The Most Sweeping Overhaul of Zoning in Decades
Updated April 17, 2024 from 3/26/24 / City of Yes Special Report Section / NYC Neighborhoods / Gotham Buzz NYC.
These are reports we've published to date on the City of Yes Test Amendments. This issue is heating up as we speak, so we'll try to keep you abreast of the discussion.
City of Yes, No or Maybe
City of Yes, No or Maybe?
Things to Consider include Erosion of Commercial Property Tax Base, Impact of Your Neighbors' Running Machines at all Hours of the Day for their Home Based Businesses, Significantly Stunted Regulatory Enforcement and Oversight over Home Based Businesses, the Feeding of the Non Profit & Religious Orgs' Valuable Property to the Real Estate Development Wolves without Making & Taking Proper Precautions & the Transfer of Power from Local Control to Billionaires & International Real Estate Developers & ...
June 4, 2024 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Government / NYC Business / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz.
City of Yes to be Voted Upon This Week
This week the New York City Council will vote on Part II of the City of Yes proposed changes to New York City zoning laws. While the media pundits and many local pols believe it will pass, there's still a chance that it could be tabled for further consideration, and an outside chance that it could be voted down.
I've attended a number of meetings and conferences where the legislation has been discussed by various experts who have examined and have advocated both for and against the proposal. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to square away enough time to provide more complete coverage of this legislation as it has moved from conception to a proposal which will be voted upon this week.
Another Failure to Inform by NYC Major Media
So what I am publishing today, is a compendium of what I've been able to learn over the past five months, about the City of Yes Part II Text Amendment Changes. My intention is to enable you to make a more informed decision about the sweeping zoning changes that are, in time, sure to affect most New Yorkers' lives - just in time for you to do something about it. Unfortunately, as is so often the case these days, TV news is too busy doing weather, sports and crime & accident videos, to do any real news reporting about what's going on in NYC, that will affect city residents and workers. And none of the three NYC major daily newspapers have paid sufficient attention to what is sure to be one of the most signifcant - and possibly harmful - pieces of municipal legislation in generations.
Let me say at the outset that a government for, of and by the people doesn't work if the people don't pay attention and get involved. Voters need to make sure that their interests - not just those of the billionaires and real estate developers - are included in legislation passed by the government officials voters elected to represent them. Democracy, on auto pilot, crashes and burns. So, I'm both alerting you and asking you to get involved - given there are only a few days left before a vote.
The rest of this will come later this afternoon and into the evening. It will be a highlight of some of the significant points made at the meetings and conferences I attended, as well as some of my thoughts of possible 'collateral damage' this legislation could do. if not significantly alterred, which means at a minimum the NY City Council must table it pending further work, if not vote it down.
- CLICK here to read the rest of our report on the City of Yes Part II - Sweeping Zoning Changes proposed for NYC.
City of Yes Part II Updates NYC - May 2024
* Will 'City of Yes' Become a Law Enforcement Mess?
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How will New Yorkers React to their Neighbors' Businesses Daily Foot Traffic in Their Buildings?
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What Impact will Home Based Businesses have on Building Infrastructures including but not limited to Storage, Garbage Removal, Parking, (Hot) Water, Noise Levels & Security?
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Will NYC & NYS Government Agencies Need a Search Warrant to do Routine Regulatory Enforcement in Residence-Based Businesses?
May 28, 2024 / City of Yes Special Report Series / NYC Real Estate & Business / NYC Government Media & Politics / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC.
The City of Yes legislation has been moving through the NYC Council, having just been approved by another committee last week.
It's reportedly a billionaire and real estate developer crafted piece of legislation. And it seems to be guided by the invisible hand of billionaire real estate developer Stephen Ross, who has been involved in many NYC government related real estate efforts, since former Mayor Bloomberg first gave that fox full entry into the chicken coop during Bloomberg's three terms in office. And of course, this legislation appears to be aided and abetted by Ross's campaign finance Political Action Committee efforts, which helped elect those who will enable his agenda, which in this case is one of essentially taking power from the people, and transferring it to Ross and his billionaire and real estate developer cohorts.
COY is Taking Power from New Yorkers, Because New Yorkers Aren't Paying Attention, Because They're Relying on TV's Knucklehead News
Reportedly, 30 of the 52 Community Boards voted against the City of Yes Part II legislation. Another 20 of the 52 said ok, but with conditions. And two voted for it. If this were a real democracy, The City of Yes legislation would never have gotten as far as it has, with reportedly a better than fair chance of passing.
It's worth reminding New Yorkers, that a government of the people, by the people and for the people - doesn't run without the people's involvement. Democracy crashes and burns when it's on auto pilot. If 'the people' don't pay attention, they will soon have nothing once again.
