NYC Council Subcommittee on Zoning and Franchises - September 9, 2026

The New York City Council Subcommittee on Zoning and Franchises met in hybrid format on Wednesday, September 9, 2026, at 11:00 AM in Hearing Room 3 at 250 Broadway. Chair Farah N. Louis presided. Present were Councilmembers Carr, Encarnación, Farías, Salaam, Sanchez, Schulman, and Thomas-Henry; Felder was medically absent. Councilmembers Santosuosso, Won, Restler, Feliz, and Riley also attended. The subcommittee approved three land-use applications by roll call and held hearings on six rezoning proposals, all of which were laid over without a subcommittee vote.

Votes and Land Use Actions

• LU 0120-2026 (815 Hutchinson River Parkway Rezoning, Bronx): Approved. The zoning map amendment changes an M1-2 District to a C8-3 District to allow large retail establishments of 10,000 square feet or larger at an existing commercial center in Ferry Point. The district's councilmember expressed support for the application.
• LU 0121-2026 / LU 0122-2026 (862-868 Kent Avenue, Brooklyn): Approved. The actions change an M1-1 District to an M1-4/R6A District, establish a Special Mixed Use District (MX-4), and map a Mandatory Inclusionary Housing Area. The applicant proposes approximately 74 apartments, with approximately 19 permanently affordable.
• LU 0125-2026 / LU 0126-2026 (132 Melrose Street, Brooklyn): Approved with modifications and referred to the City Planning Commission. The actions change an M1-1 District to an M1-2A/R6A District, establish MX-22, and map a Mandatory Inclusionary Housing Area. The applicant proposes approximately 18 apartments, with approximately 5 permanently affordable.
• LU 0123-2026 / LU 0124-2026 (158-06 Northern Boulevard Rezoning, Queens): Laid over; no vote taken.
• The final roll call for the three approved items was 8 in the affirmative and 1 medical absence. After an initial 7-vote count, the chair reopened the vote so Councilmember Schulman could vote, making the final count 8.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Fort Hamilton Mews (T2026-2499 / T2026-2500): Sarah Penenberg of SEIU Local 32BJ announced that the union was about to sign a neutrality agreement with the developer ensuring prevailing wage and good jobs. Veronica Urovoski and Logan Ferris of Open New York spoke in favor; Ferris said the project would more than triple affordable homes built in that community district from 2014 to 2025 and cited the city's estimated need for 700,000 new homes over the next decade.
• 21-31 46th Avenue (LU 0127-2026 / LU 0128-2026): Numerous residents and property owners testified in opposition. Concerns included an outdated 70-unit environmental review revised to 84 units, flooding risks from cellar parking and excavation, shadows on neighboring low-rise buildings, traffic and congestion, a severe open-space deficit in the area, loss of the TD Bank site, and a notarized petition signed by more than 100 surrounding property owners. Several speakers asked for a contextual lower-rise building and stronger community benefits.
• Sojourner Truth - Mapes (T2026-2503 / T2026-2504): Karan Banks, deputy political director of 32BJ, opposed the rezoning because Phipps Houses had not signed a new development agreement covering prevailing wage for future workers. April Hurley of TIME Action, Bronx Community Board 6 District Manager Raphael Mori Panet, board members Laura James and Bridget Brantley, and tenants including Eugenia Austin testified against the application, citing Phipps's management record, HPD violations, relocation and recertification failures, and calling for co-op/homeownership, parking, small-business space, and community input. Councilmember Felice said he had not decided how he would vote.
• Park Avenue Brooklyn, 289 Kent Avenue, and 69-67 108th Street: No members of the public signed up to testify.

