City of Yes there's corruption in this housing plan

 

 Queens Chronicle

Shortly after Mayor Adams was indicted last week on federal corruption charges, Councilman Bob Holden (D-Maspeth) made a request via letter to the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York to look into potential wrongdoing surrounding the Housing Opportunity initiative from the City of Yes proposals.

Holden also asked the city’s Department of Investigation to probe the matter last Friday, because he believes there may possibly be special interests at play.

The unsealed federal charges against Adams allege that he accepted bribes from Turkish officials and pressured FDNY members to ignore safety violations to push through the opening of a 36-story tower called the Turkish House in Manhattan in exchange for luxury first-class travel and other accommodations to Turkey.

Since taking office, Adams has touted his efforts to take steps to cut the red tape and streamline the environmental review process in order to create new housing throughout the Big Apple to combat the city’s growing homelessness problem. His Housing Opportunity proposal would change zoning regulations to further accomplish that goal, but many Queens community board members have noted that there is no language in the text amendment guaranteeing affordable housing, which they say could result in developers having carte blanche.

Last Wednesday, the City Planning Commission voted 10-3 to approve the proposal, according to City Hall. The Department of City Planning is formally transmitting the proposal to the Council, which will have 50 days to hold a hearing and vote. If the Council modifies the proposal in committee, it will have another 15 days for the full body to vote.

In Queens, 12 of 14 community boards voted against it.

“The overwhelming opposition to the City of Yes, evidenced by the majority of community boards rejecting it and numerous civic associations voicing their concerns, raises significant questions about the motivations behind the Mayor’s decision to proceed with a plan that grants developers broad authority to overdevelop our city,” said Holden in his letter.

“I urge you to consider these factors and investigate whether any improprieties or conflicts of interest exist regarding the City of Yes proposals, or worse, any potential pay-to-play or quid pro quo may be involved. The integrity of our city governance must be upheld, and it is essential to ensure that the interests of our communities are prioritized over those of potential special interests.”

CB 13 is among the strongest opponents of the housing initiative.

“Community Board 13 objects to City of Yes imposing as-of-right zoning to insert new housing whether or not local neighborhoods have the infrastructure in place first to support it,” CB 13 Land Use Subcommittee City of Yes Chair Corey Bearak, Land Use Chair Michael Mallia and Board Chair Bryan Block said via email. “That said the current situation at City Hall introduces uncertainty about who will be driving this attempt to eviscerate the City Charter’s community review provisions known as [Uniform Land Use Review Procedure] as the City Council begins its consideration of these misguided zoning changes to permit greater scales of development — increased density — on blocks and in neighborhoods without community input and without any guarantee of affordability especially for working families and the middle class.”