How the Housing Proposals Will Turbocharge Mayor Mamdani

"Ballot questions Nos. 2 and 3 create a fast-track review process for publicly financed affordable-housing projects and cut down the time to review smaller projects. The fourth measure creates a board that has the power to overrule the City Council's rejection of or revisions to affordable-housing proposals. Most significantly, the measures curtail the City Council's inputon land-use decisions, removing them from the review process and ending the practice of member deference, which gave councilmembers significant power to block projects in their communities."

"Mamdani has promised to jump-start housing construction, with the goal of creating 200,000 units over the next ten years. Amit Singh Bagga, campaign director of the Yes on Affordable Housing PAC, which supported the ballot questions, said that such lofty goals will not be possible without these changes to the city's housing process. "Unless we are able to turbocharge the amount of housing that is produced every single year, we are not going to be able to meet that 200,000 figure that Zohran Mandani has promised for his first term. Because 15,000 to 20,000 units a year does not equal 200,000 in four years," he says, referring to the current rate of housing creation in the city."

Voters approved measures that streamline approvals for affordable housing and shorten review times for smaller projects. Questions 2 and 3 establish a fast-track review process for publicly financed affordable-housing projects. The fourth measure creates a board empowered to overrule City Council rejections or revisions of affordable-housing proposals. The measures remove City Council land-use input and end member deference, reducing councilmembers' ability to block local projects. The changes are expected to shave months or years off project timelines by allowing projects to avoid the lengthy Uniform Land Use Review Procedure. The mayor-elect set a goal of 200,000 units over ten years while current production of 15,000–20,000 units per year would fall short of that goal.

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