Image credit: New York City Council.

Mayor Bill de Blasio and the City Council, in creating competing charter revision commissions, avoided endorsing the central reason why the City could benefit from charter revision: ending term limits for council members. Term limits arguably may have had a healthy impact on the mayoralty, but not so with the council. Two four-year terms for council members resulted in instability of council membership and leadership and a lack of institutional discipline that has produced a council weaker than it should be. (read more…)

Mayor Bill de Blasio holds a press conference on the future of NYCHA in the Blue Room at City Hall on Monday, June 11, 2018. Image credit: Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office

Consent decree seeks to create a common game plan to funding to ameliorate problems at  the New York City Housing Authority. Public housing has been under the public eye in the last few years due to allegations of mismanagement from its leadership. On June 11, 2018, Mayor Bill de Blasio held a press conference on the future of public housing in New York City. The Mayor announced that the City agreed to a settlement, memorialized in a consent decree, with the Manhattan United States Attorney to provide funds and allow federal monitoring for the improvement of the safety and quality of life of NYCHA residents. (read more…)

Rendering of 399 Sands Street. Image credit: Steiner NYC.

Addition of manufacturing and creative space supports City goals to provide more middle-class jobs. On June 13, 2018, Deputy Mayor for Housing and Economic Development, Alicia Glen, together with the Brooklyn Navy Yards and Steiner NYC, announced the beginning of construction at 399 Sands Street. The project will add manufacturing and creative office space at the 300-acre Brooklyn Navy Yard, an urban manufacturing center, and is expected to bring manufacturing jobs to the area. The project is also part of Steiner’s Admirals Row Development, a six-acre site at the southwest corner of the Navy Yard being developed for commercial and industrial use. (read more…)

Mayor Bill de Blasio. Image Credit: Benjamin Kanter/Mayoral Photo Office.

Advisory commission will conduct comprehensive review of property tax system. On May 31, 2018, Mayor De Blasio announced the formation of an advisory commission to develop recommendations to reform the City’s property tax system. The reform aims to make the property tax system simpler, clearer, and fairer, as well as ensure that there is no reduction in revenue used to fund essential City services. The property tax system has not had an in-depth review by such commission since 1993. (read more…)

Mayor de Blasio at the April 5th press conference. Image credit: Mayor’s Office.

Roof rehabilitations are part of the de Blasio administration’s plan to improve NYCHA’s physical infrastructure and safety. On April 5, 2018, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that the roofs at 65 NYCHA buildings have been completely replaced as part of the Mayor’s plan to replace the roofs of NYCHA buildings. Mayor de Blasio has invested $1.3 billion so far to repair 950 roofs of NYCHA buildings. The new roofs will reduce mold on NYCHA buildings and provide a long-term, cost-effective solution to improve the quality of life for tenants. (read more…)