- Zoning reforms likely to spur affordable housing development – The recently adopted “City of Yes: Housing Opportunity” (COYHO) amendments to New York City’s Zoning Resolution aim to tackle the affordability crisis through new initiatives such as increasing the base floor area ratio (FAR) allowed in many mid- to high-density districts, creating two new high-density districts, and establishing a Universal Affordability Preference (UAP). The UAP permits the construction of floor area in addition to the base allowed, as long as the additional floor area is provided in the form of affordable housing. When paired with the state’s 485x real estate tax abatement program and the additional building height allowed for UAP projects, this could provide the financial incentive that many developers of rental housing need to add affordable options.
- An expected uptick in office-to-residential conversions – In the wake of the pandemic, older office buildings are becoming increasingly attractive as candidates for conversion to residential use. COYHO encourages this trend by dramatically simplifying the conversion regulations of Article I, Chapter 5 (the Chapter), which formerly governed such conversions in Manhattan below 60th Street and in portions of Queens and Brooklyn and applied only to buildings existing on Dec. 15, 1961 (or, for Lower Manhattan, prior to Jan. 1, 1977). Most significantly, the recent changes extend the right to convert under the Chapter to a much larger group of commercial buildings existing on Dec. 30, 1990, in all five boroughs. The new rules also allow offices to be converted to a variety of different housing types, in addition to standard Class A apartment buildings. Single room occupancy options (rooming units) and co-living conditions are permitted, though a restriction remains on philanthropic institutions with sleeping accommodations, which are required to be Class A occupancy units.
- New parking rules could boost residential construction – By rolling back costly parking mandates for residential construction in areas near mass transit, the city has removed a decades-old barrier to housing construction. The city now requires zero parking for multifamily developments in most of Manhattan and other areas close to a mass transit station (called the Inner Transit Zone), and it has significantly reduced parking requirements in parts of the outer boroughs that are either within a quarter or half-mile of a mass transit station (called the Outer Transit Zone). The removal or reduction of the parking mandate could make many projects more financially feasible, as it would enable developers to avoid costly excavation and sub-surface development costs, while maintaining the flexibility to respond in appropriate cases to market demand for parking. This approach has been adopted in various forms throughout the state, including in Buffalo, Rochester, and Ithaca, as well as dozens of towns and cities nationwide.
- Manufacturing districts evolve to meet new demand – A wider array of uses will now be permissible within manufacturing districts that are remapped with a suffix “A.” Former factories and warehouses could find new life as large retail outlets, entertainment facilities, research laboratories, or universities, for example. A diversification of uses permitted in commercial overlay districts has also been authorized, as has the presence of some small-scale light manufacturing, such as bakeries, in all commercial districts.
- Buildings encouraged to go greener – The city estimates that recent zoning changes focused on sustainability will facilitate environmentally friendly retrofits for more than 50,000 buildings. The changes include removing zoning impediments to rooftop solar and electrification installations, creating a more generous allowance for deductions from FAR for wall thickness that promotes enhanced energy efficiency, and increasing yard obstruction allowances for outdoor equipment such as electric heat pumps. The changes also allow for facilities additions to the energy grid in a wider array of zoning districts.
About the Author:
Based in New York City, Deirdre A. Carson is a shareholder in Greenberg Traurig's Land Use Practice. With more than 30 years of experience as a New York land use attorney, Carson focuses her practice on representing developers, real estate investors and educational institutions in land use and zoning matters. Her experience includes handling environmental quality reviews before an array of city departments and boards. She also has represented many property owners and developers in negotiating development rights purchase and sale agreements and has helped clients obtain multiple rezonings to permit new residential uses at higher densities with affordable housing. Additionally, she advises investors and developers in the acquisition and development of warehouse and distribution facilities.