Lawsuit challenges
W. Side rezoning

Robert Gearty

A part of the city's massive rezoning plan for the West Side violates federal and state environmental laws, a lawsuit filed yesterday in Manhattan Federal Court charges.

Mayor Bloomberg has linked the rezoning to a separate proposal to build a $1.4 billion stadium for the Jets over the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's railyards.

The lawsuit was filed by the Hell's Kitchen Neighborhood Association, which opposes the stadium.

The group's lawsuit takes issue with a new zoning amendment that would greatly increase the number of allowable parking spaces in garages in new buildings.

The City Council approved the rezoning in January with only one dissenting vote.

The lawsuit is the latest in a series of legal actions aimed directly or indirectly at the stadium, which is the centerpiece of the city's 2012 Olympic bid.