There is legislation pending in Albany relating to Next Generation Housing.  It is sponsored by Senator Michael Balboni and Assemblyman Thomas DiNapoli.  Here’s how the bill would work:

First, the Balboni/DiNapoli bill does not require any village on Long Island to use its land in any particular way.  It does not allow the State to micromanage zoning decisions.  How a village uses its land is up to the village authorities.  The bill does say that if - and only if  - a village decides to permit five or more units of housing to be built on a site within its borders then 10 percent of the housing built must be affordable.

Specifically, the bill mandates that when a local government on Long Island approves a subdivision plat, site plan, or mixed-use development for 5 or more residential units, the local government must require that the developer set aside 10 percent of the units for workforce housing, which must be designed consistently with the rest of the development.  In return, the bill requires the local government to grant the developer a density bonus (which allows more units to be built) unless the local government makes a written finding, based upon substantial evidence, that the density bonus is either not required to provide workforce housing or it would have a specific adverse impact on health, safety, or the environment, which cannot be avoided.

The bill also provides alternatives to the 10 percent set aside. 

First, if a local government makes a written finding that the set aside would adversely impact health, safety, or the environment in a way that could not be avoided, the developer can pay a fee based upon the value of the additional density.  The fee would go into a trust fund that must be used exclusively by the local government to buy land for, or create, workforce housing.  And that workforce housing does not even have to be built within the local government’s area, it can be built in a “contiguous” municipality.  For a village, that contiguous municipality can be the town in which the village is located, or an adjoining village.

Second, if a local government finds that workforce housing cannot be provided on the site in question, it can require the developer to provide other land within the local government’s jurisdiction for the purpose of providing workforce housing.

The bill gives Long Island’s local governments one year to adopt a local law or ordinance specifying how they will comply with the bill, what procedures they will use, and how they will provide density bonuses.  Those local laws and ordinances must ensure that the workforce housing remain affordable under the 80 percent of median income standard for at least 30 years.  The bill also requires the state to provide any technical assistance local governments need to comply with the bills requirements.

To learn more about the Balboni-DiNapoli bill, click here.