A Sweeping Zoning Change to Address New York City’s Housing Crisis
A sweeping zoning change pushed by the administration of Mayor Eric Adams and approved by key City Council committees Thursday is expected to accelerate housing construction and make a dent in the city’s housing crisis.
Key Provisions
The City of Yes Housing Opportunity agenda makes a variety of changes to city zoning codes to make it easier to build more housing, designed to promote development in every neighborhood, including areas that have previously had strict protections in place. Key provisions encourage more development near transit stations, allow developers to decide how many spaces to build for car parking, and make it easier for homeowners to safely add apartments in backyards, garages, and other spaces on their property.
Compromises
Each of those features got pared back in the final dealmaking between the mayor and City Council. To get the 26 Council members’ votes ultimately needed for passage, the Adams administration agreed Thursday to keep rules that require a minimum number of parking spaces based on the size of the building in lower density districts rather than eliminate them entirely, put some limits on adding "accessory dwelling units" and slightly downsized the size of more dense transit-oriented development districts near LIRR stations in southeast Queens and parts of The Bronx.
Political Victory
Given how much the mayor has been weakened by the scandals engulfing his administration, the deal constitutes a major political victory. The reduction in the expected impact comes as a result of the weakened provisions on parking and ADUs. The elimination of parking mandates could have produced about 50,000 new homes, the Regional Plan Association estimated. ADUs could have resulted in 40,000 new units, according to the environmental impact study conducted by the Department of City Planning.
Impact
While housing advocates who had mobilized to support the proposal celebrated what they called a victory, many said the compromises went too far. The new transit oriented districts will allow more density within a half mile of transit stations — except that area will be reduced to one-quarter of a mile in Southeast Queens, home of Speaker Adrianne Adams, and the four new Metro-North commuter rail stations being built in The Bronx, a district recently rezoned to promote more housing development.
Conclusion
The City of Yes zoning proposal is a significant step forward in addressing New York City’s housing crisis, despite the compromises made along the way. The proposal is expected to produce as many as 80,000 additional housing units over the next 15 years, about 20% less than the 105,000 projected under the original Adams administration proposal. The plan is a key part of achieving the mayor’s "moonshot goal" of building 500,000 new housing units by 2032.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What are the key provisions of the City of Yes zoning proposal?
A: The proposal encourages more development near transit stations, allows developers to decide how many spaces to build for car parking, and makes it easier for homeowners to safely add apartments in backyards, garages, and other spaces on their property.
Q: What compromises were made in the final dealmaking?
A: The Adams administration agreed to keep rules that require a minimum number of parking spaces based on the size of the building in lower density districts rather than eliminate them entirely, put some limits on adding "accessory dwelling units" and slightly downsized the size of more dense transit-oriented development districts near LIRR stations in southeast Queens and parts of The Bronx.
Q: What is the expected impact of the proposal?
A: The proposal is expected to produce as many as 80,000 additional housing units over the next 15 years, about 20% less than the 105,000 projected under the original Adams administration proposal.
