NYC Council Speaker Menin pitches red tape cuts to speed up housing production

City Council Speaker Julie Menin debuted a new proposal Friday to cut red tape for construction projects — in the hopes of building 35,000 new housing units across the Big Apple.

Menin’s plan would streamline zoning rules and reform the city’s construction code to expedite housing developments atop an estimated 2,850 small lots, between 15- and 27-feet wide, that are currently vacant or deemed non-residential.

“Across the five boroughs, there are thousands of small, underutilized lots that have the potential to deliver tens of thousands of new homes, but outdated rules and unnecessary red tape are standing in the way,” Menin said at the American Institute of Architects award luncheon.

Mamdani publicly called out Council Speaker Julie Menin by name and wrongly accused her of pushing to cut city services. Matthew McDermott for NY Post

“At a moment when vacancy is at historic lows and rents are at record highs, we have an obligation to act boldly and deliver real results for New Yorkers,” she said. 

The speaker added in a press release that erecting buildings of up to eight stories on those parcels would create jobs, bring in much-needed new tax revenue for the city and “transform underutilized, often abandoned and trash-filled lots and revitalize communities.”

The council also announced the launch of a new “Advisory Group on Housing Affordability” with industry experts and advocates to advise city pols on residential construction policies. 

City Council Land Use Committee Chair Kevin Riley (D-Bronx) noted that Menin’s plan was also discussed with staffers of Mayor Zohran Mamdani — who has made the affordable housing crisis a key platform.

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A rep for the mayor’s office did not respond to a request for comment on whether Hizzoner supported the new proposal. 

The council’s new advisory panel will be co-chaired by Barika Williams, Gary LaBarbera and James H. Simmons III. 

Williams serves as the executive director of the Association for Neighborhood and Housing Development. 

LaBarbera is the president of the Building and Construction Trades Council of Greater New York, while Simmons is the founder and CEO of private equity firm Ashland Capital Partners.