Mayor Adams, NYC Council strike last-minute deal on sweeping housing plan amid historic crisis
Nov. 21, 2024, 11:53 a.m.
The last-minute deal includes funding for sewers, streets and open spaces, along with additional staffing at housing agencies, sources said.
Mayor Eric Adams agreed to unlock $5 billion in city and state funding to secure a deal on his sweeping housing plan, according to three city officials with direct knowledge of the arrangement.
The last-minute deal includes funding for sewers, streets and open spaces, along with additional staffing at housing agencies, the sources said. The money will also subsidize affordable housing construction and preservation, in exchange for City Council support for the mayor’s sweeping plan to change zoning rules to allow for more development, according to the same officials. They all requested anonymity to discuss the plan ahead of an official announcement.
The Council’s zoning subcommittee voted to approve a modified version of the plan Thursday evening after securing the funding demands.
The investments were part of a complementary housing package proposed by Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, who said zoning reforms alone weren’t enough to create housing affordable to most New Yorkers or address many neighborhoods’ needs.
The mayor’s plan, which he dubbed "City of Yes," would change zoning restrictions throughout the city to allow for larger development near transit stations and along commercial corridors; make it easier to convert offices into apartments and allow owners of one- and two-family homes to add an extra unit to their lots.
The Department of City Planning estimated that their original proposal could fuel the creation of more than 100,000 new apartments over the next 15 years to put a major dent in the city’s dire housing shortage.
Councilmembers voted to approve a modified version of the plan that will lower that amount to around 80,000 new units, officials said. The Council-backed proposal will specifically limit the number of new units in flood zones, eliminate new development in low-density districts and maintain minimum off-street parking rules in many projects that housing experts say come at the expense of actual apartments and condos.
“Today wasn't about achieving anyone’s perfect vision,” Manhattan Councilmember Shaun Abreu said. “By passing the ‘City of Yes,’ we will be a better city tomorrow than we were yesterday.”
Abreu and other members praised the funding commitments, saying zoning changes alone don’t automatically lead to housing most New Yorkers can afford.
Administration officials agreed to the Council’s funding demands during the final stretch of negotiations on Thursday morning, after talks were held up overnight, according to two of the officials.
Four people familiar with the negotiations said Gov. Kathy Hochul has committed $1 billion to help the city fund the investments contained in the agreement, after Adams administration officials appealed to her for assistance. Hochul will include the funding in her state budget proposal in January, and it will be spread out over multiple years, according to a source familiar with her plans but not authorized to speak about them publicly.
Under a Hochul initiative, the state has begun rewarding municipalities that update zoning codes to allow for more housing.
The full Council is expected to vote on the proposal next month.
Jon Campbell contributed reporting. This is a developing story and will be updated.
Mayor Adams' signature housing plan faces key test in Council Thursday NYC Council agrees housing crisis needs a fix, but many members question Mayor Adams’ plan Will the Council say ‘no’ to Mayor Adams’ City of Yes? We get a preview next week.