MAYOR ADAMS SIGNS LEGISLATION TO BUILD CRITICALLY-NEEDED HOUSING, ADDRESS SEWER AND FLOOD INFRASTRUCTURE CONCERNS
Legislation Comes After Passage of “City of Yes for Housing Opportunity,” Most Pro-Housing Proposal in City History, and Investment of $5 Billion Towards Critical Infrastructure Updates and Housing
Intro.1127-A Establishes Basement and Cellar Dwelling Unit Legalization Program in Certain Community Districts
Intro. 1128-A Sets Forth Eligibility and Design Requirement for Accessory Dwelling Units
Intro. 654-A Extends J-51 Tax Abatement Program for Eligible Condos and Co-ops
Intro. 814-A Requires DEP to Update Plan to Prevent Sewer Backups by 2025
Intro. 815-A Requires DEP to Adopt Interim Flood Risk Area Map
Intro. 850-A Requires HPD to Submit Periodic Reports to City Council on City-Financed Affordable Housing Projects on Disposition of City Property
Editor’s note: Staten Islander News recently covered the City’s round table about hurricane preparedness and flood prevention citywide. The Mayor has also spoken about the City Of Yes proposals and how they are right for the City of New York. The City has also focused on reducing crime and helping unhoused New Yorkers find permanent homes.
NEW YORK – New York City Mayor Eric Adams today signed several pieces of legislation to help build critically-needed housing and address infrastructure concerns regarding sewers and flood prevention. Today’s bill signings come after the passage of Mayor Adams’ “City of Yes for Housing Opportunity” proposal, the most pro-housing zoning proposal in New York City history. The City of Yes proposal alone exceeds all the housing created from rezonings during any mayoral administration of the last 50 years, including all of the 12 years of the Bloomberg administration and all eight years of the de Blasio administration.
“‘City of Yes for Housing Opportunity’ is a watershed moment in our city history,” said Mayor Adams. “Thanks to our partnership with Governor Hochul, Speaker Adams, and the New York City Council, our city met the moment in front of us, passing legislation that will allow us to build 80,000 new homes while investing $5 billion in critically-needed infrastructure and housing. Today’s bill signing is another step in the right direction, but our work is far from over. Our administration will continue the work of fighting for more affordable housing, providing stable housing to our unhoused neighbors in need, and bringing the American Dream of owning a home closer to reality for more New Yorkers.”
“With Mayor Adams signing the ‘City of Yes for Housing Opportunity’ legislative package into law, today marks a new chapter in our city’s effort to ensure every New Yorker has a safe and affordable home,” said First Deputy Mayor Maria Torres-Springer. “Thanks to Mayor Adams’ leadership and our partnership with Governor Hochul, Speaker Adams, and the City Council, we took decisive action to deliver affordability for hard-working New Yorkers. We are also investing $5 billion to strengthen our infrastructure, protect tenants, and bolster our ability to finance affordable housing across the five boroughs. Thank you to all who stood alongside us to say ‘yes’ to ‘City of Yes.'”
“Planning for 80,000 more homes in New York must be done smartly — accounting for the infrastructure that turns units into complete communities,” said Deputy Mayor for Operations Meera Joshi. “The professionals at DOT, DEP, DOB, and Parks are stepping up to add critical infrastructure and community character to protect and shape neighborhoods for future generations. Today, as Mayor Adams signs these bills, we do just that.”
Intro. 1127-A — sponsored by New York City Councilmember Pierina Sanchez — would establish a basement and cellar dwelling unit legalization program in certain community districts. Building owners would be able to apply for an authorization for temporary residence for units that existed prior to April 20, 2024. The New York City Department of Buildings (DOB) would inspect such units prior to issuing an authorization and, if issued, the building owner would be permitted to do any necessary construction on the unit to legalize the unit and apply for an amended or partial certificate of occupancy. The New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) would provide technical assistance and outreach to owners of eligible basement or cellar residences. Tenants who resided in the basement or cellar unit on April 20, 2024 would have a right of first refusal to return to such unit upon its first occupancy following any necessary alterations.
Intro. 1128-A — sponsored by Councilmember Sanchez — sets forth eligibility, safety, and design requirements for accessory dwelling units (ADUs) added to one- or two-family dwellings. The bill would also set forth required means of fire prevention in ADUs, including fire separation, automatic sprinklers, smoke alarms, and exit stairways. Additionally, this bill would set forth requirements for light, ventilation, window size, emergency service access to units, and occupancy. This bill would require ADUs to have separate entrances, with basement ADUs required to have at least one means of egress, and cellar ADUs required to have at least two means of egress. Finally, this bill would prohibit basement and cellar ADUs in coastal and inland flood hazard areas, to mirror such prohibitions in the New York City Zoning Resolution.
Intro. 654-A — sponsored by Councilmember Sanchez — extends the J-51 tax abatement program for certain alterations or improvements completed after June 29, 2022 and before June 30, 2026. Eligible buildings are condos and co-ops where the average assessed valuation is under $45,000 per dwelling unit, and rental buildings 1) where more than half the units are affordable, 2) that are operated by limited-profit housing companies, or 3) that receive substantial governmental assistance. The owners of these buildings would be able to recover up to 70 percent of the cost of the work at 8 1/3 percent per year for up to 20 years. HPD would establish the work and costs that qualify for this program in a certified reasonable cost schedule, to be updated considering factors such as local law requirements and the effects of inflation. This bill would provide for tenant protections, including the possibility of a revocation of benefits if an owner fails to comply. This bill would also require HPD to report on the implementation of the program.
