GIAC previews plan for Red and White Cafe at 402 West Court Street; board raises floodplain and zoning questions
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Summary
GIAC presented conceptual plans Nov. 4 to restore the Red and White Cafe at 402 West Court Street as a ground-floor cafe with second-floor culinary training; planning staff warned that floodplain code changes and site constraints will affect whether the project can be rehabilitated or must be rebuilt with variances.
The Greater Ithaca Activities Center (GIAC) presented conceptual plans Nov. 4 to the Ithaca City Board of Zoning Appeals for the former Red and White Cafe at 402 West Court Street, proposing to restore a cafe on the ground floor and add culinary-arts classrooms and offices above.
Leslyn McBean Clearborn, GIAC director, said the city acquired the property and the organization aims to re-establish a cafe and an expanded teen culinary and entrepreneurship program. Architect Caroline O'Donnell presented renderings showing a low, two-story building with a ground-floor cafe and teaching kitchen, second-floor classrooms and a small roof deck. The presenters said the existing building shows substantial water damage and structural deterioration; the team said they were advised to consider demolition and rebuild as a more viable option than full rehabilitation.
Planning staff informed the group that the site is in the 500-year floodplain and noted a New York State code change effective Jan. 1 that will require construction in such locations to meet standards essentially equivalent to 100-year floodplain requirements: either ground-floor floodproofing or raising the ground floor to two feet above the base flood elevation. "This property is in the 500 year floodplain. And the new New York State code, given the amount of investment even in the existing building, they will be required to meet, essentially the requirements for construction in the 100 year floodplain," planning staff said, adding that demolition and new construction would likely trigger variance needs for setbacks and lot coverage while retaining the existing building could rely on established rights for the current footprint.
Board members discussed feasibility, including whether the building could accommodate ADA access and an elevator, the operational costs of an elevator, and site parking limits. Several board members suggested the project team explore a planned-unit-development (PUD) or similar zoning path to gain more flexibility; staff noted a special-permit pathway for a "neighborhood commercial facility" could apply for a cafe-oriented, smaller-scale use intended to serve the surrounding neighborhood. Staff estimated parking demand at roughly one space per 500 square feet of net floor area and projected a requirement of about seven to eight parking spaces for the proposed program, a number the board noted would be difficult to accommodate on-site.
Board members encouraged GIAC to pursue follow-up meetings with planning staff, to evaluate a PUD or the zoning-rewrite timeline, and to prepare a formal variance application with exact setback and coverage numbers if they intended to demo and rebuild. GIAC said neighbors have expressed support for re-establishing the cafe and the organization will continue outreach before returning with a formal application.
No vote was taken; the presentation was advisory and conceptual. Planning staff and GIAC agreed to follow up on zoning options and next steps.
