HPD and Non-Profit Seek Disposition of City-Owned Land to Develop Supportive and Affordable Housing in Bedford-Stuyvesant

The sustainable-design building would offer on-site supportive services and comes with several amenities for tenants. On July 31, 2019, the City Planning Commission held a public hearing on an application to convert City-owned property at 776-780 Myrtle Avenue in Brooklyn to a nine-story affordable and supportive housing development. The applicant team is comprised of the Department of Housing Preservation and Development, IMPACCT Brooklyn, and Urban Architectural Initiatives. To facilitate the development, the … <Read More>


City Planning Holds Public Hearing for Borough-Based Jails Project

City reduced projected number of beds to 4,600 but did not amend application at time of hearing. On July 10, 2019, the City Planning Commission held a public hearing for the City’s application for four borough-based jails as a part of the City’s plan to shut down Rikers Island. The application proposes four new jails at 124-125 White Street in Manhattan, 745 East 141st Street in the Bronx, 126-02 82nd Avenue in … <Read More>


City Council Approves City Planning’s Mechanical Voids Text Amendment

Developers were using excessive mechanical spaces to increase the height of their buildings. On May 29, 2019, the City Council voted to adopt the Residential Tower Mechanical Voids Text Amendment with modifications. The Department of City Planning proposed the amendment in response to developers incorporating excessively tall mechanical floors – “mechanical voids” – in residential towers to increase their allowable height, as mechanical floors did not count toward the zoning floor area in the Zoning … <Read More>


City Planning Certifies City Applications to Build Borough-Based Jails

The four jails are set to replace Rikers island by 2027. On March 25, 2019, the City Planning Commission certified the City’s application for four borough-based jails as a part of the City’s plan to shut down Rikers Island. The four jails – in Manhattan, the Bronx, Queens, and Brooklyn – will have a total of 5,748 beds and a capacity of 5,000 inmates. The additional 748 beds will be used to account for taking … <Read More>


City Planning Releases Digital Mapping Tool for Applicants

The new free self-service map tool increases accessibility for the public and smaller owners and developers. On Thursday, April 11, 2019, the Department of City Planning Director Marisa Lago announced the release of a free, easy to use digital mapping tool that allows the public, smaller property owners and developers to build quality land use maps for their applications to the City Planning Commission for zoning changes. Prior to the release of this tool, creating … <Read More>


Private Development of City-Owned, Blighted Property to Bring 54 Units of Affordable Housing

The development seeks to activate the streetscape in the area by removing the existing dangerous condition posed by a long-abandoned railroad trench. On March 27, 2019, the City Planning Commission held a public hearing on an application by the Department of Housing Preservation and Development and developer Phipps Houses that will bring 54 units of affordable housing to the Melrose neighborhood of the Bronx. The application calls for the disposition of City-owned property, a rezoning, … <Read More>