MMR - FY20 - Department of City Planning

• Page Type:: Document Section
• Parent Document:: Mayor's Management Report - Fiscal Year 2020
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    • DEPARTMENT OF
    • CITY PLANNING Marisa Lago, Director/Chair
    • DEPARTMENT OF CITY PLANNING | Page 287
    • WHAT WE DO
    • The Department of City Planning
    • (DCP) plans for New York City’s overall
    • strategic growth and development.
    • DCP works with communities and
    • elected officials to build healthier, more
    • equitable and resilient neighborhoods;
    • develop land use policies and zoning
    • regulations; and, in collaboration
    • with the Office of Management and
    • Budget (OMB), share perspectives on
    • growth and community needs with its
    • sister agencies, elected officials and
    • members of the public. DCP’s work
    • builds on New York City’s greatest
    • strengths, its unparalleled diversity
    • and resilient spirit, and helps to ensure
    • that investments, including private
    • investments, benefit the city as a
    • whole.
    • DCP’s six strategic objectives are: (1)
    • catalyzing long-term neighborhood
    • equity and improvement through
    • integrated planning and targeted
    • public investments; (2) encouraging
    • housing production, affordability
    • and quality; (3) promoting economic
    • development and job growth;
    • (4) enhancing resiliency and
    • sustainability of neighborhoods; (5)
    • ensuring integrity, timeliness and
    • responsiveness in land use reviews;
    • and (6) supplying objective data and
    • expertise to a broad range of planning
    • functions and stakeholders.
    • DCP supports the City Planning
    • Commission (CPC) in its annual review
    • of hundreds of land use applications
    • and works closely with OMB in
    • developing the City’s Ten-Year Capital
    • Strategy.
    • FOCUS ON EQUITY
    • Racism has long undermined the health and vitality of New York City’s communities.
    • As DCP examines its own role and the role of the planning profession in perpetuating
    • practices that stymie fair, inclusive planning, the agency is committed to aggressively
    • tackling racism and fostering a more equitable city.
    • DCP supports Where We Live, the City’s process to support fair housing principles and
    • better understand and address how segregation and discrimination impact New Yorkers.
    • Through projects that focus on affordable housing and job creation, DCP works to
    • incentivize affordability and stability, and help improve the quality of life for marginalized
    • populations.
    • Through Mandatory Inclusionary Housing (MIH) and Zoning for Quality and Affordability
    • (ZQA), DCP supports Housing New York 2.0, a suite of initiatives to help New Yorkers
    • of all income levels and backgrounds find safe, affordable housing in neighborhoods
    • throughout the city. DCP advances resiliency through work on the Comprehensive
    • Waterfront Plan and Zoning for Coastal Flood Resiliency (ZCFR). It also seeks to coordinate
    • transit improvements and land use to encourage the growth of business districts outside
    • of the Manhattan Core to bring jobs closer to where New Yorkers live. This work includes
    • the Zoning for Transit Accessibility project to expand zoning mechanisms to better
    • coordinate new development with subway station accessibility improvements.
    • DCP works with OMB and all 59 community boards on annual Community District
    • Needs Statements and Budget Requests and provides training for community boards on
    • planning principles, initiatives and digital tools. DCP strives to improve transparency—
    • including public access to Census and land use data—and access to planning resources.
    • With the help of DCP’s digital tools, New Yorkers can better plan for their communities.
    • DCP recently launched NYC Engage, a portal that the public can use to participate in
    • remote public meetings.
    • OUR SERVICES AND GOALS
    • SERVICE 1 Shape the use and development of land in the city’s
    • neighborhoods, business districts and waterfront through
    • participatory planning and zoning changes.
    • Goal 1a Advance land use projects and proposals for public review that
    • promote housing and affordability, economic development,
    • sustainability and neighborhood quality of life.
    • SERVICE 2 Prepare information and policy analysis for the public, other
    • government agencies and elected officials.
    • Goal 2a Provide quality technical and strategic planning expertise to the
    • public, other City agencies and elected officials to support decision
    • making.
    • SERVICE 3 Manage land use and environmental review processes
    • to facilitate public and private development citywide.