Intro. 814-A — sponsored by New York City Councilmember James Gennaro — requires that the New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) update, by 2025, its plan to prevent sewer backups and conduct further updates every five years thereafter. Additionally, the plan would be expanded to include the identification of areas with a significant number of notices of claims filed with the comptroller alleging losses due to sewer backups. Further, this bill would require DEP to provide timely notice of unconfirmed sewer backups to impacted residents and to sewer backup complainants. Such notice would include a determination from DEP that the backup complaint was not associated with a condition in the city-owned sewer system, a statement that the backup may be related to an adverse condition in a privately-owned sewer, and an informational pamphlet detailing potential causes of backups in privately-owned sewers.
Intro. 815-A — sponsored by Councilmember Gennaro — requires DEP, in consultation with the DOB and Mayor’s Office of Climate and Environmental Justice, to promulgate rules to adopt an interim flood risk area map for inland and coastal flooding. An inland map will illustrate areas with a 10-year flood risk from rainfall (i.e., probability of rainfall-induced flooding of 10 percent, or greater, in any year). Coastal inundation mapping will identify areas at risk to coastal storm surge during a 100-year storm (i.e., risk of coastal-induced flooding with 1 percent probability in any year) taking into account the 2080 sea level rise projections. These maps will be informed by climate data, including forecasts and findings developed by the New York City Panel on Climate Change. The bill lays out requirements for updates to the mapping, as well as the dissemination of information via DEP’s website. Mapping will align with New York City Building Code Appendix G and will be revisited in a timely manner as Federal Emergency Management Administration updates become available in the future.
Intro. 850-A — sponsored by New York City Councilmember Rafael Salamanca — requires HPD to submit periodic reports to the City Council regarding city-financed affordable housing projects involving the disposition of city property. The reports would be due every six months and would include, for each project, the project identifier and location, the date the developer was selected by HPD, the date the project received Uniform Land Use Review Procedure approval, whether the project includes any privately-owned parcels, the six-month cycle during which the disposition of city property is expected to occur, and, for projects that have already closed, the actual closing date for such disposition.
Mayor Adams had made historic investments toward creating affordable housing over the last three years. In June, Mayor Adams agreed to an on-time, balanced, and fiscally-responsible $112.4 billion Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 Adopted Budget with the City Council that invests $2 billion in capital funds across FY25 and FY26 to HPD and the New York City Housing Authority’s capital budgets. In total, the Adams administration has committed a record $26 billion in housing capital in the current 10-year plan as the city faces a generational housing crisis. In July, Mayor Adams announced back-to-back record-breaking years in both creating and connecting New Yorkers to affordable housing. This past spring, the city celebrated the largest 100 percent affordable housing project in 40 years with the Willets Point transformation.
Further, the Adams administration is using every tool available to address the city’s housing crisis. Mayor Adams announced multiple new tools, including a $4 million state grant, to help New York City homeowners create ADUs that will not only help them to afford to remain in the communities they call home, but also to build generational wealth for families.
Earlier this year, Mayor Adams and members of his administration successfully advocated for new tools in the 2024 New York state budget that will spur the creation of urgently-needed housing. These tools include a new tax incentive for multifamily rental construction, a tax incentive program to encourage office conversions to create more affordable units, lifting the arbitrary “floor-to-area ratio” cap that held back affordable housing production in certain high-demand areas of the city, and the ability to create a pilot program to legalize and make safe basement apartments.
Under Mayor Adams’ leadership, the city is fulfilling its 2024 State of the City commitment to build more affordable housing, including by being ahead of schedule on advancing two dozen affordable housing projects on city-owned land this year through the “24 in ‘24” initiative, reopening the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher program waitlist after being closed to general applications for nearly 15 years, and creating the Tenant Protection Cabinet to coordinate across agencies to better serve tenants. The city has also taken several steps to cut red tape and speed up the delivery of much-needed housing, including through the “Green Fast Track for Housing,” a streamlined environmental review process for qualifying small- and medium-sized housing projects; the “Office Conversion Accelerator,” an interagency effort to guide buildings that wish to convert through city bureaucracy; and other initiatives of the Building and Land Use Approval Streamlining Taskforce.
“As the chair of the Committee on Land Use for the last seven years, I have had the privilege of overseeing the approval of well over 100,000 units of new housing across New York City,” said Councilmember Salamanca. “In my district alone, I’ve approved over 10,000 units of 100 percent affordable housing. Unfortunately, there is a sad reality. Despite the lengthy negotiations it takes to approve a project, it often takes years for HPD to provide the necessary project funding to facilitate a development’s groundbreaking, delaying much-needed housing in the process. This lack of transparency is why I introduced Intro. 850-A, which would require HPD to report biannually when projects can expect to receive financing as part of the agency’s twice-a-year closing period. If a project does not close within a targeted closing cycle, HPD would be required to report the reasoning, and when a new closing date can be expected. Mandating this information to be public is an important step in understanding how the city prioritizes the development of housing across New York City.”
“New Yorkers deserve bold action to access dignified, affordable housing — something the ‘City of Yes’ with Council’s ‘City for All’ plan can together achieve,” said Councilmember Sanchez. “While rezoning is a critical piece to addressing the housing crisis, the Council recognized more was needed to turn the tide and negotiated in good faith with the administration to secure $5 billion in critical additional investments that are rooted in principles of housing justice and comprehensive planning. I am proud to have introduced and led three important pieces of legislation that will be signed into law by Mayor Adams as part of the ‘City of Yes’ package. Intros. 1127-A and 1128-A will provide the necessary building code updates to ensure ADUs are safe for existing and future residents. Intro. 654-A re-establishes the J-51 tax incentive — a critical preservation tool that offsets improvement costs for low-to-moderate cost residential buildings, including for 166,000 families living in co-ops citywide. This iteration of J-51 includes added tenant protections, prioritization of energy efficiency work to meet our city’s climate goals, and data transparency to understand the full reach of the program. Together, these bills mark a crucial step toward preserving and creating safe, affordable housing options throughout New York City.”
