New York Construction Report staff writer
The ‘Making New York Work for Everyone’ action plan released on Dec. 14 includes 40 proposals
“We are no longer living in the same New York as we were at the beginning of the pandemic, and these proposals will help to revitalize our business districts, ease New Yorkers’ commutes, promote equity and tackle our 800,000-unit housing shortage,” said Governor Kathy Hochul.
“These are the types of bold, ambitious ideas we need right now.”
A panel appointed in May 2021 addressed a wide range of challenges – from transportation to housing to the need for great public space to childcare – and the plan focuses on five areas key areas of action in the coming year:
- Make Midtown and other central business districts more mixed-use and flexible by removing regulatory barriers to market-based conversion and redevelopment of outdated office buildings to residential and by allowing flexibility to repurpose space for economic activity.
- Pursue major public realm interventions to transform Midtown and other business districts into modern, pedestrian-oriented places.
- Increase the supply of housing by removing regulatory barriers to housing growth across the city, to increase affordability, reduce displacement and encourage inclusive communities, ensure workers have access to stable housing, and give employers confidence that they can retain and attract talent in New York City. and State legislative changes will encourage housing production for all income levels to address the need for hundreds of thousands of new housing units across the city and state over the next decade.
A new, dedicated senior advisor in the Mayor’s Office of Policy and Planning will be hired to staff the steering group and oversee the day-to-day management of implementing the plan.
“The COVID-19 pandemic’s far-reaching impact on our way of life compels us to come up with bold new ways to grow and sustain an economy that will truly benefit everyone in Queens and throughout our city,” said Queens Borough President Donovan Richards Jr. “The recommendations of the New New York panel lay out a sound path for securing a prosperous future for our business districts and for achieving an equitable and robust economy for the entire region.”
