Policy

The city unveiled last week an updated design for its plan to protect an area stretching from the Lower East Side to East 25th Street from flooding. The Department of Design and Construction (DDC) presented on Thursday its preliminary design for the East Side Coastal Resiliency Project (ESCR) to Community Board 3, as Curbed NY reported. In response to concerns from residents about the closure of East River Park during the construction period, the city's updated design incorporates community suggestions, including a new amphitheater and an outdoor fitness area.
See the plan

New consulting firm report suggests the MTA cut costs by merging 40 groups into six departments

Image via Flickr.

July 15, 2019

New consulting firm report suggests the MTA cut costs by merging 40 groups into six departments

AlixPartners, a Manhattan-based consulting firm hired by the MTA this year has released a report with recommendations for ways the organization can save money, AM New York reports. Suggestions include a reorganization plan that would see the MTA, including the Long Island Rail Road, consolidating back-office operations and merging more than 40 groups into six departments. The firm was paid $3.75 million to come up with two reports; additional suggestions for the first reorganization in 50 years include the hiring of new high-level positions to oversee changes, and updating union contracts to attract top talent.
Also: new hires and no more cheating on overtime

Protected bike lane coming to Central Park West after community board approval

Via Public Domain

July 3, 2019

Protected bike lane coming to Central Park West after community board approval

A community board on Tuesday approved a plan to build a new protected bike lane along Central Park West, about one year after a cyclist was killed by a truck there. As West Side Rag reported, Manhattan's Community Board 7 voted in favor of the city's plan, which consists of a northbound protected lane from 59th to 110th Street. Ahead of the bike lane's construction, 400 parking spaces will be eliminated on Central Park West.
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Policy

Governor Cuomo wants to test self-driving subways in NYC

Image via Flickr

July 1, 2019

Governor Cuomo wants to test self-driving subways in NYC

During a three-day trip to Jerusalem last week, Governor Andrew Cuomo toured the offices of Mobileye–a supplier of autonomous driving software—with the possibility of applying those same technologies to the MTA. "We have seen tremendous growth in software development for navigational systems to make automobiles safer and more reliable, and if this software works well on the road then we owe it to commuters to test its application for train and rail," Cuomo said in a statement.
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Corey Johnson announces $19 million in new LGBT support programs, nearly doubling funding

Speaker Corey Johnson and the New York City Council March in the 2019 Pride Parade. Photo by John McCarten via Flickr, courtesy of New York City Council.

July 1, 2019

Corey Johnson announces $19 million in new LGBT support programs, nearly doubling funding

In honor of a World Pride weekend that commemorated the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Inn uprising, City Council Speaker Corey Johnson has announced $19 million in funding for LGBT support programs, which nearly doubles the funding in support of the city's gay community, the Daily News reports. The budget includes $2.3 million for Trans Equity Programs, $3.7 million for LGBT community services and $800,000 for LGBT inclusive curriculum in public schools. Johnson said, “Acceptance is not enough. Our local government must fund programs that support the LBGTQ community, particularly transgender people.”
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Google Maps can predict how crowded your subway or bus will be

Photo © 6sqft

June 28, 2019

Google Maps can predict how crowded your subway or bus will be

Google Maps has just released a couple of upgrades that should make New Yorkers' commutes a little bit easier, or at least, slightly more predictable. From now on, the app will be able to tell you how crowded your subway, bus, or train might be, so you can decide if you prefer to squeeze in or wait for a vehicle where you're more likely to snag a seat. The upgrades also expand the app's live traffic delays for buses (which began rolling out in December 2017) to cities that didn't already provide those updates.
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Plan approved to replace Elizabeth Street Garden with affordable senior housing development

Rendering courtesy of Curtis + Ginsberg Architects

June 27, 2019

Plan approved to replace Elizabeth Street Garden with affordable senior housing development

The New York City Council on Wednesday unanimously approved a plan to replace a community garden in Little Italy with an affordable housing complex for seniors. The project, first introduced by Council Member Margaret Chin in 2012, will rise on the site of Elizabeth Street Garden, a quirky green space created in 1991 by Allan Reiver, who owns the gallery next to the garden. The complex, dubbed Haven Green, will include 123 affordable apartments and ground-floor retail. Originally, developers agreed to keep 8,000 square feet of public space at the site, but on Wednesday Chin said she reached an agreement to incorporate more open space at Haven Green through a courtyard next door.
Details here

City overhauls Mitchell-Lama middle income housing program with increased oversight

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June 27, 2019

City overhauls Mitchell-Lama middle income housing program with increased oversight

Citing bribery, fraud and other abuses and years-long waiting lists, New York City’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development has restructured the Mitchell-Lama program, one of the New York City's oldest middle-income housing initiatives, the Wall Street Journal reports. Included in the restructuring effort will be the integration of the program's application process into Housing Connect, the city's existing affordable housing lottery, within the next year.
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Rendering of 200 Amsterdam Avenue via SJP Properties/ Elkus Manfredi

June 26, 2019

Nearing pinnacle, disputed 668-foot Upper West Side tower gets city board approval

