Starting at 2pm on Thursday, December 3, the City will hold a public hearing on the draft scope of the environmental review for their proposed upzoning of SoHo and NoHo. We vehemently oppose the current plan, which would increase the allowable size of development in SoHo and NoHo by up to nearly two and a half times the size current rules allow, and open the floodgates to huge big box chain stores in the neighborhood, which would help push out existing small independent businesses. The City’s proposal is backed by developers and real estate interests, and grew out of a process led by City Councilmember Margaret Chin and Borough President Gale Brewer. The proposed upzoning would cover parts of Councilmember Chin and Carlina Rivera’s districts, and given the need for City Council approval for the plan, they will ultimately decide its fate.

The December 3 hearing precedes the actual public hearing and review process for the upzoning and covers a technical aspect of the process rather than examining the overall proposal. We will provide more information next week on what you can say at the hearing, but details on how to participate can be found here. Comments can also be submitted in writing about the scope of the environmental review until December 18.