The owner of the former Romana-Riley Elementary School, at Henry Street and Waters Avenue, is planning to redevelop the property with a new residential project to provide affordable one- and two-bedroom apartments. The project consists of two parts.

Part one involves renovating the existing school structure and annex to provide 30 new apartments.

Part two involves developing a new facility of 27 additional apartments. The total project will create 57 new units.

Henry Lane currently bisects the project property. The owner has petitioned the City to re-route the lane to provide safety to the new residents, while preserving access throughout the remaining block. Specifically, the petitioner has requested the City to release a section of the lane, which will be subject to a retained utility easement. The owner will replace this section of lane with a new section of lane to maintain access to the remainder of the block, and dedicate the new lane to the City upon completion.

In addition, the owner will grant to the City a strip of land along Waters Avenue that is needed for the Waters Avenue streetscape project. The land areas involved are still being finalized, but the and area being conveyed to the City will be larger than the land area being granted. In addition, the land area being granted by the City will be encumbered by a utility easement. As a result, the value of the land being granted to the City will be greater than or equal to the value of the land being conveyed by the City. A concept plan is attached.

The petition has been reviewed by Development Services, the Bureau of Public Works and Water Resources, and Real Property Services, and conveyance would be subject to the following conditions:

1. The property owner will develop the new replacement lane in accordance with City development standards and subject to sufficient right-of-way width and turning radii as determined by the City Traffic Engineer. The property owner will construct and dedicate the new lane to the City prior to the City releasing the section of the existing lane to the property owner.
2. The City will retain a utility easement across the section of lane being released to the property owner.

Approval