PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Bria Donohue, Senior Manager of Government Affairs at American Institute of Architects, New York on City of Yes for Housing Opportunity
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90 sec
Bria Donohue, representing the American Institute of Architects, New York, strongly supports the proposed City of Yes for Housing Opportunity zoning text amendment. She argues that the proposal is crucial for addressing the city's housing shortage by eliminating restrictive zoning laws and enabling every neighborhood to contribute to building affordable housing.
- The proposal takes an "all the above" approach, with each component building on others to create needed housing.
- Architects' analysis shows the proposal would meaningfully change what is buildable, making more sites developable and financially feasible.
- Donohue urges the city council to pass the proposal in its entirety to achieve the intended impact of over 100,000 units over the next 15 years.
Bria Donohue
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Good morning.
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Thank you, Cherry.
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At members of the sub committee of zoning and franchises for holding this hearing today.
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I'm Bria Donahue, senior manager of Government Affairs at the American Institute of Architects, New York.
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We represent more than 5000 architects and design professionals committed to positively impacting the physical and social qualities of our city.
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AA New York strongly supports the proposed city wide zoning tax amendment, city of yes for housing opportunity.
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Our city's housing shortage is in no small part, a result of decades of restrictive zoning laws.
0:53:29
The proposal takes an all the above approach, making critical changes to the city zoning to eliminate antiquated barriers that restrict development and enabling every neighborhood to do their part to build affordable housing.
0:53:40
Zoning changes on their own will not solve the city's housing crisis, but rather they serve as a critical vehicle to unlock opportunity.
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We urge the city council to pass the proposal in its entirety.
0:53:51
Each component of the proposal builds on the others to create the housing we need.
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Take out parking mandates, for example, and key elements of the of the proposal, like transit oriented development, town center zoning or accessory dwelling units do not work.
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To achieve the intended impact of over 100,000 units over the next 15 years, the proposal must be passed with all key proposals intact.
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Architects have done robust analysis of the projects in their pipeline, and the answer is clear.
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This proposal meaningfully changes what is buildable, enabling sites to reach critical thresholds of being developable and financially feasible.
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Today, I encourage you to say Yesta Housing and vote in favor of the city of Yesta for housing opportunity.
0:54:29
Thank you.