Pay attention to this vote. And I urge you to get involved if you can, because this is the largest usurpation of the everyday New Yorkers' power in my lifetime. The vote is expected to take place on or before June 6, 2024, because the NYC Council session ends next week. The NYC Council could vote it down, or table it to give folks more time to digest the mega changes, that are going to intrusively affect their daily lives.
Also, last Friday, after 5 pm, on the beginning of a three-day holiday weekend, a notice went out about proposed changes to the NYC Charter to be voted on this November. The first meeting is only one day after the three day weekend, at 1 pm today, which leads me to believe that whoever is behind these changes, wants as few people to know about them as possible. So fyi - https://www.nyc.gov/site/charter/index.page
I'll have more on the City of Yes, as soon as I can square away the time.
- CLICK here for prior short reports on the City of Yes zoning changes in NYC.
Is a Housing “Shortage” Really the Cause of Unaffordability?
May 15, 2024 / NYC Government & Politics / NYC Real Estate & Business / City of Yes Special Report Series / News Analysis & Opinion / Manhattan Buzz. Published with permission from Andrew Berman, Executive Director of Village Preservation in NYC.
With the recent conditional repeal of the state’s cap on the allowable density of new residential construction in New York City, and the Mayor’s “City of Yes” proposal making its way through the public approval process, it’s an opportune time to look at the arguments behind this ever-growing push to increase the permitted size and amount of new residential development in New York City. Undergirding all of these is the contention that housing prices are up in New York City because we’re not building enough market-rate housing, and that certain parts of the city, like most of Manhattan south of Harlem, aren’t doing their fair share to address New York City’s housing needs. Let’s look at how well these claims line up with the facts.
Some data points often cited include the large increase in New York City’s population, which according to the census rose from 8.175 million in 2010 to 8.804 million in 2020, or a 7.7% increase. Figures from this same period say housing prices in New York City also rose dramatically, and the recent NYC housing vacancy survey shows record low housing vacancy rates in the city. Taken alone, this would seem to present a compelling argument that housing construction in New York City is not keeping up with population growth, leading to insufficient supply and rising prices.
But the complete picture tells a very different story.
- CLICK here to read the rest of Andrew Berman's report examining the City of Yes and NYC's unaffordable housing crisis.
The City of Yes or Planning Mess? Proposed NYC Zoning Changes
City of Yes or Planning Mess? Zoom Conference with City Club NY
Three Presentations [Awaiting a Fourth] About the City of Yes Proposal
April 16, 2024 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Things To Do Events / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC.
Last Thursday, April 11, 2024, I attended a Zoom Conference Call hosted by the City Club of NY, wherein four zoning experts presented their assessments of the sweeping zoning changes proposed in Mayor Adams' City of Yes zoning legislation.
The City of Yes zoning proposal is being pushed hard, and it is being pushed fast, by the Adams Administration in tandem and with the strong support of the billionaire class and the real estate development industry. These two groups are supportive of Mayor Adams' proposal because it will free them from the time, expense and hassle of answering to us, the locals ... the people who actually live in the places, where the uber rich and real estate developers want to transact business.
Remember - Democracy Doesn't Work on Auto Pilot
So you'd better pay attention before the people's [aka your] input - into the sorts of structures and activities allowed in their [your] communities - is rolled back sixty years, and possibly far further back. The City of Yes legislation will provide the super wealthy and the real estate developers, from all around the world, with the power to dictate to NYC community neighborhoods what structures they're going to erect, in many cases where, and what sorts of activities will take place on the property - within the very lax parameters embedded into the City of Yes legislation.
We've been tracking this legislation for a couple of months now. First via Alicia Boyd of MTOPP [Movement to Protect the People], a community activist in Brooklyn; then via the Mayor's Office of Ethnic & Community Media [MOECM] via Zoom; then via Community Board Meetings in Sunnyside Queens where the NYC Planning Department presented the City of Yes, followed by a Community Board Six in Manhattan Zoom Conference Call; and most recently with the City Club of NY, whose presentations are being published today.
We are thankful to these people and organizations for investing the time to help do the work of a functioning democracy, which is to engage and inform the people about the decisions being made by those in power on their behalf that - may or may not - be on their interest.
- CLICK here to view the slide show presentations given at the City of Yes or Planning Mess NYC Zoom conference call on April 11, 2024.
City of Yes - Huge Zoning Changes in the Works - Part II
City of Yes Text Amendments - Huge Zoning Changes in the Works - Part II.
The Proposed 'City of Yes Text Amendments' will Roll Back Local Community Board [and Hence Communities] Input into What is Built & What Activities are Allowed in Their Communities
April 2, 2024 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Real Estate / NYC Government & Politics / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC.
