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Land Use Reports:

Building the Next New York
This report by the Regional Plan Association recommends principles and policies for large real estate projects. 2012-05-21

Parking at East River Plaza
The 1,248 parking space garage at East Harlem's big box mall, East River Plaza, has gone mostly unused, according to this report released by the American Planning Association. Only about a third of shoppers there drive, it concludes, making the garage a waste of public funds and a lost opportunity for additional development. 2012-04-25

The Garment District
For this new report on the Garment District, the Municipal Art Society conducted case studies, gathered new data, interviewed dozens of experts, compiled other studies of the fashion industry, researched the history and explored a variety of policy recommendations.  2011-10-18

New Uses for Stymied Plots
Stalled construction sites are often littered or in disrepair and can block sidewalks, according to a report by Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer that surveyed all 129 such sites in Manhattan. In the report, Arrested Development, Stringer calls for putting some or all of the sites into use, even if only temporarily. He said some of the locations now serve as exhibition spaces, a café or a skating rink. 2011-09-27

How Staten Island Has Changed Over 20 Years
This new report by the Center for an Urban Future examines the changes in Staten Island over the past 20 years. It provides the first comprehensive statistical analysis of the major trends that have shaped the borough, which saw the fastest population growth during this period. 2011-05-05

Transit Falling Behind Outer Borough Growth
A disproportionate share of the city’s recent job growth, transit ridership gains and population increases have occurred in the outer boroughs, but transit service in the boroughs has not kept pace, according to this report by the Center for an Urban Future.  2011-02-24

Effect of Minimum Parking Requirements
Developers never add more parking spaces than are required by the city, which shows that parking minimums artificially inflate the construction of spaces, according to this report by the Furman Center. 2011-02-17

Impact of Bike Lanes
In another indication of rising skepticism about the city's bike lane program, a coalition of Manhattan elected officials, Community Board 7 and Upper West Side Street Renaissance has released a report indicating dissatisfaction with the Columbus Avenue bike lane among local businesses. The group polled businesses on Columbus Avenue about the recent street redesign in the area, including bike lane. Seventy-two percent of the responding businesses said the changes had had a negative impact on them. The report includes a number of recommendations to reconfigure the bike lane. 2011-02-09

A Better Use for the Aqueduct's Land
Video slot machines won’t be enough to save the Aqueduct, according to this report from the Center for an Urban Future, which recommends using its 192 acres of public land for something else entirely. 2010-07-13

Available Housing?
Thousands of condos throughout the city have been vacant for more than six months, according to Right to the City, an alliance of neighborhood and other organizations. It surveyed nine community districts and found 450 partially or completely empty buildings in various stages of construction, with the largest number in downtown Brooklyn. The alliance is urging the city and state to take steps to make these apartments available as affordable housing.  2010-06-08

Completing Coney's Comeback
A report by the Center for an Urban Future suggests 10 ways to make Coney Island more appealing and successful.  2010-04-05

Zoning and New Housing
The massive rezoning carried out by the Bloomberg administration between 2003 and 2007 has created some new housing in the city but the effects vary from borough to borough, according to a new report by NYU’s Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy. The zoning changes increased the city’s capacity for new residential building by 1.7 percent, or roughly 100 million square feet of residential capacity, with Queens gaining the most and the Bronx showing no change. The report also found discrepancies in which areas were upzoned, allowing for greater density, and which ones were downzoned. The administration has tended to allow greater density in black and Hispanic areas while reducing or maintaining it in white neighborhoods.  2010-03-23

Unmarked Addresses
A new survey from Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer found about 4 in 10 locations on Manhattan's busiest thoroughfares do not display their addresses visibly. The report found out of 1,837 locations, 39.7 percent were unmarked. 2010-03-16

