The city’s process for approving some housing projects is about to get a makeover
Unofficial results show the four housing-related measures, three of which were vehemently opposed by the City Council, are poised to pass. Pro-housing groups declared victory Tuesday night.
“This election, New Yorkers had the chance to choose more housing at the ballot box—and they chose it overwhelmingly,” Open New York’s Andrew Fine said in a statement. “For too long, our public conversation on housing has been dominated by a few loud and well-housed voices yelling no.”
Richard Buery, chair of the mayor’s Charter Revision Commission, said he is looking forward to working with the Mayor-elect to “ensure these tools are put to good work to deliver the affordable housing that New Yorkers so desperately need.”
Proponents of the housing measures pointed to the informal veto power individual Council members have over rezonings, thanks to the Council’s tradition of voting according to the wishes of the local member. Opposition from a local Council member can kill a project or even discourage developers from attempting to pursue a project in certain parts of the city.
City Council leaders, as well as some of the city’s most prominent labor unions, argued that the trio of measures stripped Council members of their ability to negotiate on behalf of their communities. Two of the measures will allow some housing projects to bypass City Council review. Another creates an appeals board that can reverse City Council rejections of projects.
“These misleading ballot proposals permanently change the City’s constitution to weaken democracy, lasting beyond the next mayor when we inevitably have a mayor who is bad on housing, equity, and justice for communities,” Benjamin Fang-Estrada, a City Council spokesperson said in a statement on Tuesday. “This will leave our city without the checks and balances of democracy to protect New Yorkers and ensure outcomes that prioritize them, not simply profits.”
These three housing questions were the most controversial:
- One measure creates two “fast-track” options for approving housing. One allows the Board of Standards and Appeals to sign off on zoning changes for publicly-funded affordable housing. Such projects would not have to go through the city’s Uniform Land Use Review Procedure.
The other option applies to affordable housing projects proposed in the 12 community districts that have approved the least amount of affordable housing. Starting in October 2026, the city will release a report identifying which districts have permitted the least amount of affordable housing in the previous five years. Such projects will go through a condensed Ulurp: Community Boards will have the same amount of time to review these proposals (60 days), but the applicable borough president will review the proposal at the same time, rather than for 30 days after the community board’s review. The City Planning Commission, which will then have 30 days to review instead of 60, will have the final vote on these proposals, rather than the City Council.
- Another measure creates a new land use review process for “modest” housing and infrastructure projects. This new review process, dubbed Expedited Land Use Review Procedure or Elurp, will apply to housing projects in medium- or high-density districts that increase residential capacity by no more than 30 percent or to housing projects in low-density districts that are no taller than 45 feet and have a maximum floor area ratio of two. Proposals to put solar panels on public buildings or other land will also qualify.
Elurp will follow the same timeline outlined in the previous measure, but depending on the project type, either the City Planning Commission or the City Council’s review is skipped. (Some projects require review by the City Council under state law.) - This measure will replace the mayoral veto on certain projects with a three-person appeals board, consisting of the mayor, City Council speaker and the applicable borough president. Ulurp currently ends with the mayor, who usually goes along with whatever action the City Council takes (with a few exceptions). The appeals board will be able to reverse the City Council’s rejection of projects that would create affordable housing. Such projects can only affect one borough. The appeals board can also restore such project proposals to the version approved by the City Planning Commission, undoing modifications approved by the City Council.
A fourth housing proposal, which would create a consolidated, digitized City Map, was less controversial. The City Map is the official street map of the city and consists of more than 8,000 pieces of paper, administered across five borough presidents’ offices. This proposal creates a single, digital map overseen by the Department of City Planning.