    • Goal 3a Conduct timely and thorough review of land use and environmental
    • review projects, subject to CPC review, to ensure that project
    • submissions are technically complete and adhere to all applicable
    • requirements and procedures.
    • Page 288 | MAYOR’S MANAGEMENT REPORT
    • HOW WE PERFORMED IN FISCAL 2020
    • SERVICE 1 Shape the use and development of land in the city’s neighborhoods, business districts and
    • waterfront through participatory planning and zoning changes.
    • Goal 1a Advance land use projects and proposals for public review that promote housing and affordability,
    • economic development, sustainability and neighborhood quality of life.
    • Furthering objectives of expanding housing and economic development opportunities in all five boroughs and fostering
    • more livable, equitable and resilient neighborhoods through community planning, DCP advanced and presented 55 land use
    • proposals and initiatives to the public during Fiscal 2020, in line with the 58 presented in Fiscal 2019. These numbers vary
    • from year to year based on how much internal work must occur before public outreach, the complexity of the proposals
    • and if a proposal is locked into a pre-existing schedule due to legislative requirements.
    • In Fiscal 2020, DCP advanced several major initiatives, furthering its affordable housing, economic development, equity and
    • resiliency goals. Following the release of a Draft Zoning Proposal in 2019 for the Gowanus neighborhood, work continued on
    • the Gowanus Neighborhood Planning Study’s environmental review in 2020. Based on extensive outreach and planning with
    • community members and local elected officials, the Gowanus proposal seeks to facilitate a true mixed-use neighborhood
    • with permanently affordable housing, commercial and industrial businesses, improved resiliency and new public spaces.
    • In November 2019, DCP presented the Envision SoHo/NoHo report, a summary of recommendations around the principles
    • of improving quality of life, addressing housing issues and supporting the mixed-use character of these neighborhoods.
    • The report’s recommendations grew out of the SoHo/NoHo Community Planning Process, a series of community meetings
    • aimed at examining key land use and zoning issues in these two high opportunity neighborhoods.
    • Throughout Fiscal 2020, DCP held working group discussions on the Staten Island Special Natural Districts Zoning Text
    • Amendment. The amendment aims to take advantage of advances in ecological science to lessen the burden for homeowners
    • making small renovations, while retaining a strong public review process for larger, more environmentally significant
    • developments, so as to preserve the borough’s natural features.
    • Throughout Fiscal 2020, DCP held events and meetings where the public shared ideas on how to improve one of the City’s
    • defining resources—its 520 miles of waterfront. This public input will help shape the city’s next Comprehensive Waterfront
    • Plan, which is due to be published at the end of the 2020 calendar year. These sessions included a Waterfront Planning
    • Camp in August 2019, attended by more than 200 New Yorkers, and Walking the Edge, a creative online initiative that
    • launched in May 2020 to raise awareness of the coming Comprehensive Waterfront Plan.
    • In Fall 2019, DCP gave presentations on the ZCFR proposal to affected community boards. The proposal aims to update
    • zoning rules across New York City to ensure that new and existing buildings do not lose zoning flexibility as owners seek
    • to design new or retrofit buildings to be more resilient in the long-term. ZCFR also seeks to improve the ability of the City’s
    • many coastal communities to withstand and recover quickly from future storms.
    • Performance Indicators
    • Actual Target Trend
    • FY16 FY17 FY18 FY19 FY20 FY20 FY21 5-Year
    • Desired
    • Direction
    • Economic development and housing proposals completed and
    • presented to the public 42 45 74 26 12 * * Down Up
    • Neighborhood enhancement proposals completed and presented to the public 14 28 25 22 43 * * Up Up
    • « Critical Indicator “NA” Not Available ñò Directional Target * None
    • SERVICE 2 Prepare information and policy analysis for the public, other government agencies and
    • elected officials.
    • Goal 2a Provide quality technical and strategic planning expertise to the public, other City agencies and elected
    • officials to support decision-making.
    • DCP publicly presented 315 initiatives, planning reports, presentations and datasets—including digital tools—in Fiscal
    • 2020. To increase transparency and improve public access to information, DCP released two new web application tools.