In a race to the top of sorts, developers of the 668-foot residential tower rising at 200 Amsterdam Avenue got the green light to keep climbing, Curbed reports. On Tuesday the city's Board of Standards and Appeals upheld its initial approval for the tower, which has been embroiled in a heated zoning lot dispute. The board approved the project last year, but in March the state Supreme Court overruled the city’s decision, ordering the board to re-evaluate the permit for the project led by developers SJP Properties and Mitsui Fudosan, who have already proceeded with construction at the 69th Street site. The tower is expected to top out this summer.
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Rent Guidelines Board approves modest increases for rent-stabilized apartments

Image by Jorbasa Fotografie / Flickr

June 26, 2019

Rent Guidelines Board approves modest increases for rent-stabilized apartments

In front of a packed auditorium at Cooper Union’s Great Hall last night, the Rent Guidelines Board voted on rent hikes for the city’s one million rent-stabilized apartments, the New York Times reports. The board voted 5-4 and approved a 1.5% increase on one-year leases and 2.5% on two-year leases. The new rents will kick in on October 1.
More info

Five properties in Gowanus may be landmarked ahead of proposed rezoning

Via LPC

June 25, 2019

Five properties in Gowanus may be landmarked ahead of proposed rezoning

Five properties in Gowanus may be landmarked as the Brooklyn neighborhood prepares to be rezoned. The Landmarks Preservation Commission on Tuesday voted to calendar eight buildings across five properties in the neighborhood, describing them as both architecturally significant, as well as closely associated with the history of the Gowanus Canal. The decision to calendar the sites comes after the city released in January its rezoning draft for Gowanus, which includes enabling more residential buildings and access to the waterfront.
More info here

Policy

LPC designates Bay Ridge’s first historic district

Courtesy of Landmarks Preservation Commission

June 25, 2019

LPC designates Bay Ridge’s first historic district

Bay Ridge has gained its first historic district. The Landmarks Preservation Commission voted on Tuesday to landmark an area in the Brooklyn neighborhood along Bay Ridge Parkway between 4th and 5th Avenues. Dubbed Doctors' Row due to its historic and current demographics, the district consists of one block of 54 architecturally consistent row houses. LPC Chair Sarah Carroll said after surveying Bay Ridge, the commission found that this particular block "really does stand out in the neighborhood in terms of high-quality architecture and consistency."
A first for Bay Ridge

Policy

New data from Comptroller Scott Stringer shows that affordability is still declining in New York

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June 20, 2019

New data from Comptroller Scott Stringer shows that affordability is still declining in New York

City Comptroller Scott Stringer has released an updated Affordability Index, an annual look at how the rising costs of basic necessities like housing, transportation, healthcare, and childcare, are squeezing the budgets of New York City households and leaving them with fewer savings. Like last year, the data is far from reassuring, demonstrating that expense costs are rising far more rapidly than incomes. In 2005, the average middle-income single adult had 24 percent of their income left over after expenses. In 2017, that dropped to only 15 percent.
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New NYCHA head Gregory Russ will be the city’s highest paid official

Image via Wiki Commons

June 19, 2019

New NYCHA head Gregory Russ will be the city’s highest paid official

After missing two deadlines to fill the position, Mayor Bill de Blasio on Tuesday announced that Gregory Russ will be taking over as Chair of NYCHA. Russ, who is currently the head of Minneapolis’ public housing authority and previously led the Cambridge Housing Authority in Massachusetts, will receive an unprecedented salary of $402,628—more than even President Donald Trump makes. That figure comes out to roughly $1 a year for every NYCHA tenant he will represent, as THE CITY reports.
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Sunset Park gains four historic districts

535 to 545 48th Street via LPC

June 18, 2019

Sunset Park gains four historic districts

The Landmarks Preservation Commission on Tuesday voted to designate four historic districts in Sunset Park, protecting the Brooklyn neighborhood from potential out-of-scale alterations and development. The noncontiguous areas include Sunset Park North, Central Sunset Park, Sunset Park 50th Street, and Sunset Park South, all standing out for their cohesive and intact architecture, according to the commission.
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Policy

Six significant LGBTQ sites in New York City are landmarked

Top, left to right: GAA Firehouse, James Baldwin Residence, LGBT Community Center; Bottom, left to right: Audre Lorde Residence, Women’s Liberation Center, Caffe Cino; Photos courtesy of NYC LGBT Historic Sites Project

June 18, 2019

Six significant LGBTQ sites in New York City are landmarked

Six sites significant to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community of New York City officially became city landmarks on Tuesday. The city's Landmarks Preservation Commission voted to designate the Gay Activists Alliance Firehouse, the Women's Liberation Center, the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center, Caffe Cino, James Baldwin's Upper West Side home, and the Staten Island home of Audre Lorde. The designations coincide with the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall uprising, as well as the city's first time hosting WorldPride.
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New York set to legalize e-scooters and e-bikes

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June 18, 2019

New York set to legalize e-scooters and e-bikes

New York lawmakers reached an agreement on a bill to legalize e-scooters and e-bikes across the state and are expected to vote on the matter this Wednesday, the New York Post reports. The bill would legalize e-bikes and scooters but each city will ultimately be able to decide how to regulate the vehicles. Local governments will also have the power to decide whether to launch shared networks of e-bikes and e-scooters and have complete control over their operations. However, the language in the bill specifically bars New York City from launching an e-scooter sharing system in Manhattan.
More this way

Dorrance Brooks Square Historic District, St. Marks United Methodist Church. Image courtesy of NY State Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation.

