Q&A

Council Member Thomas-Henry asks about checklist, homeownership, and pipeline

New York City Council · Oct 21, 2026 · starts 0:59:03 · 1 min 59 sec

She asks if DCP can create a checklist for projects, whether homeownership will be considered, how many units are in the pipeline, and mentions Willits Point.

Kevin C. Riley

Next, Councilmember Thomas Henry, followed by Brooks Powers.

Shanel Thomas-Henry

Thank you.

Shanel Thomas-Henry

And thank you.

Shanel Thomas-Henry

You have been very responsive and very effective in

Shanel Thomas-Henry

to ideas, especially as it relates to projects in my area.

Shanel Thomas-Henry

So I'm very thankful for that.

Shanel Thomas-Henry

Kind of piggybacking off of the minority leaders, is there a way for you to put something, be it a checklist?

Shanel Thomas-Henry

Again, going back to some of the things that we as council members on the floor identified during certain projects, I've had real world experience where no matter how many agencies you have look at something on paper, it's different when you're on the ground.

Shanel Thomas-Henry

I've had land use experts come in and see a project that was zoned for one thing and get there and was like, oh my God, this cannot happen here.

Shanel Thomas-Henry

So it's very different when you're live and in person.

Shanel Thomas-Henry

And although you've been great, the next person after you may not be so amenable to the ideas of the council member.

Shanel Thomas-Henry

So could there be a way for DCP to make as part of this process a checklist of things?

Shanel Thomas-Henry

So even when we're looking at MIH, MIH in one and two don't necessarily fit the income requirements of my particular district.

Shanel Thomas-Henry

And that's one of the things that we look at when we're reviewing ULERPs.

Shanel Thomas-Henry

I'm going to do it all at once.

Shanel Thomas-Henry

Homeownership opportunities.

Shanel Thomas-Henry

I have a high homeowner population, one in single family homes as well as co-ops.

Shanel Thomas-Henry

Will that be taken into consideration so that we're not just building more and more affordable units in these communities, but keeping...

Shanel Thomas-Henry

The continuity of community in place where you have long-term growth and opportunity.

Shanel Thomas-Henry

And we're looking at 200,000 affordable units towards 700,000 units in the decade.

Shanel Thomas-Henry

How many units are currently approved in the pipeline?

Shanel Thomas-Henry

So we're continuing to approve how many are in the pipeline.

Shanel Thomas-Henry

To be built against this 200,000 to 700,000 units.

Shanel Thomas-Henry

And last but not least, if you're looking for opportunities, we have Willits Point, an additional 40 acres that are available for affordable housing.