The Charter and Land Use
With Mayor Michael Bloomberg having named a commission to look at possible changes in the City Charter, the Pratt Center for Community Development has issued a report on land use issues it thinks the commission should consider. These include what the center sees as a lack of planning by the City Planning Commission, a shortfall in community based planning, and the proliferation of so-called side agreements, such as Community Benefits Agreements  2010-03-09

Hazardous Buildings
A review of buildings in Manhattan by the office of Borough President Scott Stringer found a quarter of a million open Department of Buildings and Environmental Control Board violations in the borough. The report, Falling Apart at the Seams, found 33 percent of those violations were classified as “hazardous,” meaning they warranted “immediate corrective action.” Unresolved hazardous environmental control board violations persist at almost 40 percent of Manhattan’s public schools and 60 percent of public hospital buildings. A spokesperson for the mayor has said the problem is being addressed. 2010-01-25

Kingsbridge Armory and Living Wages
Without mandated living wages at the Kingsbridge Armory, the development would be an economic loss for the city and state, argues this new report by the Drum Major Institute. 2009-12-10

Keeping Eminent Domain in Check
In a report focusing on the redevelopment plan for Willets Point, the Urban Justice Center outlines a series of recommendations that would prevent the city from abusing its eminent domain powers. 2009-09-24

The Cost of Atlantic Yards
The basketball arena planned for the Atlantic Yards project in downtown Brooklyn would cost the city nearly $40 million more in than it will generate in tax revenues over a 30-year period, according to a report released yesterday by the Independent Budget Office. In 2005, the IBO concluded the arena would produce a net fiscal benefit for the city, but since then the city's subsidy for the controversial project has increased, essentially wiping out much, if not all, of the city's projected gain. 2009-09-11

On the Job Fatalities
Immigrant, minority and non-union construction workers are at high risk for on the job fatalities, according to a new report from the New York Committee for Occupational Safety and Health. Titled "Dying for Work in New York," the report states that 219 workers died from occupational injuries in New York State in 2007, 81 of which were in New York City. A decline from the previous year, these figures show the number of Occupational Safety and Health Administration inspectors statewide are insufficient to protect New York workers. 2009-06-16

Possibilities for Private-Public Partnerships
The New York State Commission on State Asset Maximization released its final report this week outlining possible state assets that are suitable for public‐private partnerships. Among the areas it recommends partnerships for are in natural gas drilling upstate, the Gowanus Expressway, transit oriented development at the MTA, and electricity infrastructure. It also calls for the creation of a board that could formally assess public-private proposals with a set of predetermined principals. 2009-06-03

City Trails in Number of High Performance Buildings
New York City has 41 buildings with a LEED rating -- a certification for its efficiency in water and energy use and carbon emissions -- according to a new report by the Center for an Urban Future. That leaves the city in the middle for number of certifications. There are 70 in Chicago, 63 in the comparatively tiny Portland, 55 in Seattle and 47 in Washington, DC. 2009-04-30

Environmental Reviews Should Include Climate Change
New York should require an environmental reviews of land use, energy, industrial, transportation and other projects that includes climate change implications, according to a new report by the Municipal Art Society. The review proposed would incorporate the disclosure of the projects' potential greenhouse gas emissions and an exploration of how to mitigate those emissions. It would also include the consideration of how climate change will impact the projects and what could be done to prepare for that. 2009-04-24

A Blueprint for Growth
"One City/One Future: A Blueprint for Growth That Works for All New Yorkers" is the product of four years of collaboration by civic leaders, neighborhood advocates, community development organizations, labor unions, affordable housing groups, environmentalists, immigrant advocates, and others. It offers policy 54 recommendations. For the full report, visit here. 2009-03-31

Neighborhood Electricity Substations
This report by the Manhattan Institute argues that the city should reclassify electricity substations' zoning designations so that they may be built in more areas of the city. But it also stresses that the substations should be designed so they are unobtrusive to the surrounding community. The report finds that substations around the world are built underground; within enclosed structures that mask what is within; and offer open space for the public on the properties' roofs. 2009-01-21

