On Dec. 8, Mayor Eric Adams released "Get Stuff Built," a report on the building and land use approval streamlining task force (BLAST). The task force was convened from more than two dozen city agencies and was charged with providing recommendations for cutting red tape, streamlining processes and removing administrative burdens. The report includes 111 recommendations focused on streamlining three governmental processes: (1) the land use approval process, (2) City Environmental Quality Review (CEQR) and (3) the Department of Buildings' (DOB) permitting process. The report states that approximately half of the recommendations will be implemented within the next 12 months, while the remaining recommendations will be implemented within the next 24 to 36 months. The methods of implementation include updates to agency technical manuals, City Council approval of local laws or new codes, Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP), and rule-making through the CAPA process. The report estimates that implementing the initiatives would reduce the time to proceed through the city's development processes by 50%.
The report can be found here https://www.nyc.gov/assets/home/downloads/pdf/press-releases/2022/GetStuffBuilt.pdf.
We identify some of the most significant recommendations below.
Land Use Approval
- Simplify Department of City Planning (DCP) application requirements and standards and reform DCP's precertification process to allow applicants to move forward more quickly. Recommendations include removing the Pre-Application Statement requirement and other components of the precertification process when not necessary.
- Streamline the discretionary review process by amending the Zoning Resolution to simplify special permits through unified findings and requirements, reclassifying some special permit actions as certifications or authorizations, and simplifying design requirements for privately owned public spaces (POPS).
- Allow earlier filing of ULURP applications by allowing most projects to skip a draft application review. Earlier filing would also make applications available to community boards well in advance of certification.
CEQR
- Amend the Type II checklist to exempt more types of actions from CEQR. For example, the report suggests potentially exempting housing projects of up to 200 units.
- Streamline the production of CEQR documents by creating standard templates for EAS forms, chapters, appendices and executive summaries.
- Streamline the Reasonable Worst Case Development Scenario (RWCDS) step of CEQR review by improving guidance in the CEQR Technical Manual.
- Update methodologies in the CEQR Technical Manual for socioeconomic, community facility, air quality and construction analyses.
DOB Permitting
- Create a centralized, "one stop shop" portal to process construction-related transactions across all city agencies involved in construction approval, permitting and signoff activities. This change will simplify an applicant's obligation to obtain multiple agency signoffs and will incorporate the tracking of these approvals in an integrated permitting system.
- Transfer responsibility from FDNY to DOB for the plan review and inspection of construction-related permits for fire alarms, fire suppression systems and range hoods.
- Facilitate remote DOB inspections to achieve significant time savings and efficiencies for applicants and DOB staff.
- Remove prior DOB zoning review as a prerequisite to LPC approval of new buildings and additions.
- Streamline the issuance of temporary certificates of occupancy (TCOs) by allowing correction of minor objections, such as clerical errors, by self-certification and allowing the submittal of multiple separate TCO requests on large projects without having to first obtain final approval on earlier separate TCO requests.
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