New Urban Planning

Zoning is a planners favorite tool, but many neighborhood activists and property owners dislike zoning, mainly when it effects them or benefits someone else at their expense (or at their perceived expense). In fact, zoning brings out the truly brazen hypocrisy of people. Please, don’t build anything ugly, noisy, smelly or unsightly anywhere I might ever see it, and certainly not next door to me, but oh by the way, I should be able to build whatever I want on my land regardless of the effect it has on others. And then there is greed, which is often lurking in the corner of the room when it comes to zoning. Because at the end of the day, zoning is that state coming in and either increasing or decreasing the value of your land to yourself and the next owner you want to sell to.

Given all of this, changing zoning is always fraught with controversy. Zoning is a such a powerful tool, especially in already developed big cities like NYC, that often the status quo is better than big change. So it makes it all the more remarkable that as 2010 starts, NYC is implementing the 100th rezoning since Mike Bloomberg came into office. People unfamilar with the way NYC works and how zoning is changed understand how impressive that is. For those who dont, it is really amazing. Because in order to get rezonings passed, enormous amounts of work have to be completed by the Department of Planning and the City Council. Dozens of plans, hearings, reports have to be completed. And everything has to pass the City Council in the end, no small feat.

All of these rezonings were greatly needed, in the sense that for NYC to be a great city today and in the future the city needs to be a place that can change. As employment patterns, neighborhood uses, and transportation systems changed, planning needs to change to incorporate those changes. And these rezonings are being done both to increase and decrease density. This isnt just a plan to gentrify and hand away development rights to developers. These are all small parts of a greater plan to make the city more livable and dynamic. Some places need new protections to defend from giant mcmansions and small multi family units coming into areas of single family homes. Other neighborhoods are being re-purposed from light industry to residential (Williamsburg and Greenpoint just to name two).

The real credit here goes to two individuals: The Mayor and Amanda Burden, the head of the City planning Department. Especially Ms. Burden, the head of the City planning since Bloomberg came into office. Her foresight and expertise are remarkable. And she is a fellow Columbia U Planning alumni. Planners take note: This is a world class planner playing in the greatest urban laboratory in America.

http://www.observer.com/2009/zoning-sustainable-city

 New York City, under its progressive transportation commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan, has moved to implement all sorts of new visionary transportation ideas (visionary for New York City and the US anyway) including shutting down portions of Broadway to create pedestrian plazas at Times Square and Herald Square. She has also worked with the MTA to create more bus lanes, and to advance NYC’s version of Bus Rapid Transit, Select Bus. However, light rail has so far not been part of those plans. The NY Times article below revisits an old idea that has been kicking around for a while, which is to build a light rail line along 42nd street in Manhattan, and to close the street to cars as well. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/14/realestate/commercial/14rail.html?_r=1&emc=tnt&tntemail1=y

A fascinating idea, and one that deserves a further look. Personally, I dont see why you need to close the street to cars, because light rail and streets with traffic co-exist all over the world, including in plenty of cities in the US. Regardless, light rail for cross town travel in Manhattan seems like a fabulous idea. The real challenge here is that if it was any other street besides 42nd Street Mayor Bloomberg and Ms. Khan would likely be supportive. However, since 42nd Street is also home, underground, to the number 7 subway, things are more complicated. As part of the West Sides Yards development project, the City is paying for the MTA to expand the number 7 subway from its existing terminus at Times Square west and south to a new station by the convention center and at the front door of what one day may be the entrance to the West Side Yards development (http://www.mta.info/capconstr/7ext/index.html). However, in the meantime, there is no development occurring at the West Side Yards at all given the economic situation. And since it may take a while to get this project going, there is some danger of opening a new $2 billion dollar subway expansion that no one uses. However that is actually OK. The US has spent so long building infrastructure after development has already arrived, it seems counter-productive to criticize the rare case where the infrastructure is going in first. Regardless it means that light rail isnt likely to arrive anytime soon on 42nd. But I think the focus just needs to shift to anyone of a number of other cross town routes, like 34th street, 14th street or 86th street, and the project would be a no-brainer.