Detached houses line narrow side streets.

City Island has a distinctive urban village pattern. The island’s commercial spine, City Island Avenue, runs the length of the island from the bridge to the southern end at Belden Point. Low-rise and low-scale detached houses line the narrow side streets. There are a few small apartment buildings, and in recent years some semi-detached and multi-family attached townhouse developments have begun to be built. Most of the lots (84 percent) on City Island contain a residential or mixed residential/commercial use.

Commercial uses, which are mostly located along City Island Avenue, make up about three percent of the land uses. The island’s popular seafood restaurants tend to be concentrated on either end of the island. The village core area in the middle of the island, between Bay and Carroll streets, contains many mixed-use buildings with ground-floor storefronts and apartments or offices above. Boat-related uses along the waterfront include marinas, yacht clubs, sailmakers and other marine manufacturing firms.

Land Use View a larger size graphic

Existing Zoning
City Island is predominantly zoned R3-2, with C1-2 and C2-2 commercial overlays on portions of City Island Avenue. Residential and community facility uses are permitted in R3-2 zoning districts, with a height restriction of 35 feet and a maximum floor area ratio (FAR) of 0.5 with a 0.1 attic allowance. R3-2 zoning districts allow for a variety of housing types including one- and two-family detached and semi-detached houses, garden apartments and row houses.

In December 1976, the City Planning Commission amended the Zoning Resolution by creating the Special City Island District which was subsequently approved in January 1977 by the Board of Estimate. Among its provisions is a maximum building height in residential zones of 35 feet in order to maintain the neighborhood’s existing low-rise character. (In 1989 lower density contextual zoning amendments placed 35-foot height restrictions on all new construction in R3-2 districts citywide.)

Three small areas on City Island are zoned C3. C3 districts have an R3-2 residential equivalent, and permit residential development along with marine-related commercial uses. There are also three clusters of M1-1 districts on the waterfront. The M1-1 district is a light manufacturing district with a maximum permitted FAR of 1.0. On City Island, the predominant manufacturing uses have historically been boat-related and marine manufacturing firms.