Land Use & Zoning

Navigating the land use, zoning and SEQRA approvals processes from project inception to shovel in the ground
Our Approach

Our attorneys spend many nights of the week advocating before planning boards, zoning boards of appeal, legislative bodies, and other governmental agencies – or representing these boards as Special Counsel on complex development projects. That means leading our clients’ development teams, working with municipal officials and staff, providing strategic advice and substantive guidance, compiling a complete administrative record, organizing public outreach, and ensuring regulatory compliance.

And because many of the attorneys in our land use and zoning practice are also litigators, we position our clients for success if their application ends up in court. The attorney who fought in the trenches during the review process will bring a comprehensive knowledge of the administrative record when defending (or challenging) municipal determinations.

What We Do

Zarin & Steinmetz successfully guides clients through federal, state and local zoning, land use and environmental regulatory processes, including:

  • Site plan, special permit, and subdivision applications
  • Environmental impact review under SEQRA
  • Comprehensive plan & zoning text/map amendments
  • Public-Private Partnerships
  • Wetlands, steep slopes, floodplain, and other sensitive feature permits
  • Area and use variances
  • Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA)
  • Padavan Law and Fair Housing Act (FHA) compliance
  • County Planning review under New York General Municipal Law
  • Administrative Law
  • SHPO review/historic preservation
  • Green building/LEED certification
Recent News
Judge Hal Greenwald granted Z&S’s motion to dismiss, which resolved the case in their client’s favor, before any discovery commenced or any answer to the Complaint was filed. Z&S primarily argued that the case was an illegal “Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation,” under New York State’s new “Anti-SLAPP” legislation, which prohibits lawsuits focused on stifling...
Jacob Amir recently secured site plan approval from the Town of Pound Ridge Planning Board for the construction of an innovative art studio as part of the Oberon Foundation for the Arts’ new Artist-in-Residence Program. Designed by Steven Holl Architects, a world-renowned firm whose projects have included the Terezin Ghetto Museum in the Czech Republic...
David Steinmetz and Lee Lefkowitz successfully obtained a discretionary rezoning of a large area at the center of the Village of Piermont’s downtown – the first step towards revitalizing a long-vacant and prominent parcel at the main entry-point to the Village. This clears the way for redevelopment of that site with the client’s proposed 14-unit...