It is go time for the Midtown South rezoning. Will the City Council leave the plan intact?
On Wednesday, the City Council’s Subcommittee on Zoning and Franchises and the Committee on Land Use will vote on the proposal to rezone 42 blocks in the Manhattan neighborhood.
The rezoning is projected to pave the way for 9,700 housing units, with up to 2,890 set aside as permanently affordable units.
If approved as proposed, this would be the first time that the city has mapped new residential districts that allow housing projects to be 15 or 18 times larger than their lot sizes. As part of the City of Yes for Housing Opportunity, the city created R11 and R12 residential districts, where residential space can have a floor area ratio of 15 or 18, respectively. The change was made possible when the state lifted a restriction that capped residential space at 12 FAR last year.
This would also mark the first time that Mandatory Inclusionary Housing is used in Midtown Manhattan.
During a hearing last month, City Planning addressed a proposal to reduce density in the southeast quadrant of the rezoning area, where the city wants to allow 18 FAR residential space. The proposal calls for 12, which the agency said would result in a 55 percent loss of housing.
Local City Council members Erik Bottcher and Keith Powers have been supportive of the rezoning but also echoed concerns about the fashion industry businesses (manufacturers and wholesalers) getting pushed out by property owners who are keen to demolish their buildings and cash in on the upzoning.
A watered-down version of the rezoning would not bode well for the future of these residential districts in other parts of the city. If you can’t make R11 and R12 districts work in a “dense, busy, transit-rich part of Midtown,” as the borough president previously put it, where can you?
What we’re thinking about: What changes, if any, will the City Council make to the Midtown South rezoning? Send a note to kathryn@therealdeal.com.
A thing we’ve learned: Boston’s broker fee law, which requires the hiring party to pay a residential broker’s commission, went into effect on Friday. New York’s law has been in effect since June 11.
Elsewhere in New York…
— Trump’s tariffs, threats and trash talk are driving a drop in tourism spending in NYC, according to Gothamist. New York City Tourism and Conventions, the city’s official tourism organization, is expecting a loss of $4 billion this year, caused largely by declining numbers of visitors from Canada, France, Germany and Mexico.
— A massive floating swimming pool destined for the East River was deposited in the waters off Port Newark, City & State New York reports. The structure, which was paid for in large part by $16 million in public funding, would allow swimmers to swim in filtered river waters. The pilot program is expected to open in summer 2027.
— A newly released federal plan proposes to spend up to $907 million on a floodwall along the Harlem River Drive, according to Crain’s New York. The floodwall is part of a larger $1 billion initiative to protect coastal communities from storm surge and rising sea levels caused by climate change. — Quinn Waller
Closing Time
Residential: The top residential deal recorded Monday was $24 million for a condominium unit at 157 West 57th Street. The Midtown condo unit at One57 is 4,200 square feet and last sold on the market in 2021 for $19.2 million. Compass’ Kyle Blackmon has the listing.
Commercial: The top commercial deal recorded was $66.3 million for a luxury multifamily property at 56 North Ninth Street. Private equity firm Rockpoint and Lincoln Property Company acquired the Williamsburg multifamily property, per reports.
New to the Market: The highest price for a residential property hitting the market was $7.3 million for Four West 90th Street. The Upper West Side townhouse is 7,800 square feet. Leslie J. Garfield’s Richard Pretsfelder, Sophie Smadbeck and Morgan Garofalo have the listing.
Breaking Ground: The largest new building application filed was for a proposed 18,116-square-foot, five-story residential building at 647 Madison Street in Brooklyn. Robert Bianchini of ARC Architecture + Design Studio is the applicant of record.
— Joseph Jungermann