June 17, 2019

Historic places in the UWS, Harlem and Sunset Park are recommended for state and national designation

Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced on Friday that the New York State Board for Historic Preservation has recommended adding 18 properties, resources, and districts to the State and National Registers of Historic Places. The new nominations include the Upper West Side home of author and civil rights activist James Baldwin, the Dorrance Brooks Square Historic District and the former 32nd Precinct Station House complex in Harlem, and the Fourth Avenue Methodist Episcopal Church in Sunset Park, Brooklyn in addition to 14 other nominated places throughout the state.
Find out how New York continues to recognize varied historic places

De Blasio and Chuck Schumer call for increased helicopter regulations after last week’s crash

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June 17, 2019

De Blasio and Chuck Schumer call for increased helicopter regulations after last week’s crash

Following the deadly crash of a helicopter in midtown last Monday, lawmakers are calling for greater oversight on helicopters flying over the city, the New York Post reported. “I think we need a full ban on any helicopters going over Manhattan itself,” Mayor de Blasio said on WNYC’s The Brian Lehrer Show last Friday, noting that “exemptions should be made for emergency responders, first responders, uniform services,” and news cameras. On Sunday, Senator Chuck Schumer urged the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to include data recorders in all helicopters.
More info

Real Estate groups plan to file lawsuit if rent reform law passes

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June 13, 2019

Real Estate groups plan to file lawsuit if rent reform law passes

Real estate industry leaders say they will file a lawsuit against the state to challenge a package of bills containing changes to current rent regulations, which expire on June 15, the Observer reports. As 6sqft previously reported, the legislative package headed to both chambers for a vote this week contains landmark changes to current rent regulations aimed at strengthening New York’s rent laws and tenant protections. Industry stakeholders say they'll challenge the legislation on several points including one that makes the rules permanent, rather than having them expire every few years. The lawsuit would also challenge the retroactive nature of a provision to lower the amount landlords can charge for major capital improvements.
The industry fears 'disaster'

De Blasio plans to extend NYC’s limits on Lyft and Uber and make them permanent

Via Flickr

June 13, 2019

De Blasio plans to extend NYC’s limits on Lyft and Uber and make them permanent

As the city's for-hire vehicles (FHVs) rack up nearly 800,000 rides per day, Mayor Bill De Blasio announced on Wednesday the Taxi and Limousine Commission's new plan to extend last year's cap on for-hire vehicle licenses, the New York Post reports. A second cap will be placed on the length of time FHVs can let their cars cruise the city without passengers in the most congested part of Manhattan, below 96th Street. Last August, the city also suspended the issuance of new licenses. The new policies are expected to increase driver salaries by about 20 percent and make traffic in Manhattan below 60th Street six to 10 percent faster.
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New York reaches major deal to strengthen rent and tenant protections

Image by Jorbasa Fotografie / Flickr

June 12, 2019

New York reaches major deal to strengthen rent and tenant protections

Democratic leaders in Albany announced Tuesday that an agreement has been reached on a package of bills that will significantly strengthen New York’s rent laws and tenant protections. As the New York Times reports, contained in the legislative package headed to both chambers for a vote this week are landmark changes to current rent regulations, which expire on June 15. The new legislation is meant to address concerns about the high cost of housing and the sweeping inequality that has resulted from it. To that end, as the Times explains, "the changes would abolish rules that let building owners deregulate apartments, close a series of loopholes that permit them to raise rents and allow some tenant protections to expand statewide." These changes have long been opposed by the real estate industry, which lost some of its influence in Albany when its Republican allies became outnumbered in the State Senate in the November elections.
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In Yorkville, Emery Roth-designed church and Colonial Dames mansion get landmark status

Photos courtesy of the LPC

June 11, 2019

In Yorkville, Emery Roth-designed church and Colonial Dames mansion get landmark status

By Nicole Mondrus

Members of the Landmarks Preservation Commission voted Tuesday in favor of landmarking two historic sites in Yorkville--the First Hungarian Reformed Church of New York at 344 East 69th Street and the National Society of Colonial Dames in the State of New York at 215 East 71st Street. As 6sqft previously reported, the Hungarian Reformed Church was designed in 1916 by esteemed architect Emery Roth as one of his few religious buildings and his only Christian structure. The Colonial Dames headquarters is housed in an intact Georgian Revival-style mansion built in 1929.
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Policy

Via Wikimedia

June 11, 2019

The Strand bookstore gets landmarked, despite opposition from owner and community