“I am proud to be here for the bill signing of Intro. 814-A and Intro. 815-B — two lifesaving bills I authored that will provide a comprehensive framework for building a safer and more resilient New York City,” said Councilmember Gennaro. “Intro. 814-A requires the DEP to update its plan to prevent sewer backups at least once every five years and alert residents when it determines that a sewer backup may have been caused by an issue in a privately-owned sewer. This bill will reduce the frequency of sewer backups, saving New Yorkers from costly damage to their homes and exposure to raw sewage. Intro. 815-B creates a special designation for ‘inland flood hazard areas’ — a measure that is long overdue. This bill provides the tools and data we need to protect New Yorkers in areas outside traditional flood zones. By mapping inland flood hazards, we enable smarter planning and more effective emergency responses. Intro. 815-B also creates a coastal flood risk map that, unlike FEMA flood maps, anticipates the impact of sea level rise. As extreme weather becomes more frequent, we must increase our city’s resilience to flooding from coastal storm surge and rainfall. This bill helps to achieve that goal.”
“For decades, we simply have not built enough housing to keep up with demand. Without enough homes to house the people who live here, we have seen rents soar, vacancy rates plummet, and opportunity decline,” said New York City Councilmember Keith Powers. “With today’s signing of ‘City of Yes,’ we are becoming a city of tomorrow, instead of a city of yesterday.”
“New Yorkers deserve bold leadership that meets the challenge of our affordability crisis, and the ‘City of Yes’ housing plan will help build a significant amount of new homes across the city,” said New York City Councilmember Carlina Rivera. “I commend Mayor Eric Adams, Speaker Adrienne Adams, and city leadership for securing historic investments in capital, infrastructure, public housing, tenant protections, and more, to expand on proposed zoning changes that will create opportunity and stronger neighborhoods.”
MAYOR ADAMS AND ADMINISTRATION DELIVER SAFER, MORE AFFORDABLE NEW YORK CITY IN 2024
Mayor Adams’ Third Year in Office Marked by Safer Streets and Subways, Record Amounts of Jobs, Small Businesses, Housing Construction
Adams Administration Passed Historic “City of Yes” Legislation, Put Billions of Dollars Back into People’s Pockets, Expanded “War on Trash”
NEW YORK – As he concludes his third year in office, New York City Mayor Eric Adams, senior City Hall officials, and commissioners from agencies across city government today released a list of key wins delivered to New Yorkers throughout 2024 and over the course of the last three years, showcasing once again how the Adams administration is continuing to create a safer, more affordable New York City for all.
“From day one, our administration has focused on creating a safer, more affordable New York City. In 2024, we continued to deliver on that vision and ‘Get Stuff Done’ for working-class New Yorkers,” said Mayor Adams. “Thanks to our extraordinary public servants, America’s safest big city got even safer this year, with overall crime down and thousands of illegal guns, mopeds, and ghost cars taken off city streets. We passed historic legislation to turn New York into a ‘City of Yes,’ shattered affordable housing records once again, and put billions of dollars back into New Yorkers’ pockets. We broke records for the most jobs and small businesses in city history and moved millions of trash bags off our sidewalks and into containers. But we know that there is even more we can do to continue to uplift working-class families. As we look to the future, our administration remains committed to keeping New Yorkers safe and making our city more affordable for the millions of New Yorkers who call our city home.”
Highlights from the third year of the Adams administration include:
Making America’s Safest Big City Even Safer: Under Mayor Adams’ leadership, overall crime continued to fall in 2024, including a 7.3 percent drop in homicides and a 6.8 drop in shootings year to date. The New York City Police Department seized more than 6,000 illegal guns in 2024, bringing the total number of firearms taken off city streets since the start of the Adams administration to more than 19,600. The administration’s crack down on car theft helped lower grand larceny auto for 12 months in a row while Mayor Adams’ “Charge Safe, Ride Safe: New York City’s Electric Micromobility Action Plan” helped cut lithium-ion battery fire deaths by 72 percent since its introduction in 2023. To combat a rise in transit crime, the Adams administration deployed 1,000 additional police officers into the city’s subway system in February 2024, already delivering a 6.1 percent drop in transit crime in the year to date.
Strengthening Quality of Life by Shutting Down Illegal Cannabis Shops, Seizing Illegal Vehicles: After securing the authority from Albany to shut down illegal cannabis and smoke shops in New York City, the Adams administration launched “Padlock to Protect,” closed more than 1,300 illegal smoke shops, and seized over $87 million in illegal product. Mayor Adams expanded partnerships with New York state and across city agencies to seize illegal vehicles, removing more than 73,000 ghost cars and illegal motorized vehicles since the start of the Adams administration. In 2024, Mayor Adams expanded his signature “Community Link” initiative, bringing new operations to Midtown, 14th Street, Roosevelt Avenue, and more.
Creating Safer Streets: To keep New Yorkers safe on roadways and sidewalks, the Adams administration upgraded 2,000 intersections in 2024 with improved traffic signals, raised crosswalks, and instituted other pedestrian safety measures. Mayor Adams helped pass Sammy’s Law in Albany to empower New York City to lower speed limits, as well as legislation to quadruple the city’s red light camera program. To improve visibility, New York City is on track to daylight 1,000 intersections in 2024. Thanks to these efforts, traffic fatalities have reached the lowest level since 2020, down 5 percent since the start of the Adams administration.
