‘Much more work to be done’: Council wants city to build on Downtown Jamaica Neighborhood Plan
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Queens councilmembers, including Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, made it clear they want more out of the massive plan to rezone Downtown Jamaica. Photo by John McCarten/NYC Council Media Unit
By Ryan Schwach
A pair of South Queens councilmembers said on Tuesday during a City Council hearing that they want more out of the city’s massive plan to rezone Downtown Jamaica.
Council Speaker Adrienne Adams and Councilmember Nantasha Williams, who together represent the 230-block area up for rezoning, are in favor of the plan which they were integral in forming, but both legislators pushed city officials and their agencies to take it a step further on Tuesday.
Adams echoed community concerns over the increase in density the plan may bring. Williams had her own concerns, mainly centered around sewer infrastructure and flood mitigation, which she said is the “hill [she] will die on” with the project.
The project is currently up for approval before the Council after clearing the two local Community Boards – which both rejected the plan – the borough president, who approved it with his own list of recommendations and conditions, and the City Planning Commission, which approved it 11-2.
The plan aims to encourage the private construction of around 12,000 new homes over the 230-block area, 4,000 of which would be income restricted, along with other community investments and amenities.
The proposal features a Mandatory Inclusionary Housing provision that officials say would make Jamaica the largest MIH zone in the city, if approved.
The plan also features regulations that officials claim will lead to streetscape improvements, open space and mixed-use areas.
“We have begun to shape a proposal that can update the zoning in this community to deliver more affordable housing by creating the largest Mandatory Inclusionary Housing zone in the city, new economic development opportunities and investments to improve the local parks, schools and much needed infrastructure,” Adams said in her opening remarks, “This proposal can also support home ownership, improve public transportation and increase opportunities for our faith based organizations to expand their work and develop much needed affordable and senior housing.”
However, Adams said that the city has to bulk up the project’s benefits before the Council ultimately signs off on it.
“There is still much more work to be done to finalize and strengthen the Jamaica Neighborhood Plan,” she said.
The speaker, who is in the final few months of her tenure in the Council, highlighted the need for any final draft of the plan to include funding for updated infrastructure, and an increase in school capacity and affordable homeownership.
“Our communities deserve to be included and heard with real influence when new development is being planned in their neighborhoods,” she said.
In her questions during the hearing, Adams said that the Department of City Planning must include specific plans for more school seats to accommodate the boom in population the new housing will bring, and add more greenspace and healthcare options.
Adams also echoed the concerns of Community Board 12, which she once chaired and which voted down the plan over concerns regarding the amount of new housing being promised with the plan, and heights of the buildings.
“Some community members have raised concerns about the scale of new development proposed by the rezoning, in particular – they're concerned about the impacts on low-scale residential blocks with small homes,” said Adams. “We are concerned about the concerns, and we want to make sure that they are taken into account.”
In response, the Department of City Planning said they are “open to hearing more” about specific areas where density may be an issue
“There was thought into how we make sure that they're not eyesores, that it could be created in a way that when you're walking on the street, it doesn't overwhelm the pedestrian but, we get the benefits of the housing,” said City Planning’s Queens Office Director Lin Zeng.
Williams was far more direct in saying that if the city doesn’t address her concerns, her pivotal support as the local councilmember may not be a foregone conclusion.
“My final support is tied directly to the city's willingness to translate our community's needs into real, tangible investments,” she said. “Our priorities are clear, infrastructure improvements to address long overdue issues with sewer capacity and basement flooding investments to improve the environment and public space of Downtown Jamaica, expanding and improving our parks, schools, health and cultural facilities to better serve existing residents and accommodate new growth.”
The Jamaica Neighborhood Plan aims to encourage the private construction of around 12,000 new homes over a 230-block area in the already-densely populated Downtown Jamaica area. Rendering via DCP
The main focus of Williams’ questions was related to wastewater management and flood mitigation, both already major issues in Southeast Queens that could be exacerbated by a larger population.
“We know, with increased capacity, naturally, you are going to be taxing all of our infrastructures,” said Williams.
The city committed over $2 billion in 2018 to address these issues in Southeast Queens, and another $300 million was allocated to the area when the Council approved the citywide zoning proposal dubbed City of Yes last year.
Williams also pushed DCP to commit to forming an ongoing oversight task force to monitor implementation of the project, but the agency didn’t say one way or another if it would.
“We definitely want to continue that conversation and be open to your suggestions,” said Zeng. “You have a grand vision for the task force, and we really appreciate that. It really is very helpful for us to continue that with our partner agencies.”
The City Council will vote on the plan in the coming weeks, and will hold a similar hearing for Queens’ other massive neighborhood plan in Long Island City on Sept. 17.