    • DEPARTMENT OF CITY PLANNING | Page 289
    • The Community District Priorities, an easy-to-use platform for community boards to formally submit their annual needs and
    • budget requests to the City, was released in August 2019. In October 2019, DCP, alongside OMB, launched the first-ever
    • digital version of New York City’s biennial Ten-Year Capital Strategy. The new, interactive platform lays out the goals, policies,
    • constraints, assumptions and criteria used by the City to assess capital needs, as well as anticipated sources of funding.
    • Each of these tools serves to provide and enhance access to planning information for more informed public participation
    • and decision-making.
    • In Fiscal 2020, DCP held 30 engagement sessions regarding the 2020 Census and 50 general presentations on related
    • demographic topics. DCP’s population experts met with Census stakeholders in nonprofits and community-based
    • organizations, including organizations representing various ethnic and immigrant groups involved in ensuring effective
    • Census outreach in 2020. These briefings focused on technical elements of conducting the Census and placed 2020
    • outreach planning activities in the broader context of Census operations.
    • Planning initiatives or policy reports released during Fiscal 2020 include Assessing Storefront Vacancy in NYC, a report that
    • examined recent retail trends and storefront vacancies in the context of shifting technology, economic forces and consumer
    • preferences. Other reports include the Ins and Outs of NYC Commuting Report, analyzing recent trends and characteristics
    • of workers traveling to the five boroughs from outside the city for employment and vice-versa, and a 2019 update to the
    • Geography of Jobs report, providing a deeper dive into employment, labor force and housing production trends in the
    • region over the last two decades. A DCP info brief entitled Emerging Industries and Sustainable Transportation studied
    • travel choices of workers and visitors to office, institutional and industrial businesses in transit-oriented locations outside
    • the Manhattan Core.
    • DCP continues to collect, analyze and share data with stakeholders on land use, zoning, housing and population, releasing
    • datasets and applications of software, data and geographic base map files to the public as free downloads, known under
    • the umbrella name BYTES of the BIG APPLE. In Fiscal 2020, DCP released 315 datasets, in line with the 326 datasets released
    • in Fiscal 2019. The Digital City Map (DCM) is a new dataset released in Fiscal 2020. The DCM data represents street lines
    • and other features shown on the City Map, which is the official street map of the City of New York. The DCM datasets,
    • featured in the NYC Streets Map application, were created in an ongoing effort to digitize official street records and make
    • them easily accessible to the public. PLUTO and MapPLUTO, datasets that contain extensive land use and geographic data
    • at the tax lot level, were released more frequently in Fiscal 2020, increasing from biannual releases to monthly releases.
    • The PLUTO Change File is another new dataset released in Fiscal 2020, which was created to document the changes DCP
    • applies to selected field values to further improve data quality and consistency.
    • Performance Indicators
    • Actual Target Trend
    • FY16 FY17 FY18 FY19 FY20 FY20 FY21 5-Year
    • Desired
    • Direction
    • Planning information and policy analysis initiatives presented
    • to the public 222 262 267 351 315 * * Up Up
    • « Critical Indicator “NA” Not Available ñò Directional Target * None
    • SERVICE 3 Manage land use and environmental review processes to facilitate public and private
    • development citywide.
    • Goal 3a Conduct timely and thorough review of land use and environmental review projects, subject to CPC
    • review, to ensure that project submissions are technically complete and adhere to all applicable
    • requirements and procedures.
    • In Fiscal 2020, DCP certified/referred a total of 178 projects compared to 268 in Fiscal 2019. This decrease is attributed
    • to the pause of the public review process via Executive Order in the third and fourth quarters of Fiscal 2020 due to the
    • COVID-19 pandemic. DCP certified/referred fewer projects across all project categories: simple zoning actions (52 in Fiscal
    • 2020 versus 76 in Fiscal 2019), renewals/Staten Island actions (48 versus 78), zoning actions with CEQR (37 Environmental
    • Assessment Statement and Environmental Impact Statement projects versus 71) and non-zoning City projects (41 versus
    • 43). Overall, 75% percent of Fiscal 2020 projects were certified or referred within their target timeframes, five percent
    • higher than the target, and three percent higher than Fiscal 2019. Many factors contribute to meeting target timeframes,
    • including a heavy reliance on applicants to file adequate supporting materials and more complex applications having
    • lengthier environmental review time periods.
