New York Mayor Eric Adams is calling for construction of “a little more housing in every neighborhood” to contend with the city’s severe shortage of places to live.
(Bloomberg) — New York Mayor Eric Adams is calling for construction of “a little more housing in every neighborhood” to contend with the city’s severe shortage of places to live.
Adams on Thursday outlined a zoning overhaul that would allow for development of an additional 100,000 homes for 250,000 people over the next 15 years. Measures he supports include allowing construction of two- to four-story additions atop ground-floor commercial spaces, and dwelling units as large as 800 square feet (74 square meters) on the properties of one- and two-family homes.
Many New Yorkers have struggled to find and afford housing in one of the world’s most expensive cities. The changes are necessary because the city has too many rules that get in the way of building more homes, Adams said.
“For more than 60 years, we have added layers upon layers of regulations, effectively outlawing the kinds of housing that our city has long relied on,” he said in a statement. The proposed changes, he said, would “remove longstanding barriers to opportunity, finally end exclusionary zoning, cut red tape and transform our city from the ground up.”
In August, Adams began a push to convert vacant offices into as many as 20,000 new housing units by rezoning a section of Manhattan known as Midtown South. That and other measures he’s proposing will face public review early next year, followed by votes in fall 2024 by the city council and planning commission.
Read more: NYC Kicks Off Plan to Rezone Midtown, Turn Offices to Houses
Adams said he also wants to end the city’s requirement for new parking spots to be built alongside new homes, and to make shared living options with small apartments more feasible.
“The proposed changes to New York City’s outdated zoning code are comprehensive and common-sense measures to encourage housing growth,” Annemarie Gray, executive director of pro-development group Open New York, said in a statement. “If passed, every neighborhood in the city will finally take part in solving our dire housing shortage.”
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