In August 2018, City Planning’s Chair Marisa Lago appointed Anita Laremont as the new Executive Director of the Planning Department. Laremont joined the Department as General Counsel in 2014 and has served New York City and State in public positions for over 35 years.
Developers were using excessive mechanical spaces to increase the height of their buildings. On May 29, 2019, the City Council voted to adopt the Residential Tower Mechanical Voids Text Amendment with modifications. The Department of City Planning proposed the amendment in response to developers incorporating excessively tall mechanical floors – “mechanical voids” – in residential towers to increase their allowable height, as mechanical floors did not count toward the zoning floor area in the Zoning … <Read More>
All three proposed buildings would come with amenities for residents including outdoor areas and laundry rooms. On June 19, 2019, the City Planning Commission held a public hearing on an application to convert three City-owned properties located in the East New York neighborhood of Brooklyn to new affordable housing buildings. All three properties are currently vacant. The three proposed buildings would result in 41 affordable units and one superintendent’s unit.
The proposed zoning actions were largely disapproved by the Community Board, the Borough President, and even Staten Island’s appointee to the City Planning Commission. The Department of City Planning, along with the Department of Housing Preservation and Development and the Department of Citywide Administrative Services filed an application requesting several ULURP actions to help implement the goals of the Bay Street Corridor Neighborhood Plan. The Neighborhood Plan is a comprehensive plan to … <Read More>
The plan will address community concerns including affordable housing, open space, transportation safety, and economic development. On April 24, 2019, Department of City Planning Director Marisa Lago released the Bushwick Neighborhood Plan Update. The plan was created in response to the neighborhood’s rapid development, population growth, resident displacement, and lack of affordable housing from an increase in market-rate construction.
Starting this week, public hearings are being held throughout the five boroughs to solicit feedback on the report’s recommendations. In April of 2018, the NYC Council created a Charter Revision Commission. The 15-member commission, which was granted a wide mandate to review the City Charter from top to bottom, is considering possible amendments to be placed on the November 5, 2019 ballot in New York City. The Commission’s focus has been on four areas … <Read More>