Prevailing Wages for Affordable Housing?
Imposing government determined prevailing wages for affordable housing construction could increase total development costs by about 25 percent, according to a recent report by the Citizens Housing and Planning Council. They also found no evidence to suggest that construction safety or quality would improve, as some have argued, by imposing the wage rates. The report further suggests that many black and Latino laborers could lose their jobs if the higher wages were imposed, since they are disproportionately found in the lower wage sectors of the construction industry. 2008-12-29

Improving Street Life
The city's Department of Transportation last week published "World Class Streets," a report that assesses the public life on New York's streets. It found overcrowded sidewalks, a lack of public seating, and a number of hard to reach public places. The report also outlines the measures the city has already taken to address these issues. 2008-11-21

Supportive Housing and Property Values
Supportive housing - affordable housing that offers on-site social services - does not affect the property values of surrounding homes, according a new report by The Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy. Indeed, they found property values rose in the years after construction. The report examined the impacts 7,500 supportive housing units over the course of 20 years. 2008-11-07

Global Cities Index
New York City is ranked as the most global city in an annual index created by Foreign Policy magazine, the consulting firm A.T. Kearney, and The Chicago Council on Global Affairs. New York's financial markets, network of multinational corporations and the strength of its creative class gave the city its edge over the 59 other cities included in the index. 2008-11-06

Construction in New York
Spending on and employment in construction in New York City will reach record highs in 2008 before leveling off in 2009 and declining sharply in 2010, according to New York City Construction Outlook 2008-2010, an annual forecast by the New York Building Congress. Overall construction spending in 2008 is forecast to reach $33.8 billion, a 16 percent increase from 2007. However the report sees it dropping to $26.2 billion in 2010. Construction employment climbed to 130,100 workers this year, but the report projects a drop to 100,250 in 2010. The forecast does not reflect the latest turmoil in the financial markets and the credit crunch. 2008-10-15

Foregone Commercial Property Taxes
The Industrial and Commercial Incentive Program, a heavily criticized commercial property tax exemption, cost the city $512 million in foregone taxes this year, according to a new report by the Independent Budget Office. The cost grew an average of 13 percent a year from 1999, when it was $170 million, the study said. The IBO finds that reforms to the program should slow the growth in foregone revenue. But it will take "many years" for that to happen, since properties already receiving the benefits or scheduled to receive them will not fully realize those exemptions for 25 years after they are awarded. 2008-08-29

Construction Costs
Non-residential construction costs in the city are much higher than similar construction in other large cities across the nation, according to an analysis by the New York Building Congress. The report finds that New York is over 60 percent more expensive than Dallas; 50 percent more than Atlanta; 25 percent more than Seattle; and 20 percent more than Los Angeles. Costs are now 50 percent higher than four years ago, it said. 2008-08-14

Is New York's Sustainability Plan Sustainable?
Tom Angotti examines PlaNYC2030 and concludes that, despite its many noble goals promised improvements in the environment and public health, the plan continues the policy of promoting extremely high densities at high value locations, which can create negative environmental and health impacts, and neglect other parts of the city. This is one in a series of working papers sponsored the Hunter College Center for Community Planning and Development. 2008-08-08

Making the Most of New York City Housing Authority’s Unused Development Rights
This survey from the Manhattan Borough President's office finds that the New York City Housing Authority owns more than 30 million square feet of development space inside and adjacent to its Manhattan projects. It urges the cash strapped authority to lease or sell the space and air rights to help fund affordable housing in the city. 2008-08-05

Small Businesses Closing in Downtown Brooklyn
Although small businesses in Downtown Brooklyn survived "large-scale disinvestment" in the '80s and '90s, they are having trouble staying open during the current real estate boom, according to a new report by the Urban Justice Center. Thirty-five of the 61 small businesses surveyed have been displaced or closed due to rising rents or redevelopment. The 2004 rezoning of the area has contributed to this, the report says. 2008-08-01

