City Council Denies Proposed Development Next to Merchant House Museum

Supporters of preserving the Merchant House Museum rejoice in victory, but the battle may not be over as future demolition and construction is possible. On September 26, 2018, the City Council voted to disapprove the application for a rezoning at 27 East 4th Street in Manhattan. The Application would have allowed for an 8-story, 28-room hotel or office building with a restaurant and lobby below the second floor, with approximately 17,141 square feet of … <Read More>


Jason Adolfo Otaño, General Counsel for the New York City Council

Jason Adolfo Otaño, the General Counsel for the New York City Council, was born to Puerto Rican parents and grew up in the Sheepshead Bay area of Brooklyn. Otaño’s father was a City firefighter for 28 years, his mother a paraprofessional for the Department of Education, and his uncle a captain for the Department of Corrections.




City Council Approves Inwood Neighborhood Rezoning Despite Residents Disapproval

On August 8, 2018, the City Council approved the Inwood Neighborhood Rezoning amidst resident concerns and disapproval. Mayor Bill de Blasio and Council Member Ydanis Rodriguez celebrated the rezoning approval. The rezoning was developed over the course of three years and affects 59 city blocks in the northern Manhattan neighborhood. The Economic Development Corporation, together with the Department of Housing Preservation and Development, the Department of Citywide Administrative Services, and the Department of Small Business … <Read More>


City Council Subcommittee Hears Jerome Avenue Rezoning Plan

Amidst opposition from community members and organizations, the Jerome Avenue Rezoning plan had its day at the City Council. On February 7, 2018, the City Council’s Subcommittee on Zoning and Franchises held a public hearing on the application by the Department of City Planning and Department of Parks and Recreation for a zoning text amendment, zoning map amendment, and City Map amendment to de-map a portion of Corporal Fischer Place and to map new parkland … <Read More>