Turning New York Into a “City of Yes”: When Mayor Adams came into office, he unveiled three bold zoning initiatives to promote renewable energy, foster economic growth, and build more affordable housing. In 2024, the Adams administration passed the final two proposals, bringing long-overdue change to New York City’s zoning code. “City of Yes for Housing Opportunity” — the most pro-housing zoning change in city history — will create up to 80,000 new homes and invest $5 billion in housing and infrastructure while “City of Yes for Economic Opportunity” supports small business and entrepreneurs. In addition to passing Mayor Adams’ Bronx Metro-North plan, the New York City Department of City Planning is advancing plans to create more than 50,000 housing units over the next 15 years in Central Brooklyn, Midtown South in Manhattan, and Long Island City and Jamaica in Queens.
Shattering Affordable Housing Records, Again: The Adams administration, once again, made landmark progress against the city’s housing crisis, shattering affordable housing records for the second fiscal year in a row. In Fiscal Year (FY) 2024, the Adams administration financed nearly 29,000 affordable homes and public housing units, constructed a record 14,700 new homes, and connected a record number of New Yorkers to affordable housing units through CityFHEPS and the city’s housing lottery. The Adams administration secured City Council approval for the Willets Point Transformation to build 2,500 100 percent affordable units — the largest affordable housing project in 40 years.
Keeping New Yorkers in Their Homes: This year, the Adams administration launched the first Tenant Protection Cabinet to enhance cross-agency collaboration and secured the largest housing discrimination settlement in city history, imposing $1 million in civil penalties and securing 850 apartment units for voucher holders.
Putting Public Housing First: The Adams administration continued to prioritize the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA), unlocking $1.35 billion in capital repairs for nearly 7,600 residents through the Permanent Affordability Commitment Together program in FY24. The Adams administration also reopened the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher waitlist for the first time in 15 years, selecting 200,000 households, and expanded Big Apple Connect to 150,000 households in 220 NYCHA facilities citywide.
Supporting New Yorkers Experiencing Unsheltered Homelessness: Under the Adams administration, New York City has made significant progress getting homeless New Yorkers the help and housing they need. Since the launch of Mayor Adams’ Subway Safety Plan in 2022, the administration has moved over 8,000 New Yorkers from the subways into shelter while, in FY24, the New York City Department of Social Services helped a record 18,500 households transition from shelter into stable homes. This year, the Adams administration launched a new Partnership Assistance for Transit Homelessness initiative and expanded its Subway Co-Response Outreach Teams to connect more New Yorkers to care.
Putting Money Back in Your Pockets: Mayor Adams launched the “Money Back in Your Pockets” initiative to connect New Yorkers in underserved neighborhoods with city, state, and federal resources that help people save money and build on the $30 billion the Adams administration has already put back in people’s pockets. Under Mayor Adams’ leadership, New York City’s Financial Empowerment Centers have helped more than 25,000 New Yorkers reduce their debt by over $37.5 million, and Mayor Adams announced plans to relieve over $2 billion in medical debt for up to 500,000 New Yorkers.
Lowering Taxes, Raising Families: New York City’s year-round free tax prep services have already saved New Yorkers more than $220 million since the start of the Adams administration while the “NYC Earned Income Tax Credit,” which Mayor Adams helped expand, returned more than $345 million to over 1.7 million New Yorkers in tax season 2023. To build on that success, Mayor Adams is calling on Albany to go further by passing his “Axe the Tax for the Working Class” proposal that would eliminate city income taxes for working-class families and put $63 million back into the pockets of over 582,000 New Yorkers.
Wages That Work for Working People: To increase pay and benefits for New York City’s public servants, the Adams administration has reached contracts with 100 percent of New York City’s uniformed workforce and, this year, increased the percentage of municipal employees with contracts to 97 percent of the city’s total workforce. Mayor Adams also secured a $741 million cost-of-living adjustment for 80,000 human services workers, implemented a first-in-the-nation minimum pay rate to put $847 million back into delivery workers’ pockets, and negotiated project labor agreements for over $1 billion in construction projects.
Breaking the Jobs Records, Again and Again: In 2024, the Adams administration broke records for the most jobs in city history and connected nearly 8,500 job seekers to employment, free training, and workforce development through its “JobsNYC” initiative. The Adams administration also unveiled the Green Economy Action Plan to support nearly 400,000 “green-collar” jobs by 2040 and secured the 2026 FIFA World Cup Final and other matches for the New York-New Jersey region that will have an economic impact of $2 billion and help create over 14,000 jobs. To ensure that every New Yorker has the chance to compete for city business, the Adams administration awarded a record $6.4 billion in minority-or women-owned business enterprise (M/WBE) contracts in FY24 and ensured the highest agency utilization of M/WBEs in city history.
Small Businesses with Big Numbers: Under the Adams administration, New York City has a record 183,000 small businesses, with one in five current small business formed since the start of the Adams administration. The administration’s Small Business Opportunity Fund has awarded more than $85 million in capital to over 1,000 small businesses since launching in 2023 while storefront vacancy rates have dropped for four consecutive quarters.
Setting Young People Up for Success: The Adams administration has connected young New Yorkers to over 15,000 apprenticeship opportunities, more than halfway to the administration’s moonshot goal of 30,000 apprenticeships by 2030 ahead of schedule. Additionally, in 2024, more than 100,000 young people participated in the city’s Summer Youth Employment Program.
Supporting Our Cultural Institutions: In addition to a record $254 million investment in the city’s cultural sector through the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, the Adams administration broke ground on renovations, expansions, and other city-supported capital projects at the Brooklyn Children’s Museum, Weeksville Heritage Center, The Bronx Museum, Nuyorican Poets Café, and more. Additionally, the Adams administration announced more than $52 million in grants for 1,031 cultural organizations through its annual Cultural Development Fund grant making program and diverted over 5.9 million pounds of materials from landfill, making them available to educators, nonprofits, and artists through its Materials for the Arts program free of charge.
