New York City’s Residential Density Cap of 12 FAR

[C.]

New York State limits the density of residential development in NYC to no more than a FAR of 12. Im surprised this law has been on the books so long, especially as NyC has been in a crushing housing crisis. Across the Hudson in Jersey City they’re building at 20-25 FAR and it has been revitalizing neighborhoods like Journal Square as new supermarkets open up and improvements in quality of life.

I’m curious if anyone has the density calculations for buildings before the New York State law took effect. I’m curious how those neighborhoods look. It would be fun to see the density FAR of the Empire Stare Building or the Equitable Building.

[mhays]

NYC must have a property records database, possibly run at the city or borough level (in my state it's counties). This would have land area and built square footage for every parcel.

FAR calculations typically use very specific parameters defined by land use code, not the gross figures. But you'll get close with the parcel data.

You might also dive into the land use code to see the various parameters.

PS, isn't transfer of FAR capacity a big thing, hence the huge pencil towers on tiny sites?

[C.]

Originally Posted by mhays

PS, isn't transfer of FAR capacity a big thing, hence the huge pencil towers on tiny sites?

Good question! I'm speculating but isn't it just the adjacent parcels that are considered part of the site for the zoning review exercise in order to get under the cap?

I know that transferable development rights is a thing, but I thought the 12 FAR cap on residential remains law.

NYC must have a property records database, possibly run at the city or borough level (in my state it's counties). This would have land area and built square footage for every parcel.

FAR calculations typically use very specific parameters defined by land use code, not the gross figures. But you'll get close with the parcel data.

You might also dive into the land use code to see the various parameters.

You inspired me to do a quick back of envelope calculation. I get a FAR of 28.4 for the Empire State Building, which is probably very close to the real thing.

[paytonc]

Per the Manhattan borough president's office, there are over 1,000 residential buildings preceding the 1961 FAR cap law that exceed 12 residential FAR. Some office buildings are over 30 FAR, which is not really that unusual; as noted, the ESB is nearly that high.
https://www.manhattanbp.nyc.gov/our-...he-12-far-cap/

You can calculate a FAR from property tax assessment records, which will note a building's gross square footage (GSF) and land area. However, the FAR definition used for zoning purposes often excludes some mechanical area that is included in taxable GSF, and would also include any non-residential floor area -- so a FAR calculated using that approach should be viewed as a generous estimate. For example, the RPA shows FARs in the low-13 range for two 57th St towers, both of which include non-residential floor area like retail: https://rpa.org/news/lab/nyc-12-far-reform-myths

The very polarizing super-skinny super-talls of Billionaire's Row would certainly be better proportioned if it weren't for the 12 FAR cap. (The TDRs occur to increase the land area, i.e., the "A" in FAR {Floor / Area Ratio}.) Those supertalls would be just as tall, but could be much wider to include substantially more salable square feet. Chicago's new St. Regis Tower is taller than any NYC residential tower by floor count, but it's 28+ FAR!

[Busy Bee]

Interesting

[chris08876]

They should get rid of the cap all together. Ideally, for large developments, require a school as part of it. Large opportunity zones.

Limiting reagent will always be transit but the city really needs to start thinking big.

An example of some good news recently, as of this week... more of this is needed.

On a side note, Long Island needs to get its shit together and build. NJ is the one feeding a lot of this NY demand, why not the rest of Long Island (not including Kings/Queens county)!!!

Nothing but NIMBYS in Long Island yet its a huge bottleneck for the metro area.

= = = = = = =

East Bronx slated for 7,000 new homes under transit-based rezoning: Here's what to expect

The City Council has approved a rezoning plan for an area of the East Bronx to facilitate the creation of thousands of new homes amid an affordability crisis afflicting all five of New York’s boroughs.

The Bronx Metro North rezoning will allow roughly 7,000 new housing units around two of the new Metro North stations that are poised to open in the borough's eastern stretch in 2027. A portion would be permanently restricted to residents who fall under certain income requirements, meant to ensure the units are affordable.

The plan, approved on Thursday and championed by Mayor Eric Adams, is being touted as the most sweeping change of its kind to come in years, rivaling Mayor Bill de Blasio’s rezoning of Gowanus in 2021.

[...]

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https://gothamist.com/news/east-bron...what-to-expect



Can you imagine the potential if more aggressive rezoning occurred and encouragement of development in all of the boroughs? There is ton of potential. Makes one mad to think of the self-imposed limitations that the state and the city put on itself.

When Jersey City is outbuilding in some respects, bad sign...