NYC Approves Second Phase of 'City of Yes' Zoning Changes

The City Council has approved the second phase of Mayor Eric Adam’s City of Yes plan to update the city’s zoning regulations, the first major overhaul of the commercial zoning code since the 1960s.

The measure that was approved on Thursday, known as “City of Yes for Economic Opportunity,” aims to make it easier for businesses to operate or expand in NYC. It expands light manufacturing areas and allows more businesses to operate out of homes and on the upper floors of mixed-use buildings.

The Council amended the mayor’s proposal, removing a provision that would have allowed for new corner stores to open in residential areas.

The new rules allow clean manufacturing businesses, including small producers like microbreweries and apparel makers, and indoor agriculture to operate in commercial areas. The plan also allows life science labs to expand near hospitals and permits dancing and comedy shows at venues where music is allowed.

In a statement, Adams said the zoning changes “will replace outdated restrictions on businesses with new rules that support sustainable job growth, help businesses open and expand, and fill vacant storefronts.”

“After decades of inaction, it will move our city’s zoning code into the future, laying the foundation for long-term growth across all five boroughs. Quite simply, it will take us from a rotary phone mentality and bring us into the smart phone world,” Adams said.

Under the zoning updates, any new last-mile logistics facility in the five boroughs will have to apply for a special permit from the City Planning Commission.

Alexa Aviles, a council member from Brooklyn, argued that the special permit was needed because e-commerce companies have disproportionately concentrated last-mile facilities in lower-income communities of color, including Red Hook, which Aviles represents, amNY reported.

In December, the City Council approved “City of Yes for Carbon Neutrality,” the first phase of Adams’ plan, which removed zoning impediments to rooftop and parking canopy solar panels, grid-supporting energy storage systems and open-to-the-public EV charging stations.

The third phase of the mayor’s City of Yes plan, which will come to a vote later this year, includes a series of zoning changes to promote the development of new affordable housing, including the conversion of office buildings to residential use.

The proposals to be considered in phase three including ending parking mandates for new housing; allowing accessory dwelling units, including backyard cottages and basement apartment; adding housing above businesses on commercial streets in low-density areas; and approving new housing near transit stops.