Department Of City Planning Shutters Design Division

"When the City Council approved a rezoning last month to create up to 15,000 new homes in Long Island City, it came with strings attached. The package included $650 million for local projects, including a new waterfront esplanade on the East River, sewer upgrades, and new open space. That plan required coordination with urban designers at the Department of City Planning (DCP), staff who consider the look and feel of a neighborhood undergoing a transformation like a rezoning."

"Urban designers plan for preserving open space, visualize how neighborhood changes will look, and design the physical infrastructure of a place. But shortly after the LIC plan was approved, and before Zohran Mamdani took office, DCP shuttered its central design team in late December, and reassigned seven of the department's designers to different teams. The move caused a stir at the agency, with planners from past administrations criticizing the decision."

Department of City Planning closed its central urban design team in late December and reassigned seven designers to other teams. The City Council approved a rezoning to create up to 15,000 new homes in Long Island City paired with $650 million for local projects, including a waterfront esplanade, sewer upgrades, and new open space. Urban designers had been responsible for preserving open space, visualizing neighborhood change, and designing physical infrastructure for large rezonings. Planners warned that dismantling the central design unit could deprioritize livability as housing construction accelerates. DCP called the move a reorganization and noted that over two dozen staff are trained designers embedded in borough offices.

Read at City Limits