Michele Birnbaum from Historic Park Avenue on concerns with the City of Yes for Housing Opportunity proposal
5:59:44
·
3 min
Michele Birnbaum, founder and president of Historic Park Avenue, expresses opposition to the City of Yes for Housing Opportunity proposal. She argues that while zoning laws may need updates, this resolution is too broad and challenging, potentially risking residents' health, security, and well-being.
- Criticizes the removal of height limits for new residential construction, citing increased carbon footprint and negative impacts on light and air
- Raises concerns about the proposal allowing mixed-use developments, including businesses in residential buildings, which could lead to safety issues and reduced quality of life
- Questions the enforcement of regulations for home businesses and expresses worry about the potential for Airbnb-style rentals in stable neighborhoods
- Zoning laws are important for avoiding chaos and preserving history
- Removing height limits for new residential construction will increase carbon footprint and negatively impact light and air
- The proposal lacks detail and will lower the standard of living
- Concerns about apartments with shared bathrooms and mixing residential with commercial uses
- Potential increase in Airbnb-style rentals in stable neighborhoods
- Safety concerns about strangers in residential buildings due to mixed-use
- Lack of proper ventilation for proposed home businesses like nail salons
- Difficulty in enforcing time limits on home businesses
[EXPERIMENTAL]
Which elements of City of Yes for Housing Opportunity were discussed in this testimony?
- Residential Conversions
- ADU
- Small and Shared Housing
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.
Residential Conversions
"Apartments with bathrooms in the hall and neighbors that have nail salons, barbershops, and agriculture, which will be mainly cannabis in the apartment next to yours, does not represent an improvement in the name of creating affordable housing."
This quote indicates discussion of residential conversions, as it mentions the possibility of having various businesses like nail salons and barbershops in apartments, which aligns with the proposal's aim to allow for more flexible use of residential spaces.
"Businesses and residential buildings mean that strangers will be in the hallways, and bars and rooftops will increase noise for residents at all hours."
This quote further discusses the mixing of businesses and residential spaces, which is a key aspect of the residential conversions proposal.
ADU
"An area zone for one family homes has not been approved by committing additional adjacent structures on the land. Infringing on your neighbor's privacy and safety even if you choose to do it."
This quote discusses the addition of structures on land zoned for single-family homes, which aligns with the ADU proposal to allow homeowners to add small homes on their property.
"You can't guarantee that a family extension will be in those ADUs."
This quote directly mentions ADUs and expresses concern about who might occupy them, indicating a discussion of the Accessory Dwelling Units proposal.
Small and Shared Housing
"Apartments with bathrooms in the hall and neighbors that have nail salons, barbershops, and agriculture, which will be mainly cannabis in the apartment next to yours, does not represent an improvement in the name of creating affordable housing."
This quote mentions apartments with shared bathrooms in the hall, which is a characteristic of small and shared housing as described in the proposal.
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.
Follow-up discussion/remarks
Chair Garodnick clarifies changes made to City of Yes for Economic Opportunity proposal
6:03:14
·
43 sec
Chair Dan Garodnick addresses Michele Birnbaum's concerns by noting that some of her points relate to the City of Yes for Economic Opportunity proposal, which has undergone changes since its initial presentation. He encourages her to review the detailed email sent to community board members outlining these modifications.
- Changes were made after the proposal went from community board to City Planning Commission
- Further changes occurred after the City Planning Commission sent it to the city council
- Garodnick emphasizes that a comprehensive email detailing these changes has been sent to community board members
- Zoning laws are important for avoiding chaos and preserving history
- Removing height limits for new residential construction will increase carbon footprint and negatively impact light and air
- The proposal lacks detail and will lower the standard of living
- Concerns about apartments with shared bathrooms and mixing residential with commercial uses
- Potential increase in Airbnb-style rentals in stable neighborhoods
- Safety concerns about strangers in residential buildings due to mixed-use
- Lack of proper ventilation for proposed home businesses like nail salons
- Difficulty in enforcing time limits on home businesses
[EXPERIMENTAL]
Which elements of City of Yes for Housing Opportunity were discussed in this testimony?
- Residential Conversions
- ADU
- Small and Shared Housing
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.
Residential Conversions
"Apartments with bathrooms in the hall and neighbors that have nail salons, barbershops, and agriculture, which will be mainly cannabis in the apartment next to yours, does not represent an improvement in the name of creating affordable housing."
This quote indicates discussion of residential conversions, as it mentions the possibility of having various businesses like nail salons and barbershops in apartments, which aligns with the proposal's aim to allow for more flexible use of residential spaces.
"Businesses and residential buildings mean that strangers will be in the hallways, and bars and rooftops will increase noise for residents at all hours."
This quote further discusses the mixing of businesses and residential spaces, which is a key aspect of the residential conversions proposal.
ADU
"An area zone for one family homes has not been approved by committing additional adjacent structures on the land. Infringing on your neighbor's privacy and safety even if you choose to do it."
This quote discusses the addition of structures on land zoned for single-family homes, which aligns with the ADU proposal to allow homeowners to add small homes on their property.
"You can't guarantee that a family extension will be in those ADUs."
This quote directly mentions ADUs and expresses concern about who might occupy them, indicating a discussion of the Accessory Dwelling Units proposal.
Small and Shared Housing
"Apartments with bathrooms in the hall and neighbors that have nail salons, barbershops, and agriculture, which will be mainly cannabis in the apartment next to yours, does not represent an improvement in the name of creating affordable housing."
This quote mentions apartments with shared bathrooms in the hall, which is a characteristic of small and shared housing as described in the proposal.
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.