2005 rezoning
Main purpose:
To increase in the amount of residential space available, by drastically decreasing the industrial and manufactorial density at the waterfront.
Area effected:
183 blocks were rezoned. Another 54 acres are of land was left for public use
Inclusionary Zoning program
A voluntary plan based on several incentives. For instance, residential structures on the waterfront were given 27%, 13%, or 33% density bonuses if they saved between 7.5 – 20% of their apartments for households at 80% of the area’s median income (AMI). For the residential buildings in the upland, businesses were awarded 10% and 33% density bonuses for deeming 20% of their apartments affordable for those at the average median income. Another incentive for businesses to build affordable housing was that the housing did not need to be spread evenly through their buildings, allowing the owners to increase prices as the floors went up. Also, owners were allowed to build the affordable houses off-site. The landlords were also allowed to combine benefits from this plan with others, such as low-income housing tax credit, and tax-exempt bond financing. They could also fulfill their inclusionary housing requirement by maintaining previously mad affordable housing. Furthermore, the city even extended the 421-a tax exemption exclusion district to Williamsburg waterfront, which gives owners 20-25 years of tax exemption for building affordable housing.
Anti-harassment program
It protects tenants from landlords that try to force them out. Harassment by a landlord may include ignoring complaints, not performing needed repairs, purposely condemning the building, or threatening the tenants. If the The Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) finds that a landlord has engaged in tenant harassment, the department will not issue a permit to the landlord for construction or demolition