Building the Harbor of the Future: In 2024, Mayor Adams continued to unveil and advance generational projects to turn New York City’s waterfront into a “Harbor of the Future,” including a Science Park and Research Campus in Kips Bay in Manhattan, a $700 million climate research facility on Governors Island, the country’s largest offshore wind port at the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal, a modern maritime port and vibrant mixed-use community hub at the Brooklyn Marine Terminal in Red Hook, a revitalized North Shore of Staten Island, the Willets Point Transformation in Queens, and a cleaner, greener Hunts Point Terminal Produce Market in the Bronx.
Landing the Plane on a $112 Billion Adopted Budget: The Adams administration and the New York City Council reached an agreement on a $112 billion FY25 Adopted Budget to make New York City safer and more affordable by investing $489 million in libraries, $254 million in cultural institutions and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, $100 million in a strategic plan to reimagine early childhood education, and much more. Additionally, the Adams administration announced a record $26 billion investment in affordable housing in the most recent 10-year capital plan. Because of strong, fiscal leadership, the city maintained strong bond ratings from four leading, independent credit rating agencies.
Keeping New Yorkers Healthy: Building on the launch of his landmark HealthyNYC initiative, Mayor Adams filed a lawsuit against the companies that own five major social media companies to hold them accountable for fueling the national youth mental health crisis and delivered free, virtual therapy to 16,000 young people — largely from underserved neighborhoods — through the Teenspace program. The Adams administration has delivered maternal and infant health services to over 12,000 families through the city’s Family Home Visits Initiative since 2022 and ramped up annual investment in opioid prevention and treatment to $50 million per year by FY27.
A First-Rate Education for Every Student: In 2024, Mayor Adams expanded his signature ‘NYC Reads’ initiative to every K-5 school and every early childhood education program as well as launched both ‘NYC Solves’ to overhaul how students learn mathematics and a new Division of Inclusive and Accessible Learning in New York City Public Schools. The Adams administration also opened up 24 new school buildings and over 11,000 new seats — the most new seats opened by the New York City School Construction Authority since 2003 — and secured an extension of mayoral accountability in Albany for another two years.
Affordable, Accessible Child Care: To make child care more affordable for working-class families, the Adams administration lowered the cost of child care for a family of four earning $55,000 from $55 a week in 2022 to just $5 in 2024, increased the number of children enrolled with a low-income voucher from fewer than 8,000 in 2022 to over 46,000 in 2024, and saved New Yorkers more than $1.9 billion through child care vouchers since the start of the administration. In 2024, for the first time in New York City history, every family who applied for a 3K seat on time received an offer, while the Adams administration enrolled over 150,000 children across the entire early childhood education system. Finally, Mayor Adams launched a $100 million, 10-point plan to address systemic issues, boost enrollment, and connect families with more pre-K and 3-K seats.
Meeting the Moment on Asylum Seekers: Since the first buses of asylum seekers arrived in the five boroughs in 2022, over 226,900 migrants have come through the city’s intake center. Thanks to smart management strategies, intensive case management, and 30- and 60-day policies, the Adams administration has helped more than 75 percent of migrants take the next steps on their journeys towards self-sufficiency and saved more than $2.8 billion over three fiscal years.
From the Mean Streets to the Clean Streets: In 2024, Mayor Adams expanded his “War on Trash,” issued rules requiring 70 percent of all New York City trash to be containerized, and laid out a pathway to 100 percent trash containerization in the future. The New York City Department of Sanitation cracked down on illegal dumping with over 250 illegal dumping cameras and, following a successful pilot, expanded curbside composting to the entire city.
Public Spaces for the Public Good: Since 2022, the Adams administration has created over 74 football fields of new public space and taken down nearly 250 long-standing sheds and scaffolding through its “Get Sheds Down” initiative. In 2024, Mayor Adams opened the country’s largest outdoor dining program; announced a $150 million investment to transform Fifth Avenue into a safer, greener, and more pedestrian-friendly boulevard; and launched “Ur in Luck” to build and renovate over 80 public restrooms and create an easy-to-use map to help New Yorkers find one near them. Additionally, the Adams administration has implemented a record amount of newly pedestrianized space since coming into office, finishing 2024 with nearly 500,000 square feet of new plazas, curb and sidewalk extensions, pedestrian safety islands, and traffic triangles.
Fighting Flooding Across the Five Boroughs: Since the start of the Adams administration, New York City has invested over $1.2 billion in vital infrastructure to prevent flooding and is on track to deliver approximately 100 miles of porous pavement by 2031, absorbing up to 500 million gallons of rainwater per year. Additionally, in 2024, the Adams administration completed the first phase of the East Side Coastal Resiliency initiative to protect Manhattan from future storms and high tides.
Funding the Future: Thanks to the Adams administration’s Federal Infrastructure Funding Task Force, New York City has secured more than $2.3 billion in federal infrastructure grants since 2022, including $164 million to transform the Brooklyn Marine Terminal, $127 million to acquire nearly 400 electric school buses, $110 million to upgrade the Hunts Point Produce Market, $117 million to build the QueensWay park, and much more.
