Community Alternative Rezoning Plan For SoHo And NoHo — Public Hearings 12/3 And 12/8

Click to read report.

Village Preservation and ten other local community organizations representing thousands of residents have released a community alternative rezoning plan for SoHo and NoHo. The Mayor’s plan would allow new development up to 2.4 times the size current rules allow and a deluge of oversized luxury condos, while opening the floodgates to giant big box chain stores that would push out local small businesses. By contrast, our plan would keep new development in context with its surroundings, help existing local retail businesses and facilitate new appropriately sized ones, and protect current artist residents, allow non-artist residents to legalize their residency, and ensure that new appropriately-scaled residential development includes affordable housing. Read the plan here.

The Mayor’s SoHo/NoHo Upzoning Plan would line the pockets of developers who’ve donated generously to his campaigns and lobbied for these changes. Proponents of the plan say it’s needed to accommodate affordable housing, support retail vitality, and remove outdated zoning restrictions. Our plan does that and more, without the massive developer giveaways. Demand that elected officials and decision-makers support a true community plan for SoHo and NoHo.

There are two critical upcoming hearings on the Mayor’s SoHo/NoHo Upzoning Plan — participate and state your opposition, and call for the community alternative.

Tomorrow, Thursday Dec. 3 starting at 2pm — Hearing on the Scope of the Environmental Review for the Upzoning Plan
Details here

Next Tuesday, December 8 at 6:30pm Community Board #2 — Hearing on the Mayor’s SoHo/NoHo Upzoning proposal
Details here

We strongly urge you to participate in both.

What to say at the December 3 scoping hearing:

  • You oppose the Mayor’s upzoning plan, and support the community alternative plan
  • You do not think any public review and approval process should take place until in-person meetings can begin again, and a full analysis of the plan’s impacts can take place
  • The analysis done by the city so far is tremendously faulty — it leaves out many sites which are likely to be developed under the proposed rezoning with huge, oversized buildings, and it fails to account for the many current rent stabilized and loft law tenants, as well as small businesses, which are likely to be pushed out by the proposed changes
  • Requiring affordable housing in new residential development can be done without the proposed upzoning — it can be applied to new residential development at the same size and scale currently allowed for other kinds of development in SoHo and NoHo
  • Retail rules can be changed to accommodate reasonably-sized businesses, but the proposed allowance for over 10,000 sq ft for retail is outrageous. A limit of 10K sq ft for retail and 5K sq ft for eating and drinking establishments is more than enough.

What to say at the December 8th Community Board 2 hearing:

  • You oppose the Mayor’s upzoning plan, and support the community alternative plan
  • You do not think any public review and approval process should take place until in-person meetings can begin again, and a full analysis of the plan’s impacts can take place
  • You oppose any upzoning, and support requiring affordable housing in new residential developments, which can be done without the proposed upzoning
  • You support allowing reasonably sized retail in the neighborhood, but not what the Mayor has proposed — you think a 10,000 sq ft limit should remain for retail and 5,000 sq ft for eating and drinking establishments
  • The Mayor’s plan is outrageous and unprecedented, calling for an upzoning of these entire neighborhoods — a minimum of 20%, and up to nearly 2 1/2 times the size of what’s currently allowed.
  • The Mayor’s plan endangers not just SoHo and NoHo, but is clearly a blueprint for similar upzonings of other neighborhoods in Community Board 2 and beyond.
  • The Mayor’s plan would result in oversized development, destruction of historic buildings, vastly increased pressure pushing out longtime residents and desirable local businesses
  • In spite of claims that the Mayor’s plan is about affordable housing, because it is entirely market driven, it doesn’t guarantee that a single unit of affordable housing gets built.
  • The Mayor’s plan is driven by, and responds to the wishes of, developers and the real estate industry

For more information, click here.

Support our efforts to protect our neighborhoods.

December 2, 2020