DDC Moves Forward With “Selma’s House” Renovations for Louis Armstrong House Museum in Queens

On March 6, 2025, the New York City Department of Design and Construction in collaboration with the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs announced the City will be undertaking the renovation of “Selma’s House” located at 34-52 107th Street in Corona, Queens. The building is referred to as “Selma’s House” in honor of the bequeaths Selma Heraldo made in 2011 upon her death to the Louis Armstrong House Museum. Since then, the building has … <Read More>


DOT Celebrates Sixth Avenue Redesign With Wider, Safer Bike Lanes

On March 5, 2025, New York City Department of Transportation Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez and officials in Greenwich Village celebrated the redesign along the Avenue of the Americas in Manhattan at Sixth Avenue with a ribbon cutting. The project is one of several across Manhattan avenues designed to improve street safety by providing wider protected bike lanes to accommodate the record growth in cycling across the City. The City Department of Transportation has completed redesign projects … <Read More>


DDC Celebrates Renovation of Mark A. Constantino Judicial Center in Staten Island

On February 25, 2025, New York City Department of Design and Construction Commissioner Thomas Foley and Department of Citywide Administrative Services Commissioner Louis A. Molina announced the completion of the Mark A. Constantino Judicial Center located in Staten Island. The project cost the City $10.7 million and was managed by the Department of Design and Construction on behalf of the New York City Department of Citywide Administrative Services.



HPD Announces Online App for J-51 Tax Relief Program Now Open

On February 12, 2025, the New York City Department of Housing, Preservation and Development announced that the online application for the J-51 R program, formally J-51, is now open. Since 2009, the J-51 tax relief program has resulted in the rehabilitation of more than 3,200 buildings, consisting of over 143,000 homes. In December 2024, the City Department of Housing, Preservation and Development created the updated version of J-51, “J-51 R”, available to property owners and … <Read More>


‘If You Build It, They Will Come’: City’s Chief Public Realm Officer Outlines Progress, Priorities

By Mark Chiusano

Ya-Ting Liu was appointed New York City’s inaugural chief public realm officer two years ago this month. How has the realm changed so far during her tenure? 

That was the subject of Liu’s talk at New York Law School’s 196th CityLaw Breakfast on Wednesday, during which she described well-used public space as “the secret sauce of cities” and how she thinks pedestrians should be “the main character” in New York City design. … <Read More>