MAYOR ADAMS CELEBRATES NEARLY 65 MILLION VISITORS TO NYC IN 2024, SECOND HIGHEST NUMBER OF VISITORS IN CITY HISTORY
New York City Tourism Projected to Surpass Pre-Pandemic Levels in 2025, Marking Full Economic Recovery and Return of Tourists
Number of Visitors to City Increased by 3.5 Percent in 2024 – New York City Remains Most Visited Large City in United States
NEW YORK – New York City Mayor Eric Adams and NYC Tourism + Conventions President and CEO Julie Coker today announced a new end-of-year tourism forecast that shows the city’s continued strong economic growth and reputation as a global tourist destination. In 2024, nearly 65 million visitors came to New York City — the second-highest figure in city history and a 3.5 percent increase from the previous year. The city is on pace to surpass pre-pandemic levels in 2025, marking a full economic recovery. Today’s announcement is another significant milestone highlighting the city’s near-full economic and tourist recovery post-pandemic.
“With nearly 65 million visitors this year — the second highest figure in our city’s history — New York City has once again solidified its position as the premier destination in the nation and one of the top travel spots in the world,” said Mayor Adams. “New York City remains a dynamic hub for tourism, drawing tens of millions of visitors from around the globe and bringing in $79 billion in economic impact. Whether visiting for business or pleasure, the five boroughs has everything you need, from conference halls to theatres to restaurants and hotels — New York City remains the heartbeat of innovation, culture, and opportunity. And we’re looking forward to beating our own tourism record next year with a full recovery.”
“New York City’s tourism sector continues to thrive, reflecting the resilience and global appeal of our city,” said NYC Tourism + Conventions President and CEO Coker. “In 2024, we saw growth in both visitation and spending, reaching an estimated total direct spend of more than $51 billion across the city and state. This recovery supported over 388,000 leisure and hospitality jobs and generated more than $6.8 billion in tax revenue, benefiting local businesses. As we look ahead to 2025, we expect this momentum to continue, further strengthening New York City’s role in driving the state and local economy.”
New York remains the most visited city in the United States and a top destination for international markets and major events. Visitor activity generated an economic impact of $79 billion across the city and state economies, including over $51 billion in direct traveler spending, not adjusted for inflation, reflecting a 3.5 percent increase over 2023. This impact spans multiple sectors, including accommodations, dining, entertainment, sports, live theatre, arts and cultural attractions, retail, and transportation. This economic activity supported over 388,000 leisure and hospitality jobs — approximately 9 percent of the city’s workforce — and benefited thousands of small and minority-owned businesses across all five boroughs. Visitor spending also generated more than $6.8 billion in tax revenue, which helped save each New York City household around $2,000 in 2024.
New York City continues to be the largest point of entry to the United States, with more flights arriving through city airports than any other destination in the country. The New York City subway system rebounded, reaching 1 billion trips before the end of 2024. October was the busiest October for New York City Transit since the pandemic, with nearly 114 million subway rides and over 40 million bus rides — 10 million more subway rides and 3 million more bus rides than the previous year, respectively.
Under Mayor Adams’ leadership, the city has continued to experience economic growth and recovery following the COVID-19 pandemic. The Adams administration released “Festive Spending: The Impact of the Holiday Season in NYC,” showing holiday season shopping in New York City has fully recovered following the COVID-19 pandemic by attracting up to 4.4 million daily visitors, creating 14,000 jobs, and pouring over $500 million into New York City’s local economy. As the Adams administration and New York City have broken multiple records for total jobs in the city’s history, and a recent analysis from the New York City Department of City Planning shows a robust recovery of the retail sector, the holiday season is bringing a significant boost to New York City’s economy and continues to put money back in New Yorkers’ pockets, making the city more affordable for working-class people.
Mayor Adams and New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy were awarded the rights to host the FIFA World Cup 26™ Final and seven other matches throughout the tournament at New York New Jersey Stadium (MetLife Stadium) in East Rutherford, New Jersey. FIFA World Cup 26™ will be the biggest sporting event ever — where three Host Countries, 16 Host Cities, 48 teams, and 104 matches will unite an entire continent to showcase a momentous new tournament format. FIFA World Cup 26™ matches played at New York New Jersey Stadium (MetLife Stadium), including the Finals, are projected to generate over $2 billion in economic impact for the New York/New Jersey region and will support over 14,000 jobs. Moreover, it is expected that the tournament will bring over 1 million visitors to the region, roughly half of whom will be non-ticketholders.
MAYOR ADAMS CELEBRATES OPENING OF DEEPLY AFFORDABLE HOUSING SITE, CITY’S PROGRESS MOVING NEW YORKERS FROM SHELTERS TO PERMANENT HOMES
Bronx Building With 63 High-Quality Homes for New Yorkers With CityFHEPS Vouchers is Latest in City’s Efforts to Create Nearly 900 Permanent Subsidized Apartments for Households in Shelter
More Homeless New Yorkers Connected to Subsidized Permanent Housing Than Any Year in Recent History
NEW YORK – New York City Mayor Eric Adams and New York City Department of Social Services (DSS) Commissioner Molly Wasow Park today celebrated the opening of a new Affordable Housing Services (AHS) site in the Bronx, marking the creation of nearly 400 high-quality, deeply affordable homes for New Yorkers in shelter through the ground-breaking AHS initiative in 2024. The opening is the latest achievement in the Adams administration’s efforts to get New Yorkers off of the streets, out of shelters, and into permanent, affordable homes. In Fiscal Year 2024 (FY24), DSS helped a record more than 18,500 households move out of shelters and into stable homes — 24 percent more than the year before. Further, a record number of New Yorkers used City Fighting Homelessness and Eviction Prevention Supplement (CityFHEPS) vouchers to obtain permanent housing or stay in their homes.
