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Snapshots of government-related real estate news

535 Fourth Avenue in Park Slope got permits prior to the deadline.
535 Fourth Avenue in Park Slope got permits prior to the deadline.

NYC’s biggest building boom in decades coming

New York City developers, hoping to beat the deadline for the 421a tax abatement, scooped up more new residential building permits in the first six months of 2015 than in any full year since 1963, when 50,000 were granted. In all, developers acquired permits for 42,088 apartments and houses, Census Bureau data showed. “We are heading into the stratosphere,” New York Building Congress President Richard Anderson told the Wall Street Journal. Nearly half of the permits were dished out to Brooklyn rental projects, while most of the rest were in Manhattan or Queens. Some were for projects in neighborhoods private developers haven’t touched in years. While some say the surge was due to the scheduled expiration of the 421a program on June 15, a spokesperson for de Blasio said there’s likely more to it. The mayor’s office said new housing is welcome, especially affordable housing. Come January 2016, a modified 421a program will require affordable housing at all participating buildings.

Brooklyn-Queens waterfront streetcar floated

A streetcar in the style of the former Brooklyn & Queens Transit Corp.

A streetcar in the style of the former Brooklyn & Queens Transit Corp.

A proposal for a streetcar or light rail line that connects the Brooklyn and Queens waterfronts is under study by an advisory committee that includes transportation experts, community organizers and some of New York City’s leading developers, including Two Trees, which is developing the Domino Sugar site in Williamsburg, among other area projects. The study looks to address the inadequate transportation between the two boroughs, which continue to see wide-ranging residential and commercial development. One proposal calls for a rail line to stretch from Sunset Park to Astoria, Politico New York reported. The City Planning Commission is involved in the study, but a private operator may be chosen to run the service instead of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, given critical questions about funding.

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Feds pony up $8.9 million for JFK upgrade

Planes waiting in line at JFK

Planes waiting in line at JFK

The runways and airfields at John F. Kennedy International Airport will be upgraded as part of an $8.9 million project funded by the federal government. Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Bill de Blasio applauded the plan, which aims to improve safety and cut the time planes are stuck on the ground, the Associated Press reported. The plan was revealed weeks after Cuomo announced a $4 billion overhaul for LaGuardia Airport. Cuomo said the region needs to improve “its ability to meet the demands of modern air travel.” New York City’s three main airports, including Newark Liberty International, rank among the worst in the country for delays.

Poll shows New Yorkers want a Wal-Mart

Wal-Mart is most popular among New Yorkers earning less than $30,000.

Wal-Mart is most popular among New Yorkers
earning less than $30,000.

A new poll found that the majority of New Yorkers are in favor of bringing a Wal-Mart to New York City, even though de Blasio and a majority of City Council members oppose locating the retail giant in the Big Apple. By a margin of 55 percent to 39 percent, city voters  said elected officials should allow Wal-Mart to set up shop in the boroughs, a Quinnipiac University poll found. Support for Wal-Mart was strongest among those making less than $30,000 per year, while those making over $100,000 were most opposed, Crain’s reported. Voters had mixed opinions about the company’s effects on the city, with almost three-quarters saying its lower prices would benefit shoppers, but nearly the same portion saying the chain’s presence would hurt smaller businesses. Polls aside, there’s no sign the company plans to renew its push to enter the city.

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