Gotham Gazette

The Place for New York Policy and politics

Department of Buildings

Department of Buildings

  • Ten Years After Sandy, New York is More Resilient Than Ever, with More Work to Do

    Resilient planning (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office)


    Ten years ago, New York City received one of the biggest wake-up calls in its history – climate change was here, and we were not ready.

    Superstorm Sandy, which killed 44 New Yorkers and caused $19 billion in damages and lost economic activity, was the first massive climate-change-driven storm to hit the five boroughs — and, as we are now well-aware, it wouldn’t be the last. We did learn some very important lessons.

    First among them: if we are going to build, and rebuild, we need to build resiliently. That is

    ...
  • New City Budget Includes Some Added Funding to Implement Landmark Building Emissions Law

    A rally for green jobs outside City Hall (photo: Jeff Reed/City Council)


    In 2024, New York City will begin capping emissions from the city’s largest buildings – which are its worst polluters – under Local Law 97, which was approved as part of the city’s Climate Mobilization Act of 2019. The law requires buildings to be retrofitted with energy-efficient and sustainable systems – upgrading heating and cooling systems, possibly installing solar energy, for instance – to significantly reduce their carbon footprint to meet those emissions caps, or otherwise face hefty

    ...
  • As New York City Continues on Path to Recovery, City Officials Must Take Action to Protect Good Construction Jobs

    all sidewalk active

    (photo: Demetrius Freeman/Mayoral Photography Office)


    Residents and businesses across the five boroughs continue to struggle as New York City begins the long process of economic recovery from the impacts of COVID-19. At times like these, it is the responsibility of city officials to not only create new opportunities but also to protect and sustain the jobs we have.

    That is why, amid all the much-needed public discussions around workers in hard-hit sectors, the construction industry – which employed ...

  • City Council Tenant Advocate Bill Met with Resistance

    Councilmember Helen Rosenthal

    Council Member Helen Rosenthal (photo: Samar Khurshid/Gotham Gazette)


    The City Council’s Committee on Housing and Buildings on Wednesday heard more than a dozen bills that would enhance tenant protections and combat abuses by landlords. Among those proposals was one that would create a new ombudsman within the Department of Buildings whose responsibility would be to prioritize the welfare of tenants when property owners and builders apply for construction permits.

    The bill, ...

  • Illegal Conversions and South Brooklyn’s Affordable Housing Crisis

    south brooklyn illegal conversions affordable housing 

    A home that has been illegally converted (photo: Tarry Hum)


    Described as “a secret world of New York City housing” by The New York Times, several actions by the Department of Buildings (DOB) this summer exposed the ubiquity of illegal subdivisions in South Brooklyn’s immigrant neighborhoods.

    ...