To take advantage of NYC's inclusionary zoning giveaways, developer Extell is including 55 'affordable' units in a luxury condo building planned for Manhattan. Just one hitch: the plan segregates those tenants in their own 'separate entity'.
"Extell Development Company is building a 274-unit luxury condo building in the Upper West Side, with plans to put in a separate door for people living in its planned below-market-rate units. The reason? It's a workaround enabled by the city's Inclusionary Housing law to help Extel collect on some major tax breaks and building allowances," reports Raillan Brooks. "Local residents are upset and have gotten their elected officials to jump into the ring."
"This 'separate but equal' arrangement is abominable and has no place in the 21st century, let alone on the Upper West Side," Assemblymember Linda B. Rosenthal told West Side Rag. "A mandatory affordable housing plan is not license to segregate lower-income tenants from those who are well-off."
"Of course, it's easy to segregate affordable housing – and the people who live in it – into its own part of town, its own neighborhoods, even its own isolated blocks," notes Emily Badger in The Atlantic Cities. "But it takes some serious creativity to keep the haves and have-nots apart in the very same building."
FULL STORY: Upper West Side Development Is Putting In a Separate Entrance for Poor Tenants
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Drawing on a distinction between equality and equity, Rick Jacobus argues that so-called 'poor doors' are a necessary compromise to promote affordable housing and neighborhood integration.
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Delivering for America Plan Will Downgrade Mail Service in at Least 49.5 Percent of Zip Codes
Republican and Democrat lawmakers criticize the plan for its disproportionate negative impact on rural communities.
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Balancing Bombs and Butterflies: How the National Guard Protects a Rare Species
The National Guard at Fort Indiantown Gap uses GIS technology and land management strategies to balance military training with conservation efforts, ensuring the survival of the rare eastern regal fritillary butterfly.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
EMC Planning Group, Inc.
Planetizen
Planetizen
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service