As part of an ongoing effort to address the affordable housing shortage, the Connecticut General Assembly has passed Senate Bill No. 1444 which is designed to facilitate the conversion of certain buildings to residential use....more
On December 5, 2024, the New York City Council approved the “City of Yes for Housing Opportunity” text amendment, as modified by the City Planning Commission, following recommendations from the Zoning and Franchises...more
Recognizing that Downtown San Francisco is “struggling” post-pandemic, State Senator Scott Wiener has announced new legislation to exempt certain projects in the area from California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) review...more
More Density, More Height and Less Bureaucracy - The Live Local Act (“Live Local” or the “Act”) makes unprecedented changes to zoning law that impact and limit local government power....more
Zoning laws are changing in Connecticut. The goal? To make housing more affordable and accessible for everyone. - Nearly a century ago, the Connecticut Legislature adopted the “Standard Zoning Enabling Act” (now Chapter...more
On May 17, the City Planning Commission (CPC) certified the SoHo/NoHo Neighborhood Plan (the Plan), which would replace outdated zoning regulations that preclude residences, including affordable housing, and severely restrict...more
Surprise! During the summer of Covid-19, the Town Board of Oyster Bay passed Local Law 4 of 2020, amending Chapter 246, the Town’s zoning code, to eliminate apartments over stores or offices as a permitted principal use in...more
Continuing a trend reported in our Sept. 9, 2020 alert (“Zoning and Land Use: Turning the World Right-Side Up Again”), the Appellate Division for the First Department, which exercises appellate jurisdiction over courts in...more
The need for zoning reform has been a perennial topic in both chambers of the Massachusetts State House for almost two decades. Signed into law by Governor Baker on January 14, 2021, Chapter 358 of the Acts of 2020, “An Act...more
The New York City Department of City Planning (DCP) provided greater detail on its proposal to rezone nearly 56 blocks of the SoHo and NoHo neighborhoods of Manhattan, which includes the following key features...more
As a coastal region confronting the impacts of climate change, South Florida must continue to advance urban resiliency and sustainability innovations through public investments, regulations, and private sector incentives that...more
On May 29, 2019, the City Council adopted a zoning text amendment to count certain mechanical voids as zoning floor area in residential towers. The amendment does not prohibit any mechanical space outright; instead, it...more
In April 2006, the Town of Huntington adopted a local law (Local Law 14-2006) that added § 198-27(A)(22) to its Zoning Code. That local law allows apartments on the top floors of some mixed-used buildings in its C6 General...more
Following more than six years of planning and public outreach, the City initiated the formal approval process for the Central SoMa Plan (Plan) at the Board of Supervisors and Planning Commission on February 27 and March 1,...more