Mayor Eric Adams\u2019 Charter Revision Commission approved five ballot proposals on July 21, 2025. These proposals will appear on your ballot this November, and they deserve your attention. On the surface, they deal with land use and city governance. But underneath, they represent a major shift in how power is distributed in New York City\u2014and who benefits from it.<\/p>\n
Right now, Council Members like me have a seat at the table. We bring our communities’ voices to the negotiation table, working directly with city agencies, developers, and community boards to make sure new projects include things like affordable housing, union jobs, green space, and local investments. It is a vital mechanism established to ensure community members are heard before decisions are finalized.<\/p>\n
This proposal would move all of that authority into the Mayor\u2019s office\u2014under the claim that it will make building faster and easier. What it really does is cut out local representation and public input, which makes it easier for developers to push through projects without negotiating with or being accountable to the people most impacted.<\/p>\n
We\u2019ve seen this before. When decision-making leaves the hands of communities, investment follows profits\u2014not people. In the 1970s, the Bronx burned because the city divested. Redlining, racist zoning, and top-down development wiped out entire neighborhoods. Black, Latino, and immigrant families paid the price. These new proposals open the door for that kind of concentrated control, which could result in wealth and resources being redirected elsewhere.<\/p>\n
Since 2022, the Council has helped deliver over 120,000 housing units and more than $8 billion in investments across the city. That happened because local leaders fought for their neighborhoods. These proposals threaten that progress. This measure reinforces the Mayor’s Agenda by advancing his priorities in a streamlined way, without requiring additional community input or feedback. <\/p>\n
When the city begins to prepare for the November election, I\u2019ll walk you through what each of these proposals says and what they mean. If these changes pass, decisions about housing, development, and land use will be made with little to no input from the people who actually live in our communities.<\/p>\n
This isn\u2019t reform\u2014it\u2019s regression: a return to a city where only the powerful have access, and everyone else gets left behind.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Mayor Eric Adams\u2019 Charter Revision Commission approved five ballot proposals on July 21, 2025. These proposals will appear on your ballot this November, and they deserve your attention. On the surface, they deal with land use and city governance. But underneath, they represent a major shift in how power is distributed in New York City\u2014and who benefits from it.<\/p>\n
Right now, Council Members like me have a seat at the table.<\/p>\n
…<\/p>\n