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New York City voters ushered in sweeping changes to land use policy in the November mayoral election, approving four major City Charter amendments recommended by the Charter Revision Commission convened by Mayor Eric Adams in December 2024.
These newly adopted amendments focus on advancing affordable housing and streamlining the approval process for new housing developments citywide. The approved amendments are expected to reduce administrative burdens and shorten approval periods for land use applications. The four approved amendments, known as proposals 2 through 4 on this year's general election ballot, are as follows:
1. Fast Tracking Affordable Housing
Two of the amendments aim to accelerate the development of affordable housing:
(i) Fast Track Zoning Action at the Board of Standards and Appeals ("BSA")
The BSA "fast track" action will streamline the public review process for modifying use, bulk, or parking requirements for publicly financed affordable housing projects developed by Housing Development Fund Companies ("HDFC") in zoning districts where residential uses are already permitted, reducing the review process to 120 days.
The BSA fast track will also alter the criteria applied by the BSA when reviewing an application. Unlike a variance, applicants will not need to demonstrate a "unique physical condition" inherent in the property or seek the "minimum variance necessary." Instead, the BSA will grant approvals based on two findings: (1) necessity, determined in consultation with the Department of Housing Preservation and Development ("HPD"), confirming that the development cannot proceed without the requested modification; and (2) assurance that the proposed building will not alter the essential character of the neighborhood. The BSA may still impose other conditions or restrictions on the development as appropriate.
(ii) Fast Track Zoning Action at the City Planning Commission ("CPC")
Beginning in October 2026, and every five years thereafter, the Department of City Planning ("DCP") and HPD will issue a report on affordable housing production for each of the 59 Community Districts. The 12 Community Districts with the lowest relative growth of affordable housing will be able to access the new CPC fast track program. The CPC fast track program will allow rezoning applications for affordable housing projects subject to the Uniform Land Use Public Review Procedure ("ULURP"), to consolidate the Community Board and Borough President review and recommendation and eliminate the City Council public review and vote. This will significantly shorten the ULURP public review period and provide more certainty to the outcome of these applications.
2. Simplified Review of Modest Housing and Infrastructure Projects
The Expedited Land Use Review Procedure ("ELURP") will create a shortened public review process to replace ULURP for modest projects by consolidating the Community Board and Borough President review and recommendation, shortening the City Planning Commission's review period from 60 days to 30 days and eliminate the City Council's review unless it is required by state law. ELURP reduces the public review timeline from approximately seven months to 90 days.
Eligible projects will include land use applications proposing modest changes, such as: (i) housing proposals that increase residential capacity in R6 – R12 zoning districts (medium and high density zoning districts) by no more than 30%; (ii) zoning map changes in R1 – R5 zoning districts (low density districts) that increase residential capacity up to that of another low density district, (with a height limit of 45 feet and a maximum FAR equal to or less than 2.0 FAR); (iii) dispositions of City-owned property to HDFCs; (iv) acquisitions by HPD, restricted to affordable housing; (v) dispositions of City-owned property to adjacent owners in certain instances; (vi) City map changes for government-sponsored affordable housing and (vii) certain resiliency and climate change infrastructure projects.
ELURP will not be available for any project requiring an Environmental Impact Statement.
3. Affordable Housing Appeals Board
The Affordable Housing Appeals Board will replace the mayoral veto with a new three-person body, that includes the applicable Borough President, the Speaker of the City Council and the Mayor (or their designees), to ensure land use decisions reflect Citywide needs and priorities for actions that involve the creation of affordable housing. Specifically, the Appeals Board will only be available when an affordable housing land use application, located within a single borough, is disapproved by the City Council during the ULURP process. The Affordable Housing Appeals Board can then reverse the City Council's land use decision by a majority (2/3) of the members agreeing to overturn the City Council decision.
4. Modernize the City Map
The proposed Digital City Map will consolidate the official City Map, which currently exists as over 8,000 paper maps held across five separate borough offices. The proposal is a response to testimony from practitioners and former Borough President staff pointing to the current mapping system imposing significant costs and time on infrastructure, housing and other projects. The proposal envisions a three-year consolidation and digitization by January 1, 2029, with staff from the Borough President Topographical Bureaus providing technical expertise, and DCP ensuring consistency and accuracy with City Map changes over time.
We will continue to monitor developments and provide updates on the implementation and impact of these Charter changes.
For more information on the New York City Charter Revision Commission and their 2025 Charter Revision ballots, please visit https://www.nyc.gov/site/charter/index.page.
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