Discussion Items

• Park Avenue Brooklyn (T2026-2501 / T2026-2502), preconsidered: The applicant, a coalition of property owners and Jewish educational institutions, proposed rezoning five blocks from legacy manufacturing districts to M1-4/R6-1 and M1-4/R7D with MX-4 and a Mandatory Inclusionary Housing Area. The proposal includes about 391 residential units, 98 to 117 permanently affordable units under MIH Options 1 and 3, more than 2,500 private school seats across four educational facilities, and ground-floor retail. Councilmember Restler strongly supported the project, called it a tremendous community investment, and criticized the Department of Transportation's environmental review process. No public testimony was given. Laid over.
• 289 Kent Avenue (T2026-2507 / T2026-2508), preconsidered: Webb Holdings LLC proposes changing an M3-1 District to an M1-3A/R7X District and an M1-2A District with MX-8 and MIH to build approximately 278 apartments. Chair Lewis described the affordable requirement as 70 to 83 permanently affordable units; the applicant's counsel later cited 56 to 83 depending on the MIH option selected. Councilmember Restler raised design transition and union-labor questions; the applicant said it had begun conversations with 32BJ and intended to move forward quickly. No public testimony. Laid over.
• Fort Hamilton Mews (T2026-2499 / T2026-2500), preconsidered: 9305 5th Ave LLC proposes rezoning in Bay Ridge from R5B/R6B to R7X with a C2-4 overlay, yielding about 292 apartments and 88 income-restricted units under MIH Option 2. Councilmember Santosuosso expressed significant concerns about the project setting a precedent in the Bay Ridge Triangle and asked the applicant to withdraw until a community planning process was complete; the applicant declined. In response to community board feedback, the applicant presented a revised R7D design with a 115-foot height and a six-story street-wall base, and said it would not withdraw. If disapproved, the applicant stated it would pursue an appeals-board route or a January ULURP filing without council approval, potentially at greater density. Public testimony included 32BJ's announced neutrality agreement and two supporters. Laid over.
• 21-31 46th Avenue (LU 0127-2026 / LU 0128-2026): 21-31 Holdings LLC proposes an R7X rezoning with a C2-5 overlay in Long Island City for an 11-story, roughly 84-unit mixed-use building. Roughly 21 units would be permanently affordable under MIH; the applicant emphasized that 52 of the 84 units have two or three bedrooms, and that Community Board 2 voted 32-2 in favor. Councilmember Won noted more than 30 emails of opposition and only two in support, and pressed the applicant on affordability, ground-floor community uses, early childhood space, greenery, and engagement beyond the community board. The applicant committed to further conversations but had not programmed ground-floor tenants. Laid over.
• 69-67 108th Street (T2026-2505 / T2026-2506), preconsidered: The applicant proposes an R7D rezoning with a C2-4 overlay in Forest Hills for an 11-story building with 59 units, about 15 affordable under MIH Option 1, and ground-floor commercial or community facility space. The applicant reported Community Board 6 approval by a 36-4 vote and noted the site is near transit. Councilmember Schulman asked about deeper affordability, ground-floor tenants, community board design recommendations, and nearby McDonald Park improvements; the applicant said it would consider park funding. No public testimony. Laid over.
• Sojourner Truth - Mapes (T2026-2503 / T2026-2504), preconsidered: Phipps Houses, a nonprofit affordable-housing developer, proposes two Bronx rezonings from R7-1 to R8 with MIH to build 100 percent affordable housing: 159 units at the Sojourner Truth site and 298 units at the Mapes Court site. Fifty percent of Sojourner units would be reserved for relocated Mapes Court tenants. More than 60 percent of Sojourner units and 55 percent of Mapes units would be two- or three-bedroom homes, with affordability ranging from 30 percent to 80 percent AMI. The Mapes site would include about 15,000 square feet of community facility space, with a potential YMCA conversation scheduled. Bronx Community Board 6 voted no, and 32BJ and several community speakers opposed the application. Laid over.

Key Outcomes

• LU 0120, LU 0121/0122, and LU 0125/0126 were approved by the subcommittee and referred to the Land Use Committee; LU 0125/0126 were approved with modifications.
• All six hearing items were laid over, meaning the subcommittee took no vote on them.
• Councilmember Santosuosso announced the Bay Ridge Triangle Community Plan and stated the Fort Hamilton Mews applicant declined to withdraw.
• The Fort Hamilton Mews applicant indicated possible fallback legal and expedited ULURP options if the rezoning is not approved.
• Councilmember Felice and Councilmember Won signaled that continued community negotiations would be needed before the Sojourner Truth-Mapes and 21-31 46th Avenue proposals could advance.