MTA New York City Subway Train | Photo by Marc A. Hermann/MTA
With New York City’s rental vacancy rate at a historic low of just 1.4 percent and half of all New Yorkers paying more than 30 percent of their income on rent, the Bronx is leading the charge by saying ‘yes’ to more housing and buying a ticket to the future!
Earlier this month, the City Council approved our administration’s Bronx Metro-North Station Area Plan. This groundbreaking, once-in-a-generation opportunity will create nearly 7,000 new homes, including permanently income-restricted affordable housing and 10,000 permanent jobs in the Bronx. Along with the four brand new Metro-North train stations set up in 2027, this is a game changer for the working people, families, immigrants, and young people who live in the East Bronx.
The Bronx Metro-North Area Plan will complement these new homes and jobs with hundreds of millions of dollars of public amenities and infrastructure investments. From enhanced pedestrian safety and transportation access to newly renovated public parks and open spaces, this plan has fundamentally transformed the East Bronx neighborhoods for decades.
The Bronx Metro North Station Plan is one of several robust planning efforts we have proposed to create more housing and jobs across all five boroughs. The remaining planning efforts and investments — including Central Brooklyn, Midtown South, Staten Island North Shore, Long Island City, and Jamaica — will deliver nearly 50,000 housing units across the five boroughs over the next 15 years.
But we are not stopping there.
‘I know what it is like to live without the security of housing. Growing up on the edge of homelessness, my siblings and I had to take trash bags full of clothes to school because we couldn’t be sure where we would sleep some nights.”
Our “City of Yes for Housing Opportunity” plan, eliminating outdated zoning rules, aims to produce over 108,000 new homes over 15 years. We are saying “yes” to new homes in our backyards, “yes” on our blocks, and “yes” to a little more housing in every neighborhood. We are also investing in affordable housing at record levels, with more than $26 billion being invested over the current 10-year plan.
I know what it is like to live without the security of housing. Growing up on the edge of homelessness, my siblings and I had to take trash bags full of clothes to school because we couldn’t be sure where we would sleep some nights.
I also know what happens when New Yorkers get the key to an affordable home. I have seen the smiles and relief when they finally have a stable, safe place to build their dreams.
That is why, from day one, this administration has committed to making this city more affordable and livable for all New Yorkers. Every affordable house we build means another New York story continues. Every new home in our city means more jobs, lower rents, a more robust economy, and a better future for all New Yorkers.