The Unanticipated Impacts of Rezoning and Development in Downtown Brooklyn
This report from the Pratt Center for Community Development highlights the differences between the foreseen impacts declared by the city during its review of the Downtown Brooklyn Plan and the impacts now being felt by many people who have been living and doing business in Downtown Brooklyn. It compares the impacts of the rezoning as they were outlined in the plan's Final Environmental Impact Statement with how the area is now being developed. (in .pdf format) 2008-07-22

World Trade Center Site Update - June 30, 2008
This 34-page report on the construction at the World Trade Center finds that the project faces significant delays and cost overruns. It lists 15 issues critical to the overall project that have still not been resolved. And it calls for "a more efficient, centralized decision-making structure – a steering committee – with authority to make final decisions." 2008-07-01

Illegal Hotel Conversions
According to the Illegal Hotels Working Group, a collaboration of elected officials and tenant advocates, 224 buildings zoned for residential use have had illegal hotel conversions in Manhattan. Seventy-five percent of the conversions were made to rental apartment buildings, and 18 percent were in single room occupancy buildings. There were rent regulated apartments in 67 percent of the buildings that had illegal conversions. Tax subsidies were granted to 18 percent of the buildings. Most of the hotels were run by companies that specialize in them. One company named Furnished Quarters operates hotels in 41 of the buildings. The report argues the conversions add to the housing shortage and make life difficult for the permanent residents still living in the buildings. 2008-06-04

New York’s Sustainability Plan: Trailblazer or Copycat?
Paige Cowett examines other cities that have developed sustainability plans, comparing the efforts in London and Los Angeles to New York's She concludes that PlaNYC fails to address economic equality and social inclusion as the London plan does and that PlaNYC is limited in some ways by the constraints on the authority of New York City’s government in New York State. This is one in a series of working papers sponsored the Hunter College Center for Community Planning and Development. 2008-06-01

Enough Schools for All the New Homes?
There has not been enough school construction to match the apartment construction in Manhattan, according to a new report by Borough President Scott Stringer's office. Enough new homes have been approved since 2000 across the four neighborhoods at highest risk of overcrowding to add 2,300 new students, but only 143 new classroom seats were created, the report said. It also showed that Manhattan's elementary and middle schools are already 3,900 students over capacity. 2008-04-17

Scaffolding Progress from Buildings Department
A progress report from Department of Buildings Commissioner Patricia J. Lancaster showed scaffolding accidents recently decreased by half, from 25 in 2006 to 12 in 2007. The report shows that 12 of the 13 recommendations from the Bloomberg administration introduced last year have been implemented, including the creation of a scaffolding safety team and increased coordination between the department and the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration. The recommendations are aimed at improving safety conditions at sites with scaffolding. 2008-02-06

Rezoning Harlem's 'Main Street'
The city planning commission will hold hearings today on a controversial proposal to rezone much of 125th Street. The plan covers from 124th to 126th streets between Broadway and Second Avenue. The zoning changes proposed by the city planning department would allow for taller buildings and increased density for homes, and also seek to spur foot traffic. Critics charge the community was not adequately consulted on a plan that some charge would change the character of this famous thoroughfare. The planning department's report includes information on the hearing as well as the complete rezoning proposal. 2008-01-30

Development in the Bronx
Last year $1.3 billion was invested in private, commercial and institutional development throughout the Bronx, according to a report by the borough president. The borough also issued 914 new addresses in that time. The highest month for investment was June, when $453 million was invested. Last December, which wasn't included in last year's numbers because those statistics end in November, $150 million was invested in development and 75 addresses were issued. 2008-01-11

Construction Outlook
A new report by the New York Building Congress, a trade group, published its annual three year construction outlook for the city this week. It found that construction spending will continue accelerated growth from 2007 through 2009, reaching $83 billion in that period - the strongest forecast by the group yet. The recent surge in non-residential spending will continue to rising, while residential spending will continue to thwart a national slump. Spending by government is expected to rise to $12.6 billion in 2008 and 2009 from $11.9 billion in 2006. Construction employment will continue to rise, topping 130,000 in 2009, from 116,000 in 2006. But construction costs are rising by about 1 percent a month. 2007-10-18

