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New legislation mandates district-level production targets for housing and eases restrictive laws and zoning rules.
NEW YORK—New York City Mayor Eric Adams signed legislation on Dec. 13 that establishes a “Fair Housing Framework” that seeks to ensure that every neighborhood plays an equitable role in addressing the city's housing crisis through mandated community district-level housing production targets and an assessment of unique community housing needs.
The bill was sponsored by New York City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams and will be a critical tool in the administration's continued efforts to combat the housing and affordability crisis, as well as to address systemic inequities in housing production, city officials stated.
“For far too long, government has let restrictive laws and zoning rules keep us from building the housing New Yorkers need,” said Mayor Adams. “I am proud to stand side-by-side with Speaker Adams to fight the factors that have contributed to housing discrimination and inequality—together with our 'City of Yes' plan, the Fair Housing Framework will help right some of the great wrongs of our city's history. I look forward to our continued partnership with Speaker Adams and the City Council to fight the city's untenable housing and affordability crisis.”
“Today is a historic day, with my Fair Housing Framework being signed into law, providing another tool to help the city confront our housing crisis through bold and equitable solutions that ensure every community contributes to housing production,” said Speaker Adrienne Adams. “My Fair Housing Framework legislation will help create a plan that is a foundation for building and preserving housing, prioritizing affordability, and improving access to neighborhood investments and resources. By setting the expectation that every community must help address the housing crisis, the law will establish an important tool of transparency and accountability for solving our housing crisis. I thank my council colleagues, advocates, and labor unions for their strong support of this critical legislation, and Mayor Adams for signing it into law.”
The Intro. 1031-A legislation requires HPD and DCP to work with other relevant agencies to create a citywide fair housing assessment and strategic equity framework every five years, exploring the obstacles the city must overcome to achieve housing stability and reach the city's fair housing goals. The city will produce an assessment of long-term citywide housing needs, five-year housing production targets for each community district, and a strategic equity framework that will report on the obstacles and strategies for achieving them. The plan will also focus on the production and preservation of affordable housing, anti-displacement resources, and neighborhood investments for underserved communities.
On Dec. 14, Mayor Adams and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul touted a long laundry list of progress they have made in building a “more inclusive, prosperous ‘New’ New York,” one year after releasing their “Making New York Work for Everyone” action plan last December.
Since convening the “New” New York panel of civic leaders and industry experts to help shape New York City’s and the surrounding downstate region’s path to equitable economic recovery and resurgence and releasing their recommendations, the state and city have boosted subway ridership to hit a new record of more than 4.1 million riders in a day on back-to-back days and increased the number of New Yorkers returning to the office—both to record levels since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic; and drove more New Yorkers to participate in the local economy, especially people of color across New York City, at near-historic rates.
“The recommendations of the ‘New’ New York Panel are our road map to a stronger, fairer, more accessible New York, and over the past year, Mayor Adams and I have worked hand-in-hand to deliver on those recommendations for all New Yorkers,” Governor Hochul said. “We’ve made incredible progress toward creating thousands more units of housing, secured historic investments in child care and mental health, boosted fast-growing industries to create 21st century jobs, improved our transit system and more to build a future that New Yorkers can be proud of. I am committed to working with the Mayor and all of our local, state, and federal partners to fulfill the panel’s recommendations and build a New York that truly works for everyone.”
New York City Mayor Eric Adams said, “New York City has supercharged its economic recovery because we’ve looked towards the future and have not tried to recreate the past. With the partnership of Governor Hochul and the ‘New’ New York panel, we have laid out a bold vision for what a more vibrant, inclusive New York City looks like, and we’ve been relentless in our work to make that vision a reality for New Yorkers. While we have not solved all of New York City’s economic challenges in one year, we have started to shape a “new” city with re-imagined commercial districts, better transportation options, and more inclusive opportunities that will benefit New Yorkers for decades to come.”
To help pave the way for New York City’s economic resurgence, the state and city have made significant progress to achieve the “New” New York action plan’s three core goals to: 1) reimagine New York’s business districts, 2) make it easier for New Yorkers to get to work, and 3) generate inclusive, future-focused growth.
Among some of the numerous achievements the mayor and governor chronicled under the plan included:
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