New York City is voting on plenty of candidates next week, but ballot questions could also change key processes developers rely on to secure permits and buy city land.
The five charter amendments put forth by the Commission on Government Efficiency, an independent panel convened by Mayor Zohran Mamdani, range from revisions that would create a centralized hub for construction permits overseen by the Department of Buildings to a quicker way to sell or lease its city-owned land and air rights.
Ballot measure four would establish the permitting hub, allowing applicants to access 40 construction permits currently housed across 18 offices and agencies and giving more officials the ability to issue approvals. Approving this measure would also bring the waterfront permitting process currently run by the Department of Small Business Services under DOB’s purview.
The third ballot question contains multiple disparate charter revisions aimed at speeding up street safety projects like bus and bike lanes, while also updating the Department of Citywide Administrative Services’ process for selling or leasing smaller lots or offloading air rights on city-owned landmark sites.
When the city wants to sell unused property or air rights, it currently has to undergo a Uniform Land Use Review Procedure in the City Council, but the proposed revision would instead allow it to go through the Expedited Land Use Review Process with a final decision by the City Planning Commission. Approving this measure would also allow the city to make a program passed this year permanent that allows undevelopable lots to be sold to adjacent property owners without a public auction and shorten the process to acquire or lease office space for city workers.
The Municipal Art Society of New York has argued against ballot measure three, arguing that the revision would prompt the city to rapidly sell off public land without proper safeguards on how the land will be used, calling for a framework that instead prioritizes affordable housing, green space and long-term ground leases for nonprofit developers.
The fifth ballot measure has also drawn some scrutiny for its proposal to expand the city’s rainy day fund by establishing a target of 12 percent of previous year tax revenue. Voters approved the creation of the fund in 2019, allowing the city to set aside money for use during economic downturns, emergencies or revenue shortfalls, but without a threshold annual savings amount.
Ballot measure one would speed up the process for acquiring permits for a business to use a sidewalk or nearby street to build structures related to accessibility or outdoor dining, while the second ballot question would reduce paperwork for the city to hire businesses and nonprofit vendors, allowing the Procurement Policy Board to tailor its questionnaire for certain contracts.
The Mamdani administration, which is technically not supposed to push voters to approve or deny any charter revisions, has framed this year’s ballot questions as a “vote on faster government.” Last year’s votes to update the charter equipped this administration with ELURP, the Affordable Housing Fast Track and an appeal board that can reverse Council land use rejections, prompting significant backlash from lawmakers who claim the changes diluted their voice on zoning.
What we’re thinking about: Do you think this year’s ballot measures will have much impact on what gets built across the five boroughs? How have the housing ballot measures approved last year changed the landscape so far? Let me know at ben.miller@therealdeal.com.
A thing we’ve learned: A 1991 appeal court ruling in New York found that a house can be legally considered “haunted” if a seller advertised it as such, after a homeowner allegedly hid paranormal activity she had experienced in her Nyack home from a prospective buyer, who sued to win back his down payment after learning the spooky details behind the listing.
Elsewhere…
— Bird enthusiasts contacted the authorities upon learning that an Upper West Side apartment building was performing repairs on the rooftop water tower where a family of barn owls had nested. Police, wildlife officers and politicians including Manhattan Borough President Brad Hoylman-Sigal and State Sen. Erik Bottcher descended on West 75th Street to implore workers to halt repairs to the water tower’s roof, Gothamist reported.
— New York State is flush with cash after increasing its projected tax revenue for the current fiscal year by $8.1 billion and slashing projected gaps in an updated fiscal plan posted Friday, the Times Union reported. The budget division cited stronger-than-expected income tax payments fueled by strong Wall Street profits and a resilient economy, putting the money toward its reserve funds and paying down debt.
— Another Manhattan movie theater bit the dust as Cinema 123 by Angelika shuttered for good on Friday, after more than 60 years showing a wide range of indie, foreign and mainstream films, Crain’s reported. Reading International listed the property for sale in April with an asking price of $50 million.
Closing time
Residential: The most expensive residential sale recorded Friday was $5 million for a co-op unit at 13 Gramercy Park South. Jim St. André, Trevor Stephens and Michael Maniawski with Compass had the listing.
Commercial: The most expensive commercial transaction was $13 million for two adjacent vacant lots and 87 Havemeyer Street between Hope Street and Metropolitan Avenue in Williamsburg.
New to the Market: The highest price for a residential property hitting the market is $10 million for a 3,924-square-foot condominium at 49 Chambers Street in Tribeca. Thomas Hochfelder with Douglas Elliman has the listing.
— Matthew Elo
