Within the Special Midtown District, all developments or enlargements constructed after May 13, 1982, on zoning lots of 5,000 square feet or larger with more than 70,000 square feet of new floor area, shall provide pedestrian circulation space on such zoning lot in accordance with the provisions of Section 37-50, as modified by the provisions of this Section.

The requirements for pedestrian circulation space may be met by providing one or more of the following types of spaces: arcade, building entrance recess area, corner arcade, corner circulation space, relocation or renovation of a subway stair, sidewalk widening, subway station improvement, through block connection or public plaza.

In addition to the types of pedestrian circulation spaces listed in Section 37-50, the following may be counted toward meeting the minimum pedestrian circulation space requirement:

(a)        up to a maximum of 3,000 square feet of an access improvement to rail mass transit provided pursuant to Section 81-48 (Off-Street Improvement of Access to Rail Mass Transit Facility);

(b)        within the Theater Subdistrict, theater waiting space provided pursuant to Section 81-451 (Theater waiting space).

However, pedestrian circulation space shall not be required if any of the following conditions exist:

(1)        the zoning lot is entirely occupied by a building of no more than one story in height;

(2)        the zoning lot is an interior lot fronting on a wide street with less than 80 feet of street frontage;

(3)        the zoning lot is an interior lot or through lot fronting only on a street or streets where arcades, sidewalk widenings or public plazas are prohibited;

(4)        the zoning lot is an interior lot fronting on either 34th Street, 42nd Street, 57th Street or Fifth Avenue, with another interior frontage of lesser length on any other street; or

(5)        the zoning lot is a through lot with both street frontages less than 25 feet in length.

Developments or enlargements on a zoning lot having a full block frontage on a wide street other than Fifth Avenue, 34th Street, 42nd Street or 57th Street shall provide a minimum of 50 percent of their required pedestrian circulation space on that street. In the case of a zoning lot having two full block frontages on wide streets, this minimum amount may be allocated on either one or both wide streets; where each street bounding a zoning lot with at least one full block frontage is a wide street, the minimum amount may be allowed on one or more of those wide streets.

Where pedestrian circulation space is provided along Seventh Avenue or Broadway between 43rd and 50th Streets, signs and marquees shall be permitted as exceptions to the requirements relating to permitted obstructions in Section 37-50.

Special dimensional requirements for arcades and sidewalk widenings along designated streets are set forth in Section 37-53 (Design Standards for Pedestrian Circulation Spaces). Where a new building or enlarged portion of an existing building provides an arcade, no obstructions, including columns, shall be permitted within such arcade, and the maximum height of such arcade shall be 20 feet and the maximum width shall be 10 feet. Arcades or sidewalk widenings shall not be permitted on 34th Street, 42nd Street, 57th Street or Fifth Avenue frontages or on any street frontage within the Preservation Subdistrict. Between 43rd and 50th Streets, no arcades shall be permitted parallel to and along Seventh Avenue or Broadway.