City Commits $1 Billion to Fix NYCHA Roofs

City to slate $1 billion in City capital for the replacement of over 700 deteriorating roofs in next decade. On January 24, 2017, Mayor Bill de Blasio and New York City Housing Authority Chair Shola Olatoye announced a capital commitment of $1 billion to replace deteriorating roofs on buildings owned by the NYCHA over the next 10 years. The Mayor had previously committed $300 million in 2015 over three years. The $1.3 billion is expected … <Read More>


City Housing Commissioner Steps Down After Three Years of Progress

Vicki Been stepped down as Commissioner of the Department of Housing Preservation and Development to return to academia. On January 17, 2017, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that Commissioner Vicki Been would step down to return to teaching at New York University as the Boxer Family Professor of Law and Faculty Director of the Furman Center. Prior to her appointment, Been served as the Director of NYU’s Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy, … <Read More>


City Moves Forward with New School in East New York

The Mayor’s Office announced the public review period for the construction of a new 1,000 seat school in East New York. On January 3, 2016, Mayor Bill de Blasio, joined by City Council Member Rafael Espinal, announced the start of the public review process for a new 1,000 seat school in the East New York section of Brooklyn. The proposed school comes as part of the larger East New York Neighborhood Plan which was adopted<Read More>


CityLand’s Top Ten Stories of 2016

ethics-headerWelcome to CityLand‘s fifth annual top ten stories of the year! We have selected a range of our most popular and prominent stories, and guest commentaries concerning New York City land use in 2016. Our fifth year as an online publication was marked by the fight to pass the Mayor’s Mandatory Inclusionary Housing plan, proposed reforms to the building code to prevent illegal home conversions, and capped by the passage of state laws prohibiting … <Read More>


On Occasion of Zoning Code’s Centennial, Exhibit Seeks to Illuminate how Zoning Shapes the City & Our Experience of It

Exhibit traces the conditions that lead to the creation of the 1960 zoning resolution, the forms that were created in its wake, the innovation of the 1961 zoning resolution, and the arguments surrounding zoning today. On November 10, 2016, the Museum of the City of New York opened its exhibition, “Mastering the Metropolis: New York and Zoning 1916-2016.” The exhibit uses 150 objects, artifacts and photos to demonstrate how 100 years of … <Read More>


City Council Member Seeks End-Run Around Lawsuit Against Mayor de Blasio

A City Council Member submitted legislation to enact the very relief he is currently seeking from the courts. On October 13, 2016, City Council Member Rory I. Lancman, representative for the 24th council district in Queens, introduced legislation which would amend the City’s Administrative Code regarding local representation on park conservancy boards. The proposed law would require that every non-profit conservancy entity have a voting member on its board of directors designated by each council … <Read More>