Mayor Bill de Blasio Reports on Progress of Housing New York Plan

The Mayor’s Administration is ahead of schedule in achieving its goal to build 200,000 affordable homes in 10 years. On July 26, 2016, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced an update on the progress that has been made to achieve the goals set forth in his Housing New York plan, which seeks to build 200,000 affordable homes in 10 years. The Housing New York plan met the conclusion of its second fiscal year on June 30, … <Read More>


Manhattan Borough President Brewer and Council Member Chin Push for Legislative Deed Restriction Reforms

Initiatives proposed in the wake of the Rivington House sale would prompt public review process and transparency. On July 19, 2016, Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer and Council Member Margaret Chin wrote a letter to the City Planning Commission in favor of subjecting any changes made to deed restrictions throughout New York City to the Uniform Land Use Review Procedure. The letter is the latest development in a series of events sparked by the sale … <Read More>


Brooklyn Community District 10 Seeks Removal from Zoning Resolution Special Permit

Special Permit was meant to allow growing families to expand their familial residences, but Brooklyn Community Board 10 argues that its usage has been abused. On June 20, 2016, a proposal was presented to the City Planning Commission to amend the New York City zoning text relating to the Board of Standards and Appeals Special Permit provisions under Section 73-622, which provides for the enlargement of one- and two-family detached and semi-detached residences. Currently, Section … <Read More>


Council Land Use Subcommittee Hears Testimony on Proposal for New Willamsburg Mixed-Use Manufacturing Building

The new building would bring manufacturing-based jobs to an industrial district, which has shifted focus to nightlife-oriented buildings and activities in the past few decades. On June 14, 2016, the City Council Subcommittee on Zoning and Franchises held a public hearing on an application for a zoning text amendment to allow for industrial space to be built in an area zoned for community space and for a special permit to amend off-street parking requirements to … <Read More>


City Council Subcommittee and Land Use Committee Vote to Approve the Rezoning of Water Street’s Privately Owned Public Space With Modifications

The modified version requires a full public review process in order to infill the largest arcades covered by the proposed zoning text amendment. On June 15, 2016, the City Council Committee on Land Use voted unanimously to approve a modified version of an application submitted by the Alliance for Downtown New York, the NYC Economic Development Corporation, and the Department of City Planning to rezone the privately owned public space—colloquially known as “POPS”—on and surrounding … <Read More>


Say Hello to Mandatory Inclusionary Housing!

Almost 55 percent of all renter households in New York City now pay more than 30 percent of their income towards housing costs, an increase of 11 percent since 2000. As a consequence, the City Planning Commission found that “many of the city’s neighborhoods are becoming less economically diverse, which poses a threat to the city’s economic competitiveness as well as to the opportunities available to lower-income New Yorkers.”

Mandatory Inclusionary Housing is one of … <Read More>