

During the meeting, however, residents of the neighborhood expressed their concerns about density, parking and flooding, among other issues. Darryn Solotoff, principal owner of the law firm Elovich & Adell, kicked off nearly an hour of testimony by residents who opposed the construction.

“I think it’s rather disingenuous to say that it’s only going to increase the density by two families and one additional family,” Solotoff said. “No, what it’s going to do is green-light other homes in this area to do the same thing.”

He added that if the measure were approved, it would lead to a loss of character in that part of town.

A number of residents raised the issue of increased density. If built, the second house would add six bedrooms — three on the top floor and three on the bottom floor — which some residents said they believed would create more competition for parking.

But Cohen said that Rafimayeri’s proposal took parking into account. “There will be more spots available on the street . . . ,” Cohen said. “Potentially there are five parking spots on the new two-family home.”

That claim did little to ease residents’ concerns. Razvan Rone and his wife, Jessica, said they purchased their home in the Eastholme section just under a year ago because of the open space.

“The reason we purchased this home was because of the land,” Razvan told the zoning board. “We want to have our children grow up and be able to have this land, and not be in a house right next to each other as it is in Queens and other parts of the city.”

Sam Pinto, president of the Eastholme Civic Association, was among those who asked the board to decline the developer’s application. “I think this request reeks of overdevelopment,” Pinto said. “This is a developer trying to maximize profit by undermining the character of the community.”

Elisabeth Uellendahl, who lives next to the property, adamantly opposed any new construction there. Like many others, she expressed her appreciation for the property’s open space, describing it as a “green oasis.”

“Since Superstorm Sandy, we’ve experienced constant basement flooding after rains due to the higher water table, as well as poor water pressure and street flooding,” Uellendahl said. “All of this would sure be worsened by the impact of another large home being built.”

She added that pulling out the grass and roots on the property would worsen flooding because it would reduce its ability to absorb water.

At the end of the meeting, Cohen noted that his client owns 28 properties in Long Beach, and added that Rafimayeri has provided rentals for years. “It is not illegal to make money,” Cohen said. “My client has been working and building properties in Long Beach since 1986.”

Cohen also noted that the city has an anti-grouper law, meaning that landlords cannot rent to more than two people who are not related to one another. He dismissed fears that there would be rampant subdivision requests as “disingenuous.” The property is one of a kind, Cohen said, adding that this was only the ninth subdivision request in the city since 2013. According to Cohen, six out of the eight previous requests were granted.

Zoning board Chairman Rocco Morelli said the vote on the application would remain open. The next meeting is scheduled for Dec. 17.