Hochul and Adams unveil “new” New York plan

Some of the busiest streets of New York City became empty in the early months of the coronavirus pandemic. Two years ago, it seemed that the city would never recover from the effects of COVID-19, as most businesses closed, and plenty of New Yorkers fled upstate. 

Although the pandemic has fundamentally changed New York – in many ways, the city is back to normal. However, the new normal is different from the old one. Recently, Governor Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams released a new roadmap to speed up New York City’s recovery. Dubbed 'New' New York: Making New York Work for Everyone, the plan includes 40 proposals that intend to lure people back to sleepy commercial areas.

"We are no longer living in the same New York as we were at the beginning of the pandemic, and these proposals will help to revitalize our business districts, ease New Yorkers' commutes, promote equity and tackle our 800,000-unit housing shortage,” said Governor Hochul. 

The new plan focuses on reviving New York’s business districts, such as Midtown and Lower Manhattan, that have been recovering slower than other parts of the city. Gov. Hochul and Mayor Adams aim to turn these areas into “vibrant 24/7 destinations”. The new proposal acknowledges that remote work is here to stay, which means that most New Yorkers will not return to the office full-time any time soon. 

New York City offices remain half full. The office occupancy tracker created by Kastle Systems has been sitting at 48 percent since Labor Day. In addition, the NYC subway ridership lags far behind pre-pandemic levels. The “New New York” report shifts the focus from urging people to return to their offices to making business districts more appealing to commuters. 

The plan calls to expand pedestrian zones, speed up the conversion of office buildings into residential apartments, increase the supply of housing units by modernizing some outdated regulations, decrease commute time to Midtown, and more. However, the timeline and the budget for these changes are yet to be determined. 

Resources:

“Mayor Adams, Governor Hochul Release "Making New York Work for Everyone" Action Plan,” (NYC, 2022)

“Adams and Hochul’s ‘new’ New York,” by Erin Durkin and Anna Gronewold (Politico, 2022)

“Can the Hochul-Adams New New York Actually Happen?” by Justin Davidson (Curbed, 2022)