Mayor Zohran Mamdani is targeting a wide swath of Brooklyn south of Prospect Park for his first neighborhood-level housing plan, with an eye toward the future Interborough Express light rail, officials told Gothamist Tuesday.<\/p>\n
The City Planning Commission is referring to its new initiative as the \u201cSouth of Prospect Plan\u201d and aims to rezone the commercial corridors of McDonald and Coney Island avenues, as well as surrounding blocks, for taller buildings and more housing development.<\/p>\n
The agency is kicking off a monthslong community engagement process with a neighborhood survey<\/a> released Wednesday and plans to release a draft proposal next year.<\/p>\n The blocks currently feature long stretches of single-story businesses, autobody shops and low-rise homes. Four subway lines connect the neighborhood to Manhattan, and in the coming years, a new light rail line could traverse the area, providing direct access to Queens, making the Brooklyn blocks prime real estate for new housing.<\/p>\n In an interview, Sherman described the area\u2019s proximity to public transit as a main driver of the proposal to add thousands of new homes.<\/p>\n Sherman said the Brooklyn rezoning plan would be the first neighborhood-level plan to take into account the planned IBX line, part of a push to build more housing near public transportation lines through a strategy called \u201ctransit-oriented development.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s an opportunity to create potentially thousands of housing units for our city,\u201d Sherman told Gothamist. \u201cSouth of Prospect Park is a neighborhood that is transit-rich, and also potentially will intersect with the IBX, which is exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n New York City is contending with a dire housing shortage that has led to record-high rents and driven tens of thousands of residents out of the five boroughs. To remedy the housing crunch, Mamdani has proposed adding 200,000 new units of affordable housing and embracing reforms meant to speed up overall development, including rule changes approved by voters last year<\/a> and legislation championed by Gov. Kathy Hochul that would trim the lengthy environmental review process.<\/a><\/p>\n The area south of Prospect Park overlaps with districts represented by Councilmembers Shahana Hanif, Rita Joseph, Farah Louis and Simcha Felder.<\/p>\n Hanif and Joseph each said they support the plan.<\/p>\n \u201cI love it. I support it because it\u2019s about planning ahead,\u201d Joseph said. \u201cWe want to make sure we\u2019re building wisely on this outdated zoning.\u201d<\/p>\n Joseph said more housing will relieve the pressure on existing residents when the new IBX is constructed.<\/p>\n Likewise, Hanif, a native of Kensington, said she has seen how rising housing costs have driven many longtime residents out of the neighborhood.<\/p>\n She said the community planning process is an opportunity to talk with residents about creating new affordable housing, preparing for the IBX and improving commercial corridors \u201cwhile ensuring the people who call this part of Brooklyn home can continue to thrive here for generations to come.\u201d<\/p>\n It’s one of two areas the Mamdani administration is targeting for a zoning overhaul to spur larger housing construction Planning for the other area, which covers a large section of the North Bronx surrounding White Plains Road, began under Mamdani\u2019s predecessor, Mayor Eric Adams.<\/p>\n \u201cAlong major transit corridors in the Bronx and Brooklyn, we have an opportunity to build more homes, create permanently affordable housing, support small businesses and invest in public spaces and infrastructure that communities deserve,\u201d Mamdani said in a written statement. \u201cAnd we are going to do it with New Yorkers leading the process every step of the way.\u201d<\/p>\n The elevated 2 and 5 subway lines run along White Plans Road, which is flanked by several one- and two-story shops and businesses. The city is targeting the section of the thoroughfare that runs from Adee Avenue in Allerton north to the Wakefield neighborhood and the border with Mount Vernon.<\/p>\n The blocks are currently zoned for mostly low-rise residential and commercial buildings.<\/p>\n \u201cThese communities have been stymied by outdated zoning that does not align with the potential that they have,\u201d Sherman said.<\/p>\n