City Adopts Rules for Fast-Track Land Use Review and Housing Appeals Board

What happened

The City Planning Commission and the Department of City Planning (DCP) have adopted new rules for two land use processes created by Charter amendments that New York City voters approved on 11/04/2025. The notice of adoption was published in The City Record on 10/15/2026. The rules set up the Expedited Land Use Review Procedure (ELURP) and the Affordable Housing Appeals Board (AHAB). The proposed rules were first published on 07/20/2026, and a public hearing was held on 09/09/2026.

ELURP is meant to speed review of modest housing and infrastructure projects. Review lasts 90 days. The Community Board and Borough President review at the same time for 60 days, with extra time for applications reviewed in the summer. The City Planning Commission then has 30 days to hold a hearing and approve, modify or disapprove, and its decision is final. ELURP is limited to actions that do not need an environmental impact statement, except Affordable Housing Fast Track applications. For those, the Commission gets 45 days if an environmental impact statement is required. Projects that do not qualify stay in the Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP), which includes City Council review.

The rules set eligibility tests for zoning map changes. In medium- and high-density areas, the current zoning must allow residential uses equivalent to R6 or above, and each new district cannot raise maximum residential floor area by more than 30 percent. In low-density areas zoned R1 through R5, a change counts as an increase in residential capacity if it adds bulk, allows new residential uses or removes required residential parking, and the standard maximum residential building height cannot exceed 45 feet. In both cases, where commercial or manufacturing uses are not already allowed, the maximum for those uses must be 2 FAR. Dispositions and acquisitions of City-owned property for Housing Development Fund Companies (HDFCs) also go through ELURP. For those, the City Council takes the Commission's place in the final 30 days, and HPD processes the applications. DCP will charge the same f

The AHAB is a three-member body made up of the Mayor, the City Council Speaker and the relevant Borough President, or their designees. It can reverse certain City Council land use decisions related to affordable housing, including when the Council rejects or modifies an application that would directly facilitate affordable housing. The text we received was cut off before the full list of cases the board can review.