'Yes In My Backyard': Mayor Vows More Housing In Sweeping Zoning Plan

NEW YORK, NY — A long list of zoning changes unveiled Wednesday could turn the Big Apple from a NIMBY haven to a "City of Yes," according to Mayor Eric Adams.

“We are going to turn New York into a ‘City of Yes’ — yes in my backyard, yes on my block, yes in my neighborhood,” Adams said of a sweeping zoning plan he contends will boost businesses, housing and sustainability.

The plan, broken into three parts, proposes nixing or reworking various zoning rules that officials say have made it hard for New Yorkers to grow businesses, build housing or reduce carbon emissions while doing so.

Under the housing contingent, officials said the changes will make it easier to convert offices into residential space, increase the amount or type of housing that can be built on certain properties and ditch what they say are outdated parking requirements that take up housing space. A full list of the zoning changes hadn't been released as of Wednesday afternoon.

"The overarching goal: build more housing across the city and change the rules to enable it starting now," Adams said.

The zoning plan already won the support of at least some of the city's housing advocates, who said Wednesday it is a "powerful tool to create a clear pathway to a more equitable and inclusive city."

But it remains to be seen how it will fare with activists who have argued Adams has so far been more focused on removing homeless New Yorkers from sight without offering real housing solutions.

A perhaps more popular part of the plan, Adams' proposed commercial zoning changes includes a long-sought-after update to zoning rules about dancing in New York City bars, which despite the repeal of a controversial Cabaret Law was still restricted for most businesses.

“After such difficult times, New Yorkers deserve the right to dance freely and celebrate our great city," said New York City Council Majority Leader Keith Powers, who had pushed for the zoning update. This is a great dance, dance, resolution.”

The commercial changes also include changing parking requirements when businesses expand and removing some geographic limitations on what types of businesses operate where — such as a rule that would require a bakery to move to a manufacturing district to start making its products for local markets.

"It would be great if they could expand into the vacant storefront next door. But under current rules, they would have to move their entire operation to a manufacturing district," Adams said. "We're going to change that no to a yes."

Finally, the sustainability portion of the mayor's plan would make it easier for developers to set up electric vehicle charging stations, clean energy storage, rooftop solar panels and make their buildings electric, Adams said.

His "City of Yes" initiative also creates a fund for capital investments and a task force that will speed up the review process for development applications.

The zoning changes themselves might not be as speedy. Asked about when they would be implemented, Adams said Wednesday some might take years to get on the books.

"We're going to push as quickly as possible," he said. "Some of this stuff is going to take the three years to get what we want to accomplish ... but we are going to be on the fast track."

Find out more about the plan here.