    • Page 290 | MAYOR’S MANAGEMENT REPORT
    • In Fiscal 2020, DCP made progress on the second phase of a cloud-based digital project management system, the Zoning
    • Application Portal (ZAP), a public transparency tool that also significantly advances DCP internal processes of ensuring
    • integrity, timeliness and responsiveness in land use and environmental reviews. The platform now allows community boards,
    • Borough Presidents and Borough Boards to quickly and effortlessly calendar public hearings for land use items digitally.
    • Community boards and Borough Presidents are also now able to instantly upload their recommendations for land use
    • applications. Earlier in Fiscal 2019, DCP launched ZAP Search, a public portal for viewing certified ULURP applications and
    • accompanying materials.
    • Important ZAP Applicant Portal updates that are expected in Fiscal 2021 include allowing paperless document exchange
    • with applicants and City agencies, and online fee payments. When completed, the public, applicants and City agencies
    • will have access to all land use and environmental applications online, dramatically improving the transparency of the land
    • use review process.
    • Performance Indicators
    • Actual Target Trend
    • FY16 FY17 FY18 FY19 FY20 FY20 FY21 5-Year
    • Desired
    • Direction
    • Simple zoning actions certified/referred 59 68 63 76 52 * * Neutral *
    • « – Certified/referred within 12 months (%) 71% 62% 68% 79% 79% 70% 70% Up Up
    • « Zoning actions with CEQR (EAS) certified/referred NA NA NA 34 * * NA *
    • – Certified/referred within 15 months (%) NA NA NA 38% 70% 70% NA Up
    • « Zoning actions with CEQR (EIS) certified/referred NA NA NA 3 * * NA *
    • « – Certified/referred within 22 months (%) NA NA NA 33% 70% 70% NA Up
    • City projects (non-zoning) certified/referred 50 70 60 43 41 * * Down *
    • « – Certified/referred within 6 months (%) 96% 96% 97% 74% 90% 70% 70% Down Up
    • Renewals and South Richmond actions certified/referred 57 58 63 78 48 * * Neutral *
    • « – Certified/referred within 6 months (%) 86% 88% 92% 94% 88% 70% 70% Neutral Up
    • « Critical Indicator “NA” Not Available ñò Directional Target * None
    • AGENCY CUSTOMER SERVICE
    • Performance Indicators Actual Target Trend
    • Customer Experience FY16 FY17 FY18 FY19 FY20 FY20 FY21 5-Year
    • Desired
    • Direction
    • E-mails responded to in 14 days (%) 85% 83% 45% 63% 49% 85% 85% Down Up
    • Letters responded to in 14 days (%) 72% 71% 51% 66% 42% 50% 50% Down Up
    • Completed customer requests for interpretation 6 12 14 15 2 * * Down *
    • CORE customer experience rating (0 - 100) 100 99 99 NA 98 90 90 NA Up
    • « Critical Indicator “NA” Not Available ñò Directional Target * None
    • AGENCY RESOURCES
    • Resource Indicators Actual¹ Plan²
    • FY16 FY17 FY18 FY19 FY20 FY20 FY21 5yr Trend
    • Expenditures ($000,000)³ $31.2 $36.3 $36.1 $40.1 $48.0 $52.3 $44.6 Up
    • Revenues ($000,000) $3.0 $2.9 $5.4 $2.9 $3.1 $2.0 $2.0 Neutral
    • Personnel 296 333 348 347 317 386 390 Neutral
    • Overtime paid ($000) $66 $38 $25 $27 $32 $32 $32 Down
    • ¹Actual financial amounts for the current fiscal year are not yet final. Final fiscal year actuals, from the Comptroller's Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, will be reported
    • in the next PMMR. Refer to the "Indicator Definitions" at nyc.gov/mmr for details. ²Authorized Budget Level ³Expenditures include all funds "NA" - Not
    • Available * None
    • SPENDING AND BUDGET INFORMATION
    • DEPARTMENT OF CITY PLANNING | Page 291
    • Where possible, the relationship between an agency’s goals and its expenditures and planned resources, by budgetary unit
    • of appropriation (UA), is shown in the ‘Applicable MMR Goals’ column. Each relationship is not necessarily exhaustive or
    • exclusive. Any one goal may be connected to multiple UAs, and any UA may be connected to multiple goals.
