Part of an amendment to the city¿s new Hudson Yards zoning was criticized by several groups today as providing an unnecessary bonus to the Related Companies, which is planning a major tower on 42nd Street on the southwest corner of Tenth Avenue and is reported to be in discussions to include in that project a large theater facility for Le Cirque Soleil, the popular for-profit performing arts company.

The Hudson Yards rezoning was initiated in conjunction with the Bloomberg Administration¿s plans for a stadium for the New York Jets football team facing the Hudson River south of the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. The stadium plans eventually collapsed but the sweeping zoning plans were enacted and significantly upzone much of the West Midtown area west of the Garment Center between 31st Streets and 42nd Street.

The draft amendment contains many modifications of the Hudson Yards plan relating to harassment issues in new development and adjustment of allowable building sizes in various subdistricts of the plan.

The provision that speakers at the commission focused on related to a "theater bonus" incentive that would permit developers on certain sites to add three times their area of their site to normal zoning rules.

Anna Levin of Community Board 4 told the commission that when the text of the zoning proposal was released "there had been no discussion with this community about the desirability of the bonus, and, if asked, we would have told you it was a bad idea."

"We understand that the language before you today ¿ adding ¿performing arts use¿ to the uses that would qualify for the bonus ¿ was worked out in discussion amongst the various City agencies involved, The Related Companies, and the Orchestra of St. Luke¿s¿.No sooner had the language been worked out than we began to hear that the developer was considering other ¿performing arts¿ uses. The House of Blues, perhaps. The draft amendment was further changed to require performing arts uses to be ¿non-profit.¿ The House of Blues idea was dropped and now, apparently, the developer is claiming that the Cirque de Soleil, with audiences of up to 2,000, would qualify for the bonus as a legitimate theater."

"This is a complete perversion," Ms. Levin continued, adding that "It provides a substantial financial reward to the developer, and a subsidy to a mature corporate enterprise that doesn¿t need this kind of help¿.This is a mess¿.And it¿s certainly not what this community will accept. We need a time-out."

She urged the commission to eliminate the theater bonus text but approve the other 17 items in the amendment "and quickly because development pressures make the anti-harassment provisions urgently needed."

New York State Assemblyman Richard N. Gottfried submitted a statement also in opposition to the theater bonus, adding that he understood that "City Planning is also working with the community on additional text amendments that would import additional provisions of the Clinton Special District concerning the protections of existing residential buildings." He noted that Related has demolished two small-non-profit theaters on the site and that MCC Theater and the Orchestra of St. Luke¿s have expressed interest in the location.

John Schultz, executive director of MCC Theater, said that his organization lost its last home four years ago and that next season will make the end of its being allowed to be in residence at the Lucille Lortel Theater in Greenwich Village.

A member of the Hell¿s Kitchen Alliance said that Cirque de Soleil would significantly impact the area¿s traffic, noting that pedestrian accidents at the intersection of 42nd Street and Ninth Avenue were up 80 percent in the last two years.

Many speakers indicated they want Cirque de Soleil to find a home in the city, but not at the Related location.