RED ALERT – 5-ALARM FIRE – 911 – SERIOUSLY – READ BELOW!

 Greetings,

Just when you thought it couldn't get any worse than City of Yes, the Charter Commission released a report that threatens to upend every neighborhood in NYC, even if we prevail in our lawsuit. Back in December, four days after the City of Yes was passed with modifications by the City Council, the Mayor convened this Charter Revision Commission to craft ballot proposals that includes everything he wanted – and then some. You can read the full report here.

Check out what they are considering putting up for a vote this year:

• BALLOT QUESTION #1: Fast Tracking Affordable Housing
• BALLOT QUESTION #2: Simplify Review of Modest Housing and Infrastructure Projects
• BALLOT QUESTION #3: Establish a Land Use Appeals Board with Council, Borough, and Citywide Voices
• BALLOT QUESTION #4: Modernize the City Map
• BALLOT QUESTION #5: Even Year Elections

Let's focus on the first three proposals, in order of how bad they are for us. (ELURP = Expedited Land Use Review Process)

Language supporting Ballot Question #2: 
"In low-density districts (zoned R1 through R5), ELURP would be available only for zoning map changes to another low- density district, enabling modest multifamily housing with a standard height limit of not more than 45 feet and a maximum residential FAR of not more than 2.0"

In a nutshell, this means apartment buildings will be allowed in current low-density zones - EVERYWHERE. For reference, 45 feet tall apartment buildings at a 2.0 FAR is the equivalent of an R5D zone. This would allow, for example, a four-story apartment building with six units and no parking replacing a typical one-family house on a 40’ x 100’ lot in an R2 zone.

"In medium- and high-density areas (zoned R6 and above), ELURP would enable a type of gentle increase in density that ULURP effectively prohibits. Specifically, zoning map changes that result in an increase in standard residential capacity of 30% or less would be eligible for ELURP."

This means that every current zone in this category would allow the height and density of the next highest zone - EVERYWHERE. Tall and dense buildings will become taller and denser.

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Language supporting Ballot Question #3:​

"To strike a better balance between local, boroughwide, and citywide voices in the land use review process, this proposal would replace the mayoral veto with a new three-person body: an Appeals Board with representation from the Borough President of the affected borough, the Speaker, and the Mayor, or their designees. If two-thirds of the Appeals Board agrees, a City Council disapproval of a land use action, or individual modifications made by the Council, could be reversed."

This basically brings back the old Board of Estimate - which was abolished in 1989 for being unconstitutional and brought about our current form of government - in a slightly different version and eliminates Councilmember deference, or the idea that if there’s a project or rezoning in a Councilmember’s district that constituents are opposed to and that Councilmember states opposition, the rest of the Council will respect that and vote against it. This would allow for this new “Appeals Board” to reverse the Council’s decision. In reality, a developer wouldn't have to care as much about pleasing and negotiating with the local Councilmember who reports directly to the affected constituents under this Appeals Board.

Language supporting Ballot Question #1:
 
"The Affordable Housing Fast Track is a targeted effort to promote more equitable development of affordable housing while preserving the ordinary process of land use review in most of the city. Under this proposal, the Affordable Housing Fast Track would only come into play in the 12 community districts that permit the least affordable housing — that is, the bottom fifth of all districts. By design, this proposal would affect only outlier districts: the few that produce the lowest affordable housing.”

This will mean that there will be increased targeted development steered to 20% of Community Boards on top of all of the regular development that we will see over that time. This is an idea that was part of Corey Johnson’s Planning Together abomination that we killed in early 2022. It was a terrible idea then and remains one today.

This directly targets most of the outer boroughs, especially those considered transit deserts.

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Folks – this Mayor remains laser-focused on destroying our neighborhoods to help “his developers” as he has called them repeatedly. And, just for your edification, at a Town Hall meeting last week, he was asked directly about the Charter Revision Commission by no other than Chair of Community Board 11, Paul DiBenedetto. You can watch the exchange for yourself here.

Paul DiBenedetto: “Exactly 4 days after the vote for City of Yes, you convened the City Charter Commission to take away the recommendation-only, non-binding power of Community Boards, through their all-important participation in the ULURP process, which stands for Uniform Land Use Review Procedure. If you want to do a zoning change or you want to do the City of Yes, which is a zoning change, it’s got to go Community Board first – so we can all hear it, the public hears it – then it goes to the Borough President, City Planning Commission and then it goes to City Council. And you appointed the head of the City Planning Commission, so City of Yes is yours. But most importantly, the City Charter Commission that you called for also looks to take away Councilmember deference on local land issues – and tell me if I’m wrong: Community Boards are a city agency filled with civic members from the local community who know their neighborhoods better than anyone else. Local Councilmembers are elected by that same community and, again, know their community best. Why would you want to reduce the democratic representation that the people in this room gathered tonight have relied upon to protect our homes, businesses and quality of life since the 1970s?”
 
Eric Adams: “It’s so important that the Charter Commission…I don’t give them their directives. They meet. They hold hearings, like the Community Boards when they do. They hear what comes from the body of the people and their recommendations. Then they put it to a vote. So, it’s not what Eric wants – it goes to a vote, and then the people of this city would vote on the Charter Commission ballot amendments. Based on what the people of this city, the majority votes – it’s not three-fourths, one-fourth – it’s the majority of the people, they will make the determination. If what those experts and other community residents determine to be these changes. That’s going to be solely up to the people of the city if they want them or they don’t want them.
 
Paul DiBenedetto: “But were you involved in putting that together? And, is this something that you believe in too? Do you think that Community Boards should not be involved in ULURP and do you think that Councilmembers should not have deference, local deference?”
 
Eric Adams: “I believe in whatever the people of their community vote on. That’s what I believe. You know, I’m not going to walk into a pre-determined decision if the people of this community and other communities, they’re all on Community Boards. If they believe that Councilmembers should have local deference, they believe that Community Boards should be part of the ULURP process, they’re going to vote and whatever way that vote goes, I’m going to follow the law.”
  
Mayor Adams is acting like an innocent bystander in what may become one of the most egregious power grabs in the history of New York City. Charter Revision Commissions are created and empowered to push the agenda of those that create it, whether it is the Mayor or the City Council. The rogue’s gallery that makes up this particular Charter Revision Commission is stacked with many of the same people and groups that were directly behind the original City of Yes before the City Council modifications (which are still awful and why we are going to court on July 16th). This commission is Eric Adams incarnate. He is not incidental; he is its progenitor.

Make no mistake: Eric Adams has been and continues to be directly responsible for the dismemberment and destruction of our city for the sole benefit of “his developers” – and himself.

If you can attend the hearing tomorrow (Monday, July 7) in person or by Zoom, please sign up here.

If you can’t attend, please write testimony in opposition and email it here before July 15th.

Also, contact your Councilmember. My guess is that they are not amused by this plan to take away a huge amount of their power and influence. Step up your game, Council- members; if you don’t, you only have yourself to blame.