Government
City Unveils Draft Zoning Plan to Spur 4K New Homes in Midtown South
Chris Janaro |
The draft plan marks the first step toward a formal land use proposal from the city for 42 Manhattan blocks where housing is currently restricted.
The draft plan marks the first step toward a formal land use proposal from the city for 42 Manhattan blocks where housing is currently restricted.
While lawmakers continue to negotiate housing initiatives and tenant protections in Albany, supporters of the Faith-Based Affordable Housing Act are positioning the bill as one of the state’s best shots at passing meaningful housing legislation this year. “It’s hard to put your guard up when it’s the neighborhood church saying we want to build,” sponsor Andrew Gounardes told City Limits.
City Limits rounds up the latest housing and land use-related events, public hearings and upcoming affordable housing lotteries that are ending soon.
In a motion set to be filed Wednesday in state court, the legislative body asks to join a recently-filed lawsuit against Mayor Eric Adams’ administration, seeking to compel implementation of several laws passed over mayoral veto.
“A housing package that protects tenants, builds affordable housing, and creates good jobs is possible, but bad actors in the real estate industry would rather hold my members and all New Yorkers hostage on account of their greed.”
A lawsuit on behalf of tenants at risk of eviction highlights a population in the crosshairs of a policy fight between the City Council and Mayor Eric Adams.
The city’s housing vacancy rate plunged to 1.41 percent in 2023, the lowest it has been since 1968, officials announced Thursday. Options were particularly scarce for low-income New Yorkers: just 0.39 percent of units renting for under $1,100 were available last year.
The New York City Council cleared Speaker Adrienne Adams to take legal action on its behalf Thursday, but the leader declined to say how, or when, she might act to enforce new laws expanding eligibility for city-issued rental vouchers.
The latest housing proposal to hit the state legislature would create a new Social Housing Development Authority (SHDA) to oversee the development of social housing—homes created “for the public good,” instead of profit.
During her tenure, Aviles, who became Chair of the City Council’s Committee on Public Housing in January 2022, began questioning NYCHA’s high vacancy and low turnover rates. Banks says he wants to scrutinize the authority’s new funding models.