City Planning Commission Votes to Approve City of Yes for Economic Opportunity Amendment

On March 6, 2024, the City Planning Commission voted to approve the City of Yes for Economic Opportunity zoning text amendment. The amendment, the second of Mayor Eric Adams’ three City of Yes proposals, is a collection of eighteen changes to the zoning text designed to remove obstacles for small businesses looking to expand and create more vibrant streetscapes. 


DOB Announces Penalties for Over 400 Property Owners for Late Parking Structure Report Submissions

On January 18, 2024, the Department of Buildings announced that over 400 property owners had received initial penalties for failing to submit required engineering inspection reports for parking structures located on their properties. Through the Periodic Inspection for Parking Structure (PIPS) program, 1,056 properties in Lower Manhattan, Midtown, and the Upper West Side were required to submit inspection reports to the Department of Buildings before January 1, 2024. 


Parks and CUNY Announce Initial Findings of Positive Impacts of Community Parks Initiative Investments

On January 23, 2024, the Parks Department and the City University of New York Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy shared the findings of a large-scale study of the public health impacts of the Community Parks Initiative. The Community Parks Initiative is an equity-based investment program to build and renovate parks, infrastructure, and community programming in underserved neighborhoods. The program, which launched in 2014, has improved 65 parks citywide, with another 22 projects <Read More>


HPD Fines Landlord $150K for Failure to Comply With Lead Laws

On January 10, 2024, the New York City Department Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) announced that they obtained civil penalties amounting to $150,000 against Ezriel Weinberger and affiliates for their failure to comply with lead-based paint laws across ten properties. These penalties concern lead-based paint offenses in over 790 units located across the Bronx and Manhattan. Each property incurred fines of $15,000.


NYCHA Announces Completion of Over $24 Million in Security and Safety Upgrades

On November 27, 2023, the New York City Housing Authority announced that over $24 million in safety and security upgrades had been completed at 23 campuses citywide. The developments that received upgrades included: Bailey Avenue-West 193rd Street, Marble Hill, Melrose, Mill Brook, Monroe, and Sedgwick in the Bronx; Farragut, Hughes, Kingsborough, and Pink in Brooklyn; Dyckman, Elliott, Fulton, Grant, King Towers, LaGuardia, LaGuardia Addition, and Rangel in Manhattan; Pomonok in Queens, and Berry in Staten <Read More>