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NYC Voters Approve Housing Reforms to Fast-Track Projects, Shift Approval Power

The charter changes now head to rulemaking, with the City Council vowing resistance.

Overview

  • Associated Press projections show Propositions 2–5 passed citywide (Prop 2: 58.2% yes; Prop 3: 56.7% yes; Prop 4: 58.2% yes; Prop 5: 73.2% yes) while Proposition 6 on election timing failed with 53.1% voting no.
  • Proposition 2 creates two expedited tracks for affordable housing: a 90‑day Board of Standards and Appeals review for publicly financed projects and a 30–45 day City Planning Commission review in 12 low‑production districts, limiting routine City Council involvement.
  • Proposition 3 establishes a new Expedited Land Use Review Procedure with a roughly 90‑day review by community boards, borough presidents and the City Planning Commission, granting CPC final say on modest housing and infrastructure proposals.
  • Proposition 4 forms a three‑member Affordable Housing Appeals Board—mayor, City Council speaker and local borough president—empowered to overturn Council rejections or modifications of qualifying affordable housing projects by a 2–1 vote.
  • Proposition 5 directs creation of a unified digital City Map, while the City Council, which opposed 2–4 and funded a mailer campaign calling them misleading, signals ongoing pushback as agencies implement the voter‑approved charter amendments.