Mayor wants to make New York a “City of Yes” by changing zoning rules
Mayor Eric Adams has made the city’s recovery one of his top priorities. To speed up this process, he introduced a “City of Yes” plan. The proposal aims to support small businesses, create more affordable housing and promote sustainability by changing zoning laws across New York City.
The plan includes three amendments: Zoning for Economic Opportunity, Zoning for Housing Opportunity, and Zoning for Zero Carbon. Under the first proposal, life science businesses, including lab and research centers, custom manufacturing, “maker-retail”, and nightlife would be allowed to open up in areas that were previously limited by zoning rules.
These zoning changes could bring nightclubs to residential blocks that are not zoned for dancing and make it easier for bars and restaurants to host dance events, The New York Times reports. The first citywide amendment would also eliminate additional parking requirements for expanding businesses.
The second amendment introduced by Mayor Adams, called Zoning for Housing Opportunity, would allow denser construction by increasing the floor area ratio. Adams also plans to expand the acceptable variety of housing types and sizes to accommodate more families. In addition, the proposal would utilize vacant hotels, offices, and parking spaces and convert them into residential units.
“We are going to turn New York into a ‘City of Yes’ — yes in my backyard, yes on my block, yes in my neighborhood,” said Mayor Adams. […] “New Yorkers are not going to wait around while other cities and other countries sprint towards a post-pandemic world, and now we won’t have to.”
It is not the first time when the city considers changing the floor area ratio or FAR. At the beginning of this year, Governor Hochul proposed to lift the cap on the city’s residential floor area ratio. However, later, she dropped the proposal from the budget due to the lack of support, The Real Deal reports. Local groups, including Village Preservation, opposed Hochul’s proposal and claimed it would allow “vastly oversized development throughout New York City.”
Finally, the last amendment, Zoning for Zero Carbon, would change zoning rules to allow more rooftop coverage for solar panels and eliminate barriers to the electrification of buildings. Mayor Adams also wants to increase the number of electric vehicles by installing more EV charging rigs and fast-charging stations across the city. Currently, some commercial and residential districts do not allow electric vehicle charging, but Adams plans to change that.
Resources:
“Mayor Adams proposes changes to city zoning rules to create more housing,” by Aaron Ginsburg (6sqft, 2022)
“Mayor outlines sweeping rezoning plan,” by Suzannah Cavanaugh (The Real Deal, 2022)
“Adams, Nightlife-Loving Mayor, Offers Plan to ‘Let the People Dance’,” by Jeffery C. Mays and Julia Carmel (The New York Times, 2022)
“Hochul plan for resi towers is tall order,” by Kathryn Brenzel (The Real Deal, 2022)
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