Progress at Ground Zero
The majority of projects in the 16 acre footprint of the World Trade Center are moving along according to schedule, according to the latest progress report by the Port Authority. The report does note, however, that it is still unclear how the fire at the Deutsch Bank building will impact the construction of the building that will take its place. Also, the decision over what to do with the staircase left over from the Twin Towers has still not been made. 2007-10-05

Rebuilding Progress
The second quarter of 2007 saw notable progress on the rebuilding and revitalization of the World Trade Center site and its surroundings. JP Morgan Chase and the Port Authority announced in June that the financial services giant will develop a new 1.3 millions square foot office tower at Site 5, where the damaged former Deutsche Bank building is being dismantled. Work on that building at 130 Liberty Street suffered a setback when a steel beam fell from the roof down through the ceiling of a nearby fire house. Demolition was halted for two weeks while officials tightened safety procedures, and work resumed in early June, with the Lower Manhattan Construction Command Center now stating that the building will be completely razed by the first quarter of 2008. 2007-08-06

Lower Manhattan Construction Projects - 2007
This report from the Lowrr Manhattan Construction Command Center gives detailed information on various construction projects, the demand for labor and supplies, and construction truck traffic in the area. 2007-08-02

Insider Baseball: Subsidizing the New York Yankees
Taxpayers are subsidizing the Yankees’ new $1.3 billion stadium project with direct payments and tax breaks worth more than $663.5 million, according to a new report released by the watchdog group Good Jobs New York. This puts the deal in the same league as former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani’s offer to go "halfsies" on a ballpark for the world's richest baseball team. 2007-07-20

Rethinking Environmental Review
The Manhattan Institute's report "Rethinking Environmental Review” lays out steps to improve the City Environmental Quality Review process. Environmental review was instituted so that public officials would understand the full environmental implications of a project and could plan for any necessary changes to municipal infrastructure and services. Over time, the report argues, the process has evolved to focus solely on legal disclosure as a kind of "litigation insurance” and needs to be reformed and streamlined. 2007-05-18

Staten Island's Future
While Staten Island offers many opportunities, the city’s least populated borough also faces an array of challenges, according to “Staten Island 2020,” a report by the Center for an Urban Future. The problems include an exodus of young people, rapidly rising housing costs and ever-longer commuter times. 2007-04-25

Scaffold Safety
The Scaffold Worker Safety Task Force, created in response to a series of deaths and injuries (there were 29 construction deaths in fiscal year 2006, a two-thirds increase from the year before), issued a series of 13 recommendations in this report, “Steps To Safety,” (e.g., increase enforcement of safety rules; improve training programs; promote use of 311 to report unsafe conditions), which Mayor Michael Bloomberg recently announced his administration would invest $6 million to begin implementing. Most of the money will go to the creation of a Scaffold Safety Unit within the Department of Buildings. 2007-02-09

Real Estate Broker Deception
This report by the New York City Council, “Brokered Deception: The Hidden Deception Of Online Real Estate Ads,” found that almost a third of the brokers who advertised as “no fee” on the online real estate listing sites Craigs List and Back Page, charged fees anyway. The report recommends that the New York City Department of Consumer Affairs begin monitoring such advertising, that fines be increased, and that the public be educated about the deception. 2006-10-30

State of the City's Housing and Neighborhoods
The number of apartments in New York City within the reach of moderate-income families dropped by 17 percent between 2002 and 2005, according to this report by Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy at New York University. The report also examines a range of housing-related issues on the neighborhood level. 2006-06-21

