The 2026 New York Charter Review Commission has released five final ballot proposals to change the City Charter. These include streamlined permits and contracts, financial relief for small businesses, acceleration of housing and street safety improvements, and a fiscal reserve for the city.
HDC has analyzed the proposals to see how the proposed changes would affect landmarks in the city.
Question 3, Activation of City Land: To allow the city to sell/lease City-owned Transferable Development Rights (TDR), the City is proposing that TDR transfers be eligible for the Expedited Land Use Reform Procedure (EULURP).
While the disposal of city-owned development rights, which are a public good, should not be taken lightly, HDC believes that the ELURP process will provide for the necessary public input. HDC will work to make sure that monies from the sale of these TDRs are allocated to benefit the maintenance and restoration of landmark-designated public buildings.
Such a proposal will allow the city to monetize air rights in the same way as private developers, and creates new use for city-owned development rights. While HDC is satisfied by the inclusion of the Continuing Maintenance Plan as part of the Development Rights Transfers. HDC, alongside our fellow preservation colleagues, previously submitted a letter to LPC asking for more clarification on the new plans for TDRs, which they have incorporated in their new guidelines. You can read the letter here.
Question 4, Simplify Building Permitting: The proposed amendment aims to simplify construction permitting, and centralizing the city’s waterfront permitting process within the Department of Buildings (DOB). It aims to streamline the process for compliance with building safety regulations.
In an effort to streamline permitting processes, HDC wants to make sure that centralizing all permitting with DOB does not conflict with or supersede Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC)’s approvals in regards to designated properties. In addition, centralizing waterfront permitting within the DOB is described as affecting only building-safety compliance, not land-use determinations. However, many NYC waterfront structures have historic or landmark significance, and more clarification is needed on how DOB’s consolidated review would interact with LPC’s jurisdiction or historic-structure-specific standards. More clarification is also needed to make sure that DOB cannot issue any permits without LPC’s oversight on their areas of jurisdiction.
We expect the final questions to be on the November Ballot. Please stay tuned for any developments on the proposed amendments’ impact on historic preservation in the city. Featured Image credit to NYC Tourism