Chair Sherman and Deputy Commissioner Sandler respond on warehousing and building quality

Thank you, Councilmember.

Just for clarification, are you speaking about vacant sites?

Vacant sites that are not HPD.

They are privately owned, but we use the rezoning as a tool to incentivize that building.

We said maybe if we let them go higher, it would help incentivize the building.

That has not been the case.

And so we just, you know.

Outside of letting them build the Empire State Building in the district.

I don't really know what would incentivize them to build there, but something really does have to be done about the warehousing in the district.

I mean, they're just empty apartments sitting there, and it's quite...

frustrating.

So thank you for bringing that to our attention.

And I'm happy to also just have offline with you further about your district.

I know that the East Harlem rezoning was significant and was around when that was completed.

There's always an opportunity for us to take another look at the right.

There are a number of new zoning tools available today.

There are different types of affordable housing incentives that exist.

There could be an opportunity for us to take a new look at what was achieved and what may need to be other strategies that we can use to make sure that we realize the goals of that plan.

So certainly happy to follow up with you on that.

And then I'll turn it to my colleague to speak a little bit more about development.

Sure, and I'm definitely familiar with some of these Third Avenue buildings.

I was involved in the East Harlem rezoning as well and remember a lot of these conversations.

And it's frustrating to hear that after all of these years, they're still sitting there on not filled.

I think on the HPD side, we're definitely eager to find solutions to bring

if units are being held offline, to really understand why that's happening and find both enforcement tools and financial tools to kind of facilitate that to happen.

So we'd be really happy to follow up on that.

In terms of building quality and wage standards, for projects that are financed by the city, we have very robust design standards to ensure high quality housing.

And I think we've definitely heard about

kind of as a right development and lower quality that's there.

And so I think I hear you on that issue.

I'd like to follow up and continue.

discussing that.

And

On wage standards, there are wage standards through the recently passed Construction Justice Act and sort of the projects that are being financed by HPD are coming with, I think, both that high quality that you want to see.

Thank you.