“A home is more than just a place for a family to rest their heads at night — it’s the skeleton key to unlocking the American Dream of stable, secure housing and a pathway to the middle class. With today’s announcement, we are taking unhoused New Yorkers from the streets and shelters and placing them into stable housing, bringing them one step closer to turning that American Dream into a reality,” said Mayor Adams. “With the opening of this new building, our administration is continuing to deliver on our promise to quickly build high-quality, affordable housing in parts of New York City where people need it the most. Affordable housing remains the foundation of a safer, more affordable New York City, and the opening of these new homes shows how quickly we can make change when we work together.”
“A robust shelter system is necessary for supporting New Yorkers in crisis, but it’s no substitute for permanent housing and all the stability and opportunity that comes with a proper home,” said DSS Commissioner Wasow Park. “We have been laser-focused on expediting and expanding pathways to housing for New Yorkers in need, and the results speak for themselves: We’ve moved a record number of households from shelter to permanent housing in back-to-back fiscal years. But with a citywide housing vacancy rate of just 1.4 percent, building on this incredible progress requires innovative approaches to housing, and our Affordable Housing Services initiative represents just that. Through this initiative, DSS has created nearly 400 units of deeply affordable housing for New Yorkers in shelter, including this amazing 63-unit project developed in partnership with The Doe Fund. We have hundreds of additional units in our pipeline and very much look forward to bringing those homes online and providing a brighter future for New Yorkers in need.”
The 63-unit building is the latest site to open as part of the Adams administration’s push to fast-track the creation of nearly 900 deeply affordable homes, which have already been awarded as part of the AHS pipeline. With nearly 400 units now open, DSS is working to expedite the opening of another 500 deeply affordable homes for New Yorkers in the shelter system with rental assistance program CityFHEPS vouchers. DSS continues to develop the AHS pipeline, working with various not-for-profit providers to identify new, high-quality proposals as the city looks to build on this year’s record-breaking progress connecting New Yorkers in shelter to permanent subsidized housing.
The AHS site will be operated by not-for-profit human services provider The Doe Fund, which has four decades of experience helping vulnerable New Yorkers facing compounding challenges and unique barriers to obtaining long-term housing stability. The organization’s signature “Ready, Willing, and Able” program has helped countless New Yorkers break the cycle of homelessness, with a specific focus on providing employment supports for justice-involved individuals and New Yorkers struggling with substance use challenges. DSS has finalized or opened AHS sites with various not-for-profit providers, including Riseboro, the Fortune Society, Community Housing Innovation, VIP Community Services, and Services for the Underserved.
There are more than 9,000 households holding CityFHEPS vouchers currently in the city’s shelter system that are unable to find housing due to the city’s severe housing shortage. AHS created a newer, much needed, and scalable pathway out of shelter. Through the program, the city helps nonprofits purchase or enter long-term, building-wide leases to create deeply affordable housing with 30-year contracts leveraging social services dollars — locking in long-term affordability with strong tenant protections for CityFHEPS voucher holders. Many of the program’s remaining apartments are scheduled to become available for lease through February 2025, which will mark the one-year anniversary of this innovative housing program for CityFHEPS voucher holders in shelter.
Today’s announcement builds on the Adams administration’s historic efforts in combatting the city’s housing crisis. Earlier this month, Mayor Adams celebrated the approval of his administration’s “City of Yes for Housing Opportunity,” the most pro-housing zoning proposal in New York City history, which will enable the creation of 80,000 new homes over the next 15 years and invest $5 billion towards critical infrastructure updates and housing.
In June, the Adams administration’s FY25 Adopted Budget invested $2 billion in capital funds to the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development and the New York City Housing Authority’s capital budgets. In total, the Adams administration has committed a record $26 billion in housing capital in the current 10-year plan. In July, Mayor Adams announced back-to-back record breaking years in both creating and connecting New Yorkers to affordable housing. This past spring, the city celebrated the largest 100 percent affordable housing project in 40 years with the Willets Point transformation.
Further, the Adams administration is using every tool available to address the city’s housing crisis. Mayor Adams announced multiple new tools, including a $4 million state grant, to help New York City homeowners create accessory dwelling units that will not only help them to afford to remain in the communities they call home, but also to build generational wealth for families. Earlier this year, Mayor Adams and members of his administration successfully advocated for new tools in the 2024 New York state budget that will spur the creation of urgently needed housing. These tools include a new tax incentive for multifamily rental construction, a tax incentive program to encourage office conversions to create more affordable units, lifting the arbitrary “floor-to-area ratio” cap that held back affordable housing production in certain high-demand areas of the city, and the ability to create a pilot program to legalize and make safe basement apartments.
Under Mayor Adams’ leadership, the city is fulfilling its 2024 State of the City commitment to build more affordable housing, including by being ahead of schedule on advancing two dozen affordable housing projects on city-owned land this year through the “24 in ‘24” initiative, reopening the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher program waitlist after being closed to general applications for nearly 15 years, and creating the Tenant Protection Cabinet to coordinate across agencies to better serve tenants. The city has also taken several steps to cut red tape and speed up the delivery of much-needed housing, including through the “Green Fast Track for Housing,” a streamlined environmental review process for qualifying small- and medium-sized housing projects; the “Office Conversion Accelerator,” an interagency effort to guide buildings that wish to convert through city bureaucracy; and other initiatives of the Building and Land Use Approval Streamlining Taskforce.
“In a city with a homeless population in the thousands, we must do everything we can to provide safe, stable housing to all New Yorkers,” said New York State Assemblymember Jenifer Rajkumar. “The new Bronx AHS site is part of our groundbreaking work this year to address homelessness, putting over 18,500 households on the path to dignity and self-sufficiency. This work included almost 400 new deeply affordable homes and a record number of CityFHEPS voucher users. I am building upon this effort by working with the administration to expedite housing production and provide new resources to serve our unhoused population. Through our determination, we will give all New Yorkers the help and support they need.”
