The city needs bold policy to fix its worsening housing crisis — and a key zoning initiative pushed by the Adams administration isn’t enough to move the needle, according to Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso. Mayor Eric Adams rolled out a wide-ranging plan in September, part of a citywide zoning revamp known as the “City of Yes,” that would make way for some 100,000 additional homes over 15 years. Adams described the plan — which involves offering density bonuses for affordable housing, easing office-to-residential conversions, and eliminating parking mandates — as ushering in a “new golden age of housing.” Reynoso, who’s been discussed as a potential mayoral challenger to Adams in 2025, isn’t so sure. “The ‘City of Yes’ should not be something that we’re applauding as a generational-changing thing,” Reynoso said at a policy breakfast hosted by the NYU Furman Center, while still acknowledging the plan as a positive step. “I think the problem we have is there’s no political will to do this stuff in an expansive way, and that we celebrate things like the ‘City of Yes’ like they’re bigger than they are.” “Political will and boldness is not something that exists in the city of New York,” he said. So, what would be truly bold, according to him? For one, Reynoso said, the city should consider eliminating single-family zoning, which exists in neighborhoods like Forest Hills and Riverdale — a move that would almost certainly face staunch pushback from those and other communities. He plugged his comprehensive plan for Brooklyn and stressed the need to spread development more equitably across the city. Black and brown communities “have done all the work” on housing, he said, while other Brooklyn neighborhoods like Bay Ridge, Sheepshead Bay and Midwood have done little. That’s part of the aim behind the “City of Yes” effort as well, which seeks to make way for “a little more housing in every neighborhood,” as City Hall put it, rather than forcing certain areas to shoulder most of the burden. “We need to open up every part of this city to working people,” Adams said in a speech on the housing plan in September. “Decades from now New Yorkers will see this moment for what it is: a turning point away from exclusionary policies and outdated ideas and towards a brighter, bolder and more equitable future.” Welcome to POLITICO New York Real Estate and Infrastructure. Please send tips, ideas, releases and corrections to jchadha@politico.com.
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