BY KIM GILL
East New York residents fear the “City of Yes” housing reforms pose a threat to overdevelopment in their community while not addressing infrastructure concerns.
The New York City Council voted 31-20 Dec. 5 to approve Mayor Eric Adams’ amended “City of Yes” plan. The measure that passed included amendments added on November 1st, 2024, addressing affordability issues beyond zoning, infrastructure, and housing protections, the measure won a Council majority.
But Councilmember Chris Banks (D-NY), who represents East New York, voted against the bill to reflect the will of his constituency. In a November 19th, town hall hosted by Banks and Councilwoman Sandy Nurse (D-NY), who represents Bushwick and surrounding areas, Banks referred to the pending vote as “the hardest vote I’ll ever have to take”. He also addressed partial and mis-information regarding the proposal he felt his constituency was unaware of. Banks said all four community boards in the 42nd councilmanic district voted against the City of Yes. He also stated that some of the districts felt the proposal needed adjustments.
Community activist John Joyner agrees. “Mayor Eric Adams’ housing plan throws all the weight on struggling business, property owners and landlords, while protecting people like Donald Trump and other wealthy building owners from doing their part,” said Joyner. Joyner, a community activist from Say No Irresponsible Development in East New York, added that New Yorkers need a more comprehensive plan to achieve housing equity.
On November 1st, 2024, The City Council announced a $5 billion plan to address further the issues the City of Yes did not tackle. After securing capital funding from Mayor Adams (D-NY) and Governor Kathy Hochul (D-NY), the council put together a housing plan to address the root causes of the housing crisis beyond zoning through policy and investments. They wanted measures to increase affordable home ownership housing preservation, and provide more affordable housing options.
Speaker Adrienne Adams said, “New Yorkers need more housing, but affordability, homeownership opportunities, housing security and stability, and neighborhood investments are equally important to help working-and middle-class residents in our city,” she said.
New York City is experiencing a housing crisis with a 1.4% vacancy rate citywide – the lowest since 1968. Most New Yorkers are currently paying more than 30% of their income towards rent. In East New York, Brooklyn, where the poverty rate is higher than the city as a whole, the housing vacancy rate in East New York in 2022 was 3.4%, and the average rent had increased from $1,260 to $1,450 within 16 years.
Some East New Yorkers felt the original proposal didn’t do enough. At the Brooklyn Community Board 5 meeting, Brother Paul Muhammad, a local activist, stated, “This was not designed to empower this community. It was designed to give access to people to get at our homes and our properties.”
Mayor Adams advanced The City of Yes as a housing program to reform zoning laws and create more housing in every district. It will allow developers to reserve 20% of space in new developments to create affordable options and to lift the restrictions on zoning and allow conversion of underutilized buildings to housing. It will allow more housing types, including conversion of basements into apartments, and reduce parking mandates.
However, critics believe the proposal was a way to get developers to take over low-density areas. Critics also worry that the new housing will lack enough parking.
“One of the modifications states they would ease or somewhat roll back the parking requirements in the four zones that were created for each council district to possibly qualify,” said Councilmember Banks. “Every zone had a reduction in parking, and in my district, my issue was that why wasn’t there consideration for zones that needed more parking.” Banks stated.
According to the new bill, there will be a multi-zone system to address parking for new developments. Parking for new developments will be eliminated in Manhattan (with the exception of Inwood), Long Island City, parts of Brooklyn, and parts of western Queens. Parking will be reduced in areas that are accessible by transit, while maintaining parking in areas that are further from subway service.
Banks felt that the parking mandates should have been protected to avoid leaving parking at developers’ discretion. That way, any new developers building in the district would be mandated by the city to provide parking to residents. He also felt that infrastructure was not considered, especially in his district, where there is a lot of development even though there are existing infrastructure issues such as flooding, sewage, and transportation that need to be recognized.
Val Hunter, an East New York activist, was unhappy with the passage and believed that it will only allow the city to overdevelop the community without addressing existing infrastructure issues. “I understand progressive measures, but until current infrastructure issues are made a priority, then why would monies be allotted anywhere else,” Hunter said “especially to over-develop a city that should be a model city offering diverse living options.”
East New Yorkers also point out that the plan offered no pathway to homeownership. “Homeownership was something I stressed over and over again that the plan was empty on, especially in a community like mine, which just had a large housing expansion in the most Southern part of the district,” Banks said. “However, we also need those middle-class folks who, according to our AMI, make $50-$100,000 and want to stay in the district. There’s no housing for them.”
Eu Shaw, an East New York resident, shared this sentiment and thought that the housing search in New York City is a joke. “Take a minute and look at the housing connect website,” he said. “Most apartments you have to earn $80-to-$100,000 per year or be very low income. How many people earn that?”
Activists and advocacy groups in other areas of Brooklyn also were displeased by the proposal passage. Sunset Park Votes, an advocacy group which promotes civic engagement for residents of Sunset Park, said in a statement that “the NYC Council’s recent passage of the modified City of Yes legislation has left the working-class disheartened. While it includes $5 billion for housing, $200 million to reduce NYCHA vacancies, and $187 million for CityFHEPS rental assistance, and $2 million for parks, these measures fall short of addressing the housing crisis for many who need it the most.”
According to Banks, the capital funds allocated for the plan are only commitments and have not yet been budgeted. He fears that those commitments may change in the future but hopes that the city sticks with those commitments.
“We know in this city, in this climate of politics, things change. So I’m praying, and I’m hoping that those commitments stay in place,” he said.
Overall, with the proposal now passed, the Councilmember looks forward to seeing how those modifications will be incorporated into East New York with the zoning changes. He also plans to remain observant of all changes to see and will continue to advocate for his district on the council.