    • Unit of Appropriation
    • Expenditures
    • FY19¹
    • ($000,000)
    • Modified Budget
    • FY20²
    • ($000,000) Applicable MMR Goals³
    • Personal Services - Total $28.1 $30.0
      • 001 - Personal Services $26.0 $27.5 All
      • 003 - Geographic Systems $2.1 $2.6 2a
    • Other Than Personal Services - Total $11.9 $17.9
      • 002 - Other Than Personal Services $11.7 $17.6 All
      • 004 - Geographic Systems $0.2 $0.3 2a
    • Agency Total $40.1 $48.0
    • ¹Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) for the Fiscal Year ended June 30, 2019. Includes all funds. ²City of New York Adopted Budget for Fiscal 2020, as of June
    • 2020. Includes all funds. ³Refer to agency goals listed at front of chapter. “NA” Not Available *None
    • NOTEWORTHY CHANGES, ADDITIONS OR DELETIONS !
    • None.
    • ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
    • For additional information on items referenced in the narrative, go to:
    • • Where We Live
    • https://wherewelive.cityofnewyork.us/
    • • Mandatory Inclusionary Housing
    • http://www1.nyc.gov/site/planning/plans/mih/mandatory-inclusionary-housing.page
    • • Zoning for Quality and Affordability
    • http://www1.nyc.gov/site/planning/plans/zqa/zoning-for-quality-and-affordability.page
    • • Housing New York 2.0
    • https://www1.nyc.gov/assets/hpd/downloads/pdfs/about/housing-new-york-2-0.pdf
    • • Comprehensive Waterfront Plan
    • https://www1.nyc.gov/site/planning/plans/vision-2020-cwp/vision-2030-cwp.page
    • • Zoning for Coastal Flood Resiliency
    • https://www1.nyc.gov/site/planning/plans/flood-resilience-zoning-text-update/flood-resilience-zoning-text-update.
    • page
    • • Zoning for Transit Accessibility
    • https://council.nyc.gov/press/2019/09/27/1812/
    • • Catalogue of Digital Tools
    • https://www1.nyc.gov/assets/planning/download/pdf/planning-level/community/catalogue-digital-tools.pdf
    • • NYC Engage
    • https://www1.nyc.gov/site/nycengage/index.page
    • • Gowanus Neighborhood Planning Study
    • https://www1.nyc.gov/site/planning/plans/gowanus/gowanus.page
    • Page 292 | MAYOR’S MANAGEMENT REPORT
    • • Envision SoHo/NoHo Report
    • https://www.envisionsohonoho.nyc/envision-sohonoho-report1
    • • Staten Island Special Districts Zoning Text Amendment
    • https://www1.nyc.gov/site/planning/plans/si-distriict-text-amendment/si-distriict-text-amendment-overview.page
    • • Walking the Edge
    • https://www.walkingtheedge.nyc/
    • • Ten-Year Capital Strategy
    • https://tycs.planning.nyc.gov/
    • • Assessing Storefront Vacancy in NYC
    • https://www1.nyc.gov/assets/planning/download/pdf/planning-level/housing-economy/assessing-storefront-vacancynyc.pdf?r=1
    • • The Ins and Outs of NYC Commuting
    • https://www1.nyc.gov/assets/planning/download/pdf/planning-level/housing-economy/nyc-ins-and-out-of-commuting.
    • pdf
    • • The Geography of Jobs
    • https://www1.nyc.gov/assets/planning/download/pdf/planning-level/housing-economy/nyc-geography-jobs2-1019.pdf
    • • Emerging Industries and Sustainable Transportation
    • https://www1.nyc.gov/assets/planning/download/pdf/planning-level/housing-economy/emerging-industriessustainable-transportation-info-brief.pdf
    • • BYTES of the Big Apple
    • https://www1.nyc.gov/site/planning/data-maps/open-data.page
    • • NYC Street Map
    • https://streets.planning.nyc.gov
    • • Zoning Application Portal
    • https://zap.planning.nyc.gov/
    • For more information on the agency, please visit: www.nyc.gov/dcp.