New Space for Manufacturers
As many as 120 industrial businesses could be housed if two vacant government warehouses in Sunset Park are developed for manufacturing, argues this report by the Center for an Urban Future, entitled "The Final Frontier for Manufacturers." Manufacturers are being forced out of New York City because of higher rents and increasing conversion of industrial buildings in residential developments. 2006-06-16

Mets Stadium Financing Plan
The Independent Budget Office analyzes the financing of the proposed Mets stadium. The project will cost the state and city $266 million. (It has done a comparable analysis for the proposed stadium for the Yankees). 2006-04-21

Office Space and Ground Zero
With roughly 10 million square feet of office space planned for the site of the World Trade Center, the Independent Budget Office reviews whether there will be sufficient demand to fill the space at a time when the city is sponsoring other major office development initiatives elsewhere in the city. 2006-03-15

The MTA
Many of the properties owned by Metropolitan Transportation Authority are poorly maintained and unclean, according to a City Council report. If it were a private property owner, the report says, the MTA would face fines for the condition of the properties adjacent to subway and commuter train lines. 2006-03-13

The New Yankee Stadium
Even though the Yankees will pay most construction costs for their new stadium, the project will cost taxpayers an additional tens of millions of dollars, according to a study by Good Jobs New York. In addition to the money the state and city will contribute for parking garages and to replace lost parkland, the deal with the team will cost the city and state substantial tax revenues. 2006-02-08

Moynihan Station
The new Moynihan Station on Eight Avenue and 34th Street will restore much of what was lost when the old Penn Station was demolished, improve transportation and spur economic development of the Far West Side, according to a new report by the Regional Plan Association. The report urges that construction on the project begin next year and that it be supplemented with other investment and action to improve the corridor between 30th and 34th streets. 2005-11-23

Remaking Chelsea
The western edge of Chelsea has changed dramatically in recent years. A key factor was the opening of Chelsea Market, the former factory that is now a wholesale and retail center for New York food manufacturers. In this report, the developer of the market discusses the planned High Line development, the future of manufacturing in New York and whether the food vendors being displaced at the Bronx Terminal Market could form the basis of another market-style development. 2005-10-10

Benefit of Nets Basketball Arena
A new report by the Independent Budget Office finds that a proposed Nets basketball arena in downtown Brooklyn would be a small financial benefit to the city. The financial analysis predicts that the arena would generate $28.5 million over the next 30 years, less than $1 million a year more than it would cost the city. 2005-09-08

Rezoning for Housing
Much of the area zoned for manufacturing in New York City would be better used in other ways, argues this report from the Manhattan Institute, entitled "Up From the Ruins: Why Rezoning New York City's Manufacturing Areas for Housing Makes Sense." It examines five manufacturing areas, one in each borough, and offers detailed proposals for rezoning them for more appropriate uses. 2005-06-27

Manhattan's Community Boards
The 59 community boards in the city are designed to be strong voices for the neighborhoods of the city, but their performance is uneven and accountability nil, according to a report by Assemblymember Scott Stringer, "Elevating City Government: A Blueprint to Reform and Empower Manhattan's Community Boards"(Stringer is, not coincidentally, running for Manhattan borough president). The report finds that most boards are subject to pressures by unregistered lobbyists, and do not even have the full complement of members. 2005-06-21

Beyond the Olympics
The Center for an Urban Future, a non-partisan think tank that focuses on economic issues, has analyzed the Bloomberg administration's economic development program. While the report is critical of key initiatives, like the West Side stadium, it also credits the mayor with initiating a forward-looking strategy to diversify New York's economy. 2005-06-02

World TradeCenter Collapse
The World Trade Center towers could have withstood the impact from the airliners that struck them, but collapsed after being weakened by fires that spread partly because the crashes dislodged fireproofing material, according to the report released yesterday by the National Institute of Standards and Technology. 2005-04-06

Housing on the Far West Side
A short report by the Regional Plan Association says the Hudson Yards area could accommodate far more apartments than the 600 planned for by the city 2005-02-14