NY State Senate Bill 2023-S2396

Senate Bill S2396

2023-2024 Legislative Session

Ensures zoning lot mergers do not create any new non-compliance with applicable, pre-existing zoning regulations

download bill text pdf

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Housing, Construction And Community Development Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 03, 2024	referred to housing, construction and community development
Jan 20, 2023	referred to housing, construction and community development

2023-S2396 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A1825
Current Committee:: Senate Housing, Construction And Community Development
Law Section:: Multiple Dwelling Law
Laws Affected:: Add §15, Mult Dwell L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2019-2020: S8002, A9961
2021-2022: S2009, A628

2023-S2396 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Ensures zoning lot mergers do not create any new non-compliance with applicable, pre-existing zoning regulations for multiple dwellings in a city having a population of five million or more.

2023-S2396 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S2396

SPONSOR: JACKSON
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the multiple dwelling law, in relation to ensuring
zoning lot mergers do not create any new non-compliance with applicable,
pre-existing zoning regulations

 
PURPOSE:

This legislation will ensure that zoning lot mergers do not create any
new non-compliance with applicable, pre-existing zoning regulations.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 creates a new Section 15 of the Multiple Dwelling Law.

Section 2 is the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

The sky isn't even the limit when it comes to new building development
in New York City. In an effort to fetch ever increasing prices, develop-
ers have been pushing the limits of what is allowable under current
zoning to construct super tall towers that dwarf the surrounding build-
ings. To reach soaring heights, developers have begun to exploit loop-
holes in the rules governing zoning, which are in place to ensure that
development is contextual with the neighborhood and does not overwhelm
community infrastructure. The resultant buildings are higher than what
would otherwise be allowed by the zoning rules.

In addition to the mechanical void loophole, developers have begun to
use zoning lot mergers to construct super-tall towers in the sky.  With
zoning lot mergers, developers can transfer unused floor area from one
or more tax lots to another.

This legislation would reign in zoning lot mergers and prevent the kind
of abuse of the zoning rules that we saw at work at 200 Amsterdam
Avenue. It would set outside limits on zoning lot mergers to ensure that
floor area cannot be acquired from more than two adjacent tax lots,
result in more than a 20% increase in floor area for the receiving lot
and may not result in any new non-compliance with existing zoning rules.

In addition, the bill will place limitations on the parcel making the
floor area transfer, ensuring that it has not been previously trans-
ferred or received development rights via the merger process.

For too long, developers have taken advantage of ambiguous language in
existing zoning rules to make an end run around restrictions on bulk.
The agencies in charge of ensuring compliance with the zoning rules -
the New York City Department of Buildings and New York City Board of
Standards and Appeals - have not held developers to the highest ethical
or legal standards, despite the plain language of the rules.

This legislation is necessary to provide developers and community
members alike with clear, transparent and easy-to-enforce standards.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2021-2022: S.2009 - Referred to Housing, Construction and Community
Development/A.628 Referred to Housing

2019-2020: S.8002 - Referred to Housing, Construction and Community
Development/A.9961 Referred to Housing

 
STATE AND LOCAL FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

To be determined.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the 90th day after it shall have become a
law.

2023-S2396 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   2396
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 20, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. JACKSON -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Housing, Construction  and
   Community Development
 
 AN  ACT  to  amend  the  multiple  dwelling law, in relation to ensuring
   zoning lot mergers do not create any new non-compliance with  applica-
   ble, pre-existing zoning regulations

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. The multiple dwelling  law  is  amended  by  adding  a  new
 section 15 to read as follows:
   §  15. ZONING LOT MERGERS; NON-COMPLIANCE WITH APPLICABLE PRE-EXISTING
 ZONING REGULATIONS. 1. FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS SECTION:
   (A) "TAX LOT" SHALL MEAN A PARCEL OF LAND  IDENTIFIED  WITH  A  UNIQUE
 BOROUGH, BLOCK AND LOT NUMBER FOR PROPERTY TAX.
   (B) "ZONING LOT DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT" SHALL MEAN A CONTRACT TO TRANS-
 FER FLOOR AREA FROM ONE PARCEL OF LAND TO ANOTHER AND PERMITS A DEVELOP-
 ER  TO UTILIZE THE ADJOINING PROPERTY'S FLOOR AREA TO CONSTRUCT A BUILD-
 ING THAT  IS  LARGER  THAN  WOULD  BE  PERMITTED  ON  THE  PARCEL  BEING
 DEVELOPED.
   2.  THE REQUIREMENTS OF THIS SECTION SHALL APPLY TO MULTIPLE DWELLINGS
 IN A CITY HAVING A POPULATION OF FIVE MILLION OR MORE.
   3. NO LOT RESULTING FROM A MERGER WITH ANY OTHER LOT FOR TAX, ADMINIS-
 TRATIVE, ZONING, OR DEVELOPMENT PURPOSES SHALL CREATE ANY  NEW  NON-COM-
 PLIANCE WITH THE APPLICABLE, PRE-EXISTING ZONING REGULATIONS.
   4.  TRANSFER OF FLOOR AREA FROM ONE TAX LOT TO ANOTHER SHALL ONLY TAKE
 PLACE SUBJECT TO THE FOLLOWING CONDITIONS:
   (A) THE TRANSFER SHALL NOT COME FROM MORE THAN TWO ADJACENT  TAX  LOTS
 WHICH  RESULT  IN  MORE THAN A TWENTY PERCENT INCREASE IN FLOOR AREA FOR
 THE RECEIVING LOT PRIOR TO ANY LOT MERGER AND SHALL NOT RESULT IN A  LOT
 WITH ANY NEW NON-COMPLIANCE WITH EXISTING ZONING REGULATIONS;
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD06675-01-3
 S. 2396                             2

 
   (B)  THE  LOT  OR  LOTS  TRANSFERRING  FLOOR  AREA SHALL NOT HAVE BEEN
 SUBJECT TO A PREVIOUS MERGER FOR  TAX,  ADMINISTRATIVE,  OR  DEVELOPMENT
 REASONS, NOR SHALL SUCH LOT OR LOTS HAVE THEMSELVES PREVIOUSLY HAVE BEEN
 RECIPIENTS OF TRANSFERRED FLOOR AREA; AND
   (C)  THE  RECEIVING TAX LOT SHALL NOT ALSO BE THE RECIPIENT OF A FLOOR
 AREA BONUS FOR THE  PROVISION  OF  AFFORDABLE  INCLUSIONARY  HOUSING  OR
 PROVIDING  MANDATORY  INCLUSIONARY HOUSING PURSUANT TO THE ZONING RESOL-
 UTION FOR THE CITY OF NEW YORK.
   5. THE DEPARTMENT SHALL MAINTAIN A PUBLICLY  ACCESSIBLE  DATABASE  AND
 MAP OF TAX LOTS THAT INDICATE A FLOOR AREA TRANSFER HAS OCCURRED OR LOTS
 HAVE  BEEN  MERGED  AND INCLUDE AN ONLINE VERSION OF THE RELEVANT ZONING
 LOT DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT.
   § 2. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day  after  it  shall
 have become a law.

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