NewYork Building Congress Supports Growth Agenda for NYC

Throughout its 86-year history, the New York Building Congress has advocated growth and investment in the metropolitan region. In this era of unprecedented
construction spending, the Building Congress has remained focused on supporting continued growth through various means. Its efforts range from endorsing rezoning initiatives throughout the five boroughs and the Mayor’s visionary sustainability initiative to supporting capital budgets and legislation designed to accommodate projected growth of up to a million residents over the next two decades.

To follow is a sample of the forward-looking programs the Building Congress and its members are advocating and monitoring:

PlaNYC

On Earth Day, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg unveiled PlaNYC, a comprehensive set of 127 initiatives that, if adopted, would create a healthier environment, promote efficient use of scarce resources, and allow New York to accommodate projected growth in its population and economy.

In addition to transforming New York into the greenest urban center in America, PlaNYC would benefit the industry by easing congestion, creating more opportunities for sustainable development in each borough, promoting creation of new housing, and encouraging energy efficiency and green construction.

The morning after the Mayor’s announcement, the Building Congress joined with 80 environmental, civic, public health, labor and business organizations as part of the Campaign for New York’s Future, which was formed to support the plan. The Building Congress also released an (e)Update in June asking members to help the cause by urging their representatives in Albany to pass legislation enabling additional Brownfield remediation, a congestion pricing pilot program in Manhattan and reauthorization of Article X legislation to permit the siting of a new generation of more efficient and cleaner power generating facilities.

New York City Building Code

The Building Congress as an organization and many of its individual members participated in an unprecedented partnership to update and improve New York City’s arcane building code – a collaboration that has yielded an excellent proposal worthy of the building industry’s full support and swift adoption by the City Council.

According to Building Congress Chairman Dominick M. Servedio, implementation of the new code is vital to the future of New York City, its economy and the building industry. “The proposed code achieves a remarkable balance that will help ensure that New York City remains a vibrant global center,” Mr. Servedio said in an (e)Update newsletter.

Added Building Congress President Richard T. Anderson, “Since the last revision in 1968, the code has suffered from decades of piecemeal modifications that have made the building process more burdensome, confusing, costly and unresponsive to industry changes. It is critical that the new code be adopted this year.”

In meetings and other communications with members and elected officials, the Building Congress has urged the City Council to resist any inclination to alter individual elements of the plan, which could derail the entire effort. Rather, it is urging adoption of the building code in its entirety.

Queens Rezonings

The Building Congress has thoroughly examined and endorsed major rezoning initiatives in Jamaica and Willets Point, Queens.

In letters to Queens Borough President Helen Marshall and City Planning Chair Amanda Burden, and in an (e)Update to its members, the Building Congress has voiced enthusiastic support for the City’s plan to rezone 368 blocks of Downtown Jamaica. If passed, the rezoning will permit up to 3,660 new housing units by 2015, almost 800 of which will be affordable units. It also could create nearly three million square feet of commercial space and up to 9,600 jobs.

The Building Congress also offered its support, with some reservations, for the City’s Willets Point Development Plan. In a letter to the New York City Economic Development Corporation regarding the proposed scope of work for its Draft Environmental Impact Statement, Mr. Anderson praised the proposed plan’s “efficient use of space through remediation of a 60-acre Brownfield and the transformation of a largely underused area into a vibrant mixed-use community.” Given its proximity to mass transit, major highways and airports, the Willets Point District is well-situated for supporting residential, retail, commercial and cultural development.

Mr. Anderson noted, however, that the plan’s ultimate success depends on adequately addressing important details, most notably its potentially negative impact on 250 businesses, including construction firms, that would be displaced by the proposal.

Mass Transit

The Building Congress is continuously monitoring the planning, implementation and financing of a wide range of vital mass transit expansion and improvement projects, including: the Second Avenue Subway, which broke ground on the first phase this Spring; the proposed western extension of the #7 line; the ongoing East Side Access project; construction of the PATH Transit Hub and Fulton Transit Center in Lower Manhattan; plans for a Moynihan Station that would incorporate the Farley Post Office and the current Penn Station; and a Trans-Hudson Express Tunnel from New Jersey to Midtown Manhattan.

With the combined efforts of members, consultants and staff, the Building Congress role in and impact upon important economic development initiatives is growing. With record construction activity expected to continue for the foreseeable future, the organization’s concentration on advocating the best local, state and federal projects and policies to pursue will continue to be a significant part of its overall agenda.