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Q&A
Enhancing the Borough President's role in planning and ULURP
1:04:05
·
4 min
Commissioner Carl Weisbrod asks Borough President Antonio Reynoso if enhancing the Borough President's (BP) role in planning could help elevate broader concerns. Reynoso strongly agrees, arguing the BP's borough-wide view contrasts with council members' local focus and can provide essential context (e.g., comparing housing production across districts), suggesting flipping the ULURP order so the BP reviews after the council member.
- Reynoso uses the examples of Bay Ridge's low housing production versus high production in parts of the Bronx to illustrate the value of a borough-wide perspective.
- He proposes having the BP's ULURP recommendation come after the local council member's input, arguing the current sequence is backwards.
- He also mentions member deference and at-large seats as potential areas for reform to better incorporate citywide interests.
Carl Weisbrod
1:04:05
President.
1:04:06
I know that you you made it clear you don't wanna see us go back to the board of investment, but I I wonder if, you think that the role of the borough president should be enhanced in the planning process and whether that would help in terms of planning more generally, but also elevating Yeah.
1:04:32
The kinds of, concerns that Howard Slack and raised.
Antonio Reynoso
1:04:35
I do I do believe so.
1:04:36
It's, it's an unfortunate thing that I am the borough president, and it seems like a bit selfish.
1:04:41
But in the conversations that I'm currently having with council members, I have a planning division that is extremely aggressive and informs and educates council members to the best of our ability.
1:04:51
And my comprehensive plan gives a, borough wide view of the things we need to do in Bet in Bedford in I'm sorry.
1:05:00
In Bay Ridge, for example.
1:05:03
They've created only 68 units of housing over the last since 1968.
1:05:07
Sixty '8 units.
1:05:08
So I think I think it's a little less than that, but they've created a a lit a small amount of units.
1:05:14
When we present to Bay Ridge, Bay Ridge doesn't have a a comprehensive vision of what's happening in Brooklyn.
1:05:20
They see a 10 story building, and they think the whole world is out of whack and that they've lost everything, and they're gone.
1:05:26
In The Bronx, in one council matic district, they've built over 20,000 units of housing in less than ten years.
1:05:32
When you give that perspective to a comprehensive plan, it makes people feel like they are part of a team, and they're having a conversation about how to help the city.
1:05:39
No one's getting picked on.
1:05:40
They're not attacking you.
1:05:42
Look at this entire city and how it works, and you understand what development looks like.
1:05:48
I have that perspective as a borough wide official.
1:05:51
I can see what's, that in one council member's district, they shut down every single project before it even starts.
1:05:57
Should I have any authority?
1:05:58
I wouldn't allow that to happen.
1:06:00
I would allow the process at least to take its course and get to a place where a vote can happen at the city council or at the borough president's office, I would extend it.
1:06:09
But that council member has like, they they have local local values or local local vision.
1:06:18
They're never gonna go past that, Carl.
1:06:19
Yep.
1:06:19
And and there's some that do it.
1:06:21
We have a couple of council members that do it, and they get killed for it.
1:06:25
And they their jobs are threatened for doing what's good for the city.
Carl Weisbrod
1:06:28
And and I know you've seen it from both perspectives, both as a council member and as a borough president.
1:06:32
Yeah.
1:06:33
So I would be very interested, not necessarily right now, but if you could suggest
Shams DaBaron
1:06:39
Yeah.
Carl Weisbrod
1:06:40
To us Yeah.
1:06:41
Very specific ways that you think the charter could be, amended to strengthen the role of the borough president in this process to to establish a a a broader perspective.
Antonio Reynoso
1:06:54
Yeah.
1:06:54
So I do think that we should consider flipping the timeline and allowing for the borough president to go after the council member.
1:07:02
I just really think that it's, to go from a borough wide view on how development should happen and then go back to a very local view as to what should happen is a backwards system.
1:07:15
I'm trying to give a recommendation that's good for the borough.
1:07:17
The council member is gonna look out for the interest of the count the city council district.
1:07:22
And, I have a recommendation.
1:07:25
So I I just really wanna speak to what's good for the city is more important than what's good for a local community, and a lot of people do not have that perspective.
1:07:33
And and I think, having a borough president go after the council would be something we could consider, or, member deference is a big issue.
1:07:41
I was in the city council too.
1:07:43
I benefited from all of these things that I'm talking about now, but my perspective is wanna say evolved or changed since I've become borough president.
1:07:51
But I would say that if I were to revert back to being a council member, the interest of the community would be something that it was more heightened at a local level than it is at a borough wide level.
1:07:59
So I wouldn't have changed what I've done.
1:08:01
But I do think maybe the borough president going after or a better way to at large seats is something that I've heard of as well.
1:08:08
Just a way to make it so that the council members have a lot of authority, really set the tone, but that we can get to a place where we're all contributing to the greater good, which is not happening right now.
1:08:19
Thank you.