The provisions of this Chapter establish special regulations which are designed to encourage flood-resilient building practices for new and existing buildings and in so doing to promote and protect public health, safety and general welfare. These general goals include, among others, the following purposes:

(a)        to facilitate the development and alteration of buildings in flood zones consistent with the flood-resistant construction standards of Appendix G of the New York City Building Code;

(b)        to enable buildings to be constructed or retrofitted pursuant to flood-resistant construction standards with a comparable amount of usable interior space to what is generally permitted within the applicable zoning district;

(c)        to allow sea level rise to be incorporated into the design of buildings in flood zones in order to provide longer-term and greater protection from flood risk than what is currently required by Appendix G of the New York City Building Code;

(d)        to mitigate the effects of elevated and flood-proofed buildings on the streetscape and pedestrian activity; and

(e)        to promote the most desirable use of land in accordance with a well-considered plan and thus conserve the value of land and buildings, and thereby protect the City’s tax revenues.