City Council Approves Borough Based Jails

After modifications and a lengthy Stated Meeting, Borough Based Jails passed despite significant opposition. On October 17, 2019, the City Council voted to approve the City’s Borough Based Jails System application with modifications. The approved plan includes four jail facilities located at 124-125 White Street in Manhattan, 745 East 141st Street in the Bronx, 126-02 82nd Avenue in Queens and at 275 Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn and closure of the Rikers Island detention facility.


DCP Releases Storefront Vacancy Report

The causes of vacancies vary due to differences in local economies and other community characteristics. On August 8, 2019, the Department of City Planning released “Assessing Storefront Vacancy in NYC”, a report which examines retail patterns and storefront vacancies across 24 different neighborhood shopping corridors around the city.


City Planning Holds Public Hearing for Borough-Based Jails Project

City reduced projected number of beds to 4,600 but did not amend application at time of hearing. On July 10, 2019, the City Planning Commission held a public hearing for the City’s application for four borough-based jails as a part of the City’s plan to shut down Rikers Island. The application proposes four new jails at 124-125 White Street in Manhattan, 745 East 141st Street in the Bronx, 126-02 82nd Avenue in … <Read More>


Mayor de Blasio Announces Citi Bike Expansion Throughout All Boroughs

The Citi Bike expansion will double the current service area by 35 square miles and triple the number of bikes to 40,000. On July 16, 2019, the de Blasio Administration announced Citi Bike’s expansion. Last November, Lyft entered into an agreement with the City to invest $100 million in Citi Bike, which will double the size of Citi Bike’s service area and triple the number of bikes in the program. The expansion will take … <Read More>


City Supports Shared Living Housing

HPD launches ShareNYC, a pilot program to help developers finance affordable co-living housing. Co-living housing units supported by the City are headed for New York. On November 1, 2018, the City’s Department of Housing and Preservation and Development announced ShareNYC, an initiative to encourage the development of affordable, shared housing units on privately owned sites with the support of City funds. Developers will be permitted to enter bids for financing which will be provided through … <Read More>


Rezoning to Bring 30-Unit Building to Bedford-Stuyvesant

The rezoning will bring two non-applicant properties into zoning compliance but has the Borough President and City Planning Commission concerned that it will also create an opportunity for out-of-context development. On April 24, 2019, the City Planning Commission voted to approve an application for a proposed six-story residential and ground floor retail building at 2 Howard Avenue in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn. To facilitate the project, the applicant is seeking to rezone a portion … <Read More>