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TESTIMONY

Andrea Goldwyn from the New York Landmarks Conservancy on concerns about the City of Yes for Housing Opportunity initiative

0:56:41

·

3 min

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Andrea Goldwyn, representing the New York Landmarks Conservancy, expresses significant concerns about the City of Yes for Housing Opportunity initiative. She criticizes the rushed process, lack of public engagement, and potential negative impacts on neighborhoods and historic preservation.

  • Goldwyn argues that the initiative would be the largest change to New York's zoning resolution in decades, yet has had insufficient public outreach and input compared to smaller rezoning efforts.
  • She highlights concerns about the removal of ULURP requirements for many land use actions, the potential loss of green spaces, and the unclear outcomes regarding affordable housing creation.
  • The Conservancy appreciates some aspects, such as easing rules for commercial-to-residential conversions and new opportunities for landmarks to transfer unused development rights, but calls for a slower, more deliberative process overall.
  • Concerns about the rushed process and lack of meaningful public outreach
  • Opposition to removing ULURP requirements for many land use actions
  • Support for easing rules for converting commercial buildings to residential
  • Appreciation for new opportunities for landmarks to transfer unused development rights
  • Concern about potential impacts on older buildings and special districts
  • Worry about prioritizing new construction over green spaces and backyards
  • Skepticism about the proposal's ability to create affordable housing
  • Request for more time for residents to learn about the implications of the proposal

[EXPERIMENTAL]

Which elements of City of Yes for Housing Opportunity were discussed in this testimony?

  • UAP
  • Residential Conversions
  • Campuses

The following are AI-extracted quotes and reasoning about which elements of the proposal were discussed in this testimony.

This is a quick, close approximation. Occasionally, the connection between a testimony's transcript and specific elements of City Planning's proposal is tenuous.

Read about this AI-generated analysis here.

UAP

"It's hard to see how many will opt to create affordable units with UAP bonuses."

This quote directly mentions the UAP (Universal Affordability Preference) bonuses, which is a key element of the proposal. The speaker is expressing skepticism about the effectiveness of this element in creating affordable housing.

Residential Conversions

"So we appreciate the rules for conversions of commercial buildings for residential will be eased."

This quote directly addresses the element of residential conversions from commercial buildings, which is a key part of the City of Yes For Housing Opportunity proposal.

Campuses

"In the seeming contradiction to others in the initiatives, this proposal prioritizes new construction over backyards and open campus space."

This quote suggests that the speaker is aware of and discussing the campus element of the proposal, specifically mentioning how it might affect open spaces on campuses.

About this analysis:

This analysis is done by AI that reasons whether or not a quote from the testimony discusses a particular element of the proposal.

All the prompts and data are open and available on Github.

You can search for testimonies that mentioned a specific element in the table on the main meeting page.

When an element is explicitly stated in the testimony (e.g. "Universal Affordability Preference" or "UAP"), the analysis is accurate.

But the connection between a quote from the testimony and an element of the proposal is sometimes implicit.

In these cases, the AI might eagerly label a testimony as discussing a proposal when the connection is tenuous, or it might omit it entirely.

↗ Why are there transcription and diarization errors?
Andrea Goldwyn
0:56:41
Good morning, Cherilynneck and commissioners.
0:56:43
I'm Andrea Goldman speaking on behalf of the New York Marcus Consurgency.
0:56:47
This is an abbreviated version of our statement.
0:56:50
I'll submit the full version to DCP.
0:56:53
Just want to point out that we do have significant concerns about the process and the content and the projected outcomes of City of Yes for Housing Opportunity.
0:57:02
This would be the biggest change to New York's zoning resolution in decades, yet it has been rolled out in less time and with less meaningful public outreach.
0:57:12
Than many neighborhood or even site rezoning.
0:57:15
We have participated in rezoning processes, developed over years with input from residents, It's there on the ground knowledge about their neighborhoods complementing the city's planners that's led to more appropriate rezoning we feel like those valuable insights are missing here.
0:57:33
DCP has made numerous public appearances and shared the broad outlines But the details that will impact every New Yorker are adding up to thousands of pages.
0:57:43
The public engagement should be deeper.
0:57:46
We appreciate the zoning resolution.
0:57:48
We understand as long as difficult, and we appreciate the attempt to streamline it.
0:57:52
But the rush process has resulted in the need for even more clarification.
0:57:57
If approved, many land use actions will no longer require Euler and the object to this change.
0:58:02
Residents have made investments in their communities.
0:58:04
They should not be deprived of certainty, predictability, and a say in how their neighborhoods evolve and grow.
0:58:11
If we were writing a plan for housing New Yorkers, it would start with utilizing existing resources as much as possible.
0:58:18
Just three materials, concrete, steel, and aluminum are responsible for 23% of global emissions, retrofitting a building as opposed to new construction.
0:58:27
Generally saves 50% to 75% of embodied carbon.
0:58:31
So we appreciate the rules for conversions of commercial buildings for residential will be eased.
0:58:37
As there will be so many new ways to acquire FAR.
0:58:41
We are glad that landmarks will have new opportunities to transfer their unused development rights.
0:58:47
It's our understanding that this will apply only to individual landmarks within or outside of historic districts However, the text should be clarified as some people have read it to mean all buildings in historic district.
0:58:58
Either way, it's still important to retain the existing city council review to ensure the public still has a voice.
0:59:04
But this is only a start.
0:59:06
There is little projection of what this proposal will do to older buildings designated or not.
0:59:13
We are concerned about changes to special districts.
0:59:16
These rules have been developed over the years and are especially calibrated for these communities.
0:59:21
They shouldn't be eliminated.
0:59:23
Another resource that New Yorkers value is their green space.
0:59:26
In the seeming contradiction to others in the initiatives, this proposal prioritizes new construction over backyards and open campus space.
0:59:35
Excuse me, open green spaces.
0:59:36
Finally, the outcome seem unclear.
0:59:38
If passed, this will dramatically change our streets and communities, and will give developers so many options for new larger buildings.
0:59:46
It's hard to see how many will opt to create affordable units with UAP bonuses.
0:59:50
1000 more luxury condo units will not solve the housing affordability crisis.
0:59:56
Just to wrap up, we hope this fast track will slow down we ask city planning to press pause and give residents more time to learn about the implications of this proposal.
1:00:05
Thank you.

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