NEW YORK, NY November 04, 2006 —East Village residents get a chance tonight to hear the city's proposal to rezone their neighborhood for the first time since 1961. The changes were in the making in the last 20 years, as the neighborhood became gentrified, but the community's outrage was catalyzed by the construction of two buildings that tower over the surrounding tenements -- the 16-story Blue Condominimum on Norfolk Street, and the 21 story Hotel on Rivington Street.

The City Planning Department is proposing height caps for most of the area, from Third Avenue to Avenue D, and from about East 1st Street to East 13th, while allowing developers to build taller apartment buildings along East Houston and Delancey Streets, in exchange for affordable housing. Amanda Burden, Commissioner of City Planning, tells us the proposal intends to protect the character of the East Village and Lower East Side, while providing opportunities for more housing.