Join Village Preservation and Councilmember Harvey Epstein (list in formation) for a press conference this Thursday, April 23 at 2:30pm, demanding the City correct its zoning text to not allow tall towers with no affordable housing in residential neighborhoods like the planned 538 ft. tall tower at 5 West 13th Street. At the time “City of Yes” was being considered, City officials explicitly claimed that a development under new zoning at this site would take the form of a lower, more contextual building that would also be more likely to utilize provisions that include a portion of affordable housing. Under the text as written, that claim has turned out to be false, as per the recent ruling by the Department of Buildings denying our zoning challenge. 

But under a new administration, the City has an opportunity to live up to that promise by fixing the zoning text language. That would change what kind of development could be built here and at other locations: lower and bulkier, and more likely to include affordable housing, rather than tall, noncontextual, and containing only super luxury condos.

TO HELP: