Government

Town grants Tarlow permit for house larger than code limit

Google Earth | A house that stood at 29 Nostrand has been demolished to make way for Richard Tarlow's proposed house with two pools and garage.

The Town Board voted 4-0 with one abstention to grant Nostrand Parkway homeowner Richard Tarlow a special permit last week to construct a house that exceeds the 6,000-square-foot living area maximum set in the town code for triggering the special Town Board review process. The board found that three houses in the neighborhood have larger living areas and Mr. Tarlow’s proposal “is not out of keeping with the neighborhood.”

Mr. Tarlow won permission to build a 10,431-square-foot house with 8,412 square feet of livable space,  an 864-square-foot garage, decking and two swimming pools on the 1.9-acre property at 29 Nostrand Parkway. A house on the site, which is next door to his current home, has been torn down to make way for the new structures.

Councilman Peter Reich abstained because the Reich/Eklund construction firm is one of the bidders on the project.

There was no widespread opposition to the proposal when it was aired at a public hearing before the board on March 16. Some neighbors expressed concerns about the plan’s scale and its setbacks.

After the hearing, adjustments to the plans included a larger setback — more than 145 feet instead of 116 — from the seaward pool decking to the waterfront bulkhead and the installation of an infiltration trench at the property’s 15-foot contour to capture runoff. Automatic pool covers were also added as a feature.

“The proposed location” of the project, “as revised, is consistent with the setbacks of structures in this iconic neighborhood,” according to the resolution adopted by the board at its regular meeting on Thursday, April 5.

The board found the proposal complies with all setbacks and wetlands regulations. “The house will appear to be one-story from the street and two-stories from the water,” according to the board’s findings, “and applicant proposes a row of hedges along the road frontage to screen the property from the road …”