City Officials Celebrate Opening of Casa Celina, 100 Percent Affordable Senior Housing in Soundview

On June 11, 2024, officials from the Department of Housing Preservation and Development, New York CIty Housing Authority, and New York City Housing Development Corporation celebrated the opening of Casa Celina, a building for New York’s seniors featuring over 200 new affordable units. The building is located on NYCHA’s Justice Sonia Sotomayor campus in the Soundview section of the Bronx. 


Council Approves Bill to Require Council Input on Commissioner Appointments

On June 6, 2024, the New York City Council passed Int. 908, which amends the City charter to require the advice and consent of the City Council for 21 commissioner appointments. The 21 city agencies affected by this bill are: Aging; Buildings; Children’s Services; Citywide Administrative Services; Consumer and Worker Protection; Cultural Affairs; Design and Construction; Environmental Protection; Finance; Health and Mental Hygiene; Homeless Services; Housing Preservation and Development; Information Technology and Telecommunications; Parks and … <Read More>


Council Passes Bills to Address Parking Garage Safety

On May 23, 2024, the New York City Council passed a package of bills to improve parking garage safety by identifying and addressing parking garage structural deficiencies. These bills, Int. 135-A, 170-A, and 231-A, were created in response to a parking garage that collapsed at 57 Ann Street in Lower Manhattan on April 18, 2023, which killed garage manager Willis Moore and injured five others.


Council Approves Bill Requiring NYCHA PACT Program Transparency Report

On May 16, 2024, the City Council passed Int. 110-A, which requires the creation of a report about the Permanent Affordability Commitment Together Program (PACT). The PACT program allows the New York City Housing Authority to change its traditional Section 9 public housing funding to project-based Section 8 funding. The change allows NYCHA to access debt to finance renovation and repairs projects and requires NYCHA to transfer the daily management of buildings to private management <Read More>


City and State Continue to Combat Illegal Smoke Shops, Reform Cannabis Sales in New York

Last week, Governor Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams made announcements furthering New York’s fight against illegal smoke shops and reforming cannabis sales. The legalization of cannabis has forced the city and state to navigate the development of a new economy with the implementation of strict regulations; the state rollout of licenses and process for siting new dispensaries have limited the number of legal dispensaries that have opened statewide. While the state continues to navigate <Read More>