“In close partnership with the New York City Department of Social Services, The Doe Fund’s transformative solutions have connected nearly 14,000 people experiencing homelessness to jobs, housing, or both. That relationship deepens with 2736 Creston Avenue, the latest residence in our over 1,200-unit portfolio of permanent affordable and supportive housing,” said Jennifer Mitchell, president and CEO, The Doe Fund. “This innovative development provides a pathway to stability for 63 individuals and families with histories of homelessness. We thank Mayor Eric Adams, Department of Social Services Commissioner Molly Park, and the hundreds of dedicated Department of Homeless Services employees who have made this ambitious vision possible.”
MAYOR ADAMS ANNOUNCES CONNECTION OF 100TH YOUNG ADULT FROM FOSTER CARE TO PERMANENT, AFFORDABLE HOUSING THROUGH SIGNATURE YOUNG ADULT PROGRAM
Administration’s Partnership with Anthos|Home Expedites Move-In Time to New Homes, Ensuring Stable Housing More Quickly for Youth Leaving Foster Care
100 Percent of Young Adults Who Have Moved Into Housing Through Program Remain Stably Housed
NEW YORK – New York City Mayor Eric Adams and New York City Administration for Children’s Services (ACS) Commissioner Jess Dannhauser today announced the administration has reached the milestone of placing the 100th young adult from foster care into permanent, affordable housing as part of its partnership with Anthos|Home, a nonprofit leader helping New Yorkers with housing vouchers find apartments by connecting them with landlords. The partnership — which launched in June 2023 to accelerate the process of connecting youth in foster care with housing vouchers and permanent housing — has successfully helped 100 young New Yorkers to date, all of whom remain in stable housing. As part of this initiative, youth are also connected to Fair Futures, which provides dedicated coaches to young people who are in foster care until they are age 26.
“When we came into office, we promised to build a safer, more affordable city for all New Yorkers, and that absolutely includes our young New Yorkers. Helping connect youth in foster care with permanent housing and then supporting them with career and educational opportunities is critical to ensuring they have a fair shot at building a better future for themselves,” said Mayor Adams. “Thank you to Anthos|Home for their partnership, which has led these young people to secure permanent housing, and the tireless work of ACS staff and the foster care provider agencies in helping us achieve this critical milestone — proving the success of this innovative model and ensuring our administration doesn’t walk past our young people as they struggle to make it on their own but uplifts them.”
“Young people exiting foster care need and deserve a dignified, affordable home that serves as a foundation for their success,” said ACS CommissionerDannhauser. “I am grateful for our partnership with Anthos|Home, which is helping young people with housing vouchers secure permanent homes more quickly. This not only puts youth on a path to stability and success more quickly, but it reduces significant amounts of stress for them during a time of major transition. Today’s milestone of the 100th young person to leave foster care to their new home through this program is the first of many more to come. These efforts — combined with Fair Futures coaching — are putting the most deserving young people on the path to success.”
Anthos|Home — a nonprofit successfully deploying innovative models throughout the country — is streamlining the process of helping individuals and families with housing vouchers — including those in shelter or at risk of homelessness — quickly move into affordable housing and provide them with housing stability services so they can remain housed for the long term. Young people working with Anthos|Home move into a new home on an average of two to four months, far less than the typical voucher user.
“We combat homelessness by partnering with government and social service agencies to help people with housing vouchers secure apartments more quickly, leveraging our unique financial capabilities to support tenants and landlords throughout the process,” said Laura Lazarus, co-founder and chief executive officer, Anthos|Home.
This successful model is based on building relationships with landlords, developing a bank of suitable apartments, making repairs to apartments, paying moving costs when necessary, and supporting voucher holders and landlords through the process. Anthos|Home housing specialists also provide follow-up support to ensure housing stability.
ACS plans to work with Anthos|Home over the next 12 months to help house an additional 400 individuals and families and support their housing stability through post-move-in support services.
“This is a pivotal moment in the commitment to supporting New York’s youth,” said New York State Senator Roxanne J. Persaud, chair, Committee on Social Services. “The partnership with Anthos|Home exemplifies the power of collaboration and shared vision in investing in a brighter future for every young person who has faced the challenges of foster care. I commend Mayor Adams and Commissioner Dannhauser for their unwavering dedication to building a strong foundation for these young adults, providing them not just with housing, but with the tools and resources they need to thrive and succeed.”
“This administration has shown an unprecedented commitment to uplifting our foster care population and setting them on the path to success,” said New York State Assemblymember Jenifer Rajkumar.“We already made history by providing foster youth with college scholarships and mentoring into their 20’s and then instituted a new program to connect youth aging out with affordable housing. Today we celebrate a milestone in this work, as we place the 100th young adult into safe, stable housing. This sends a message to our foster youth that turning 18 is not the end of the story, but a new chapter in support for them to grow and thrive.”
New York City Mayor Eric Adams attends the National Action Network’s (NAN) annual Christmas Day dinner and toy giveaway. House of Justice, 106 West 145th Street, New York, NY. Wednesday, December 25, 2024. Image Credit: Benny Polatseck/Mayoral Photography Office
New York City Mayor Eric Adams attends the National Action Network’s (NAN) annual Christmas Day dinner and toy giveaway. House of Justice, 106 West 145th Street, New York, NY. Wednesday, December 25, 2024. Image Credit: Benny Polatseck/Mayoral Photography Office
Banner Image: New York City Mayor Eric Adams attends the National Action Network’s (NAN) annual Christmas Day dinner and toy giveaway. House of Justice, 106 West 145th Street, New York, NY. Wednesday, December 25, 2024. Image Credit: Benny Polatseck/Mayoral Photography Office