Just over a week ago I attended a Zoom call, organized by Community Board 6 in Manhattan, regarding the proposed City of Yes Text Amendments Part II being promulgated by Mayor Adams and his Administration. We collectively sat through about an hour long presentation, which I found to be most enlightening as well as a bit disconcerting should the proposed changes pass without significant alteration.
I have obtained permission to publish the slides, which due to technical issues, I have had to publish in the three [vs one] slide shows you see below [they are in chronological order]. I'll post my full report early next week, but in the meantime the slides should give you an idea of how big the changes really are and has been done in such a manner that you can begin to figure out how these changes may affect you.
Whether you are a tenant, landowner or real estate developer - and no matter in which borough you live - these changes, if passed unalterred, are going to significantly change how things are done in NYC. And the more I dig into this, the more it seems to be a roll back of community input, which is - in my mind - an essential / core element of any democratic process.
Isn't it?
While I'm still not done with the research, these changes look to be quite harmful to the people of NYC, in so many different ways, while failing to provide any sure path to growing our inventory of truly affordable housing.
Much more coming next week and over the next couple of weeks.
- CLICK here to view the slide show presentation made regarding the City of Yes at the Manhattan Community Board 6 Meeting on March 25, 2024.
City of Yes Text Amendments - Huge Zoning Changes in the Works
How Much Will the Proposed 'City of Yes Text Changes' Strip Communities of Input into What is Built in their Communities & What Activities Take Place within Each Property?
Updated March 9, 2024 from 3.6.24 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Real Estate / NYC Government & Politics / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC.
On Thursday, February 1, 2024 I attended a Community Board 2 Queens meeting about the proposed City of Yes Text Amendments at the Sunnyside Community Services Center. The presentation was given by the Department of City Planning and the focus was the second piece of the massive, nearly 1,157 page City of Yes Text Amendment proposal.
The photo at right shows two City Planning Department representatives fielding questions from the audience following their presentation of the zoning law changes proposed in the City of Yes Text Amendments - Part II - Economic Development.
What are the City of Yes Text Amendment Zoning Law Changes?
The first segment of the proposal included changes to zoning in order to enable green energy powered buildings. The second segment of the proposal, which was what this meeting was all about, was to make changes to zoning laws to provide more zoning flexibility to enable more economic opportunity. And the third segment of the City of Yes Text Amendments is to address the need for affordable housing. As previously mentioned, for the purposes of this report, we're sticking to the second segment of the three part proposal, which moved front and center following the passage of the green energy initiative passed by the City Council in December of 2022.
City of Yes Text Amendment Changes - Part II - Economic Development
I am including a slide show from the February 1st, 2024 meeting mentioned above. And I have also reached out to Alicia Boyd, a Brooklyn activist in this area, and have obtained her permission to post a slide show she presented on January 16, 2024 at the Richmond University Medical Center on Staten Island. By providing you with both slide shows you'll obtain both a 'Pro' perspective and a 'Con' perspective. The Pro perspective, provided by the City Planning Department, also includes a description of the specific changes to the zoning laws for which they are advocating. We'll have more on this in the coming weeks because we think it is one of the most important issues of the day and the City Council is expected to vote on it in April 2024.
- CLICK here to read the rest of our report, including competing slide shows about the proposed City of Yes Text amendments - Part II - Economic Development. As of this post we've not yet heard back from Alicia Boyd of MTOPP, but expect to hear from her today / tomorrow or by the end of the week. So please stay tuned.
The City of Yes Voting Tonight in Sunnyside Queens
The Most Sweeping Zoning Law Changes in a Half Century are Underway.
Why is the Media MIA?
February 21, 2024 / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Real Estate & Business / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC.
There's a vote tonight on the City of Yes zoning law changes beginning at 6 pm at 43-22 50th Street in Sunnyside Queens.
The City of Yes zoning law changes are the most sweeping changes to zoning laws in NYC in over a half century. I've not yet had a chance to thoroughly study them, but a cursory review indicates that one of the main tenets of the proposal is a significant rollback of local control in favor of real estate development. The Mayor's argument for this rollback is that it will enable developers to create more housing and enable more integration in neighborhoods.
COPY & PASTE this url into your browser to go to the website of Alicia Boyd of Brooklyn, who is a non-profit activist who's analyzed and been monitoring the 1,500 page City of Yes proposal - https://mtopp.org/index.php/2024/02/05/wake-up-do-you-know-whats-about-to-happen-to-your-new-york/
You'd think that such a major overhaul would be covered by the mainstream media. But they act unaware, just don't care, or they don't dare cover the issue because it doesn't generate the ratings that regurgitations of sensationalist accident and crime videos do.
We'll have more on this in the coming week, as a vote in the City Council is estimated by some to come as early as March.
