Coalition of NYC Council Members, Labor Unions, and Advocates Warn Voters about Misleading Language of Mayor Adams’ Ballot Proposals That Endanger Housing Affordability, Good[...]

Ballot Proposals 2, 3, and 4 would strip communities of power to secure essentials for their neighborhoods, like more affordable housing, parks, schools, and transit investments, when developers are given more power to build

New York, NY - Today, a coalition of Council Members, labor unions, and advocates warned New Yorkers about the misleading language and negative impacts of Mayor Adams' Ballot Proposals 2, 3 and 4 in the upcoming election. The proposals would change who has the power to make decisions about development in New York City, shifting voting power from communities' democratically elected representatives to unelected appointees of the mayor. However, the language describing the proposals on the ballot largely conceals this change. The coalition warned that the changes advanced by the ballot proposals would erode community power that helps secure increased affordability in housing development, good jobs, and investments in neighborhood parks, schools, public transit, core infrastructure, and other essentials.

Council members were joined by the building service workers union, 32BJ SEIU, the District Council of Carpenters, and Hotel and Gaming Trades Council, as well as advocates from the Metropolitan Council on Housing, to stress the importance for voters to understand the truth about Proposals 2, 3, and 4 and their impact when casting their ballots.

"Through their democratically elected City Council, New Yorkers currently have the power to secure more affordable housing, neighborhood investments, and good union jobs, but that is at risk to Mayor Adams' misleading Ballot Proposals 2, 3, and 4," said Speaker Adrienne Adams. "These proposals threaten to remove our communities' ability to hold developers and the City accountable to deliver for the needs of working-class communities and our neighborhoods. Without communities' voices and power in development decisions, our neighborhoods will get less affordable housing, less investment, and will be vulnerable to more gentrification. New Yorkers deserve to know the truth about what is at stake this election, and that's why we will continue to inform voters about the true impacts of Mayor Adams' misleading ballot proposals."

For decades, New York City communities have relied on the City Council's role, as the only democratically elected body with the power to vote on new development, to ensure that development projects meet the needs of the city and local neighborhoods. This has facilitated communities being represented in the process, which has produced increased affordability in new housing development, good jobs, and investments that strengthen neighborhoods across the city, including for schools, childcare centers, parks, public transit, and core infrastructure needs. Ballot Proposals 2, 3, and 4 would effectively remove the democratically elected Council from the process, threatening the commitment of these public goods for neighborhoods as part of the land use process.

Recent Examples of Increased Affordability and Neighborhood Investments Secured from the Council's Land Use Role include:

Midtown South Mixed-Use Plan Neighborhood Rezoning (August 2025)

• 9,500 units of housing, over 2,800 of which will be permanently affordable
• The Council secured over $488 million in community benefits and infrastructure improvements to the Midtown South area, including commitments to support greater open space, improve public transit and street safety, and provide over $120 million in economic development funding to preserve the Garment District fashion and garment industry and its businesses.
  • The plan to establish a 34th Street car-free busway for faster buses was saved from Mayor Adams' administration abandoning it;
  • Completion of the Broadway Vision Plan to transform 21 blocks and create a car-free corridor on Broadway from 22nd to 25th Streets;
  • Street safety enhancements and subway station improvements;
  • Critical investments for nearby schools, emergency medical services, and Bellevue Hospital.

Atlantic Avenue Mixed-Use Plan Neighborhood Rezoning (May 2025)

• 4,600 new units of housing, approximately 1,900 of which will be permanently affordable
  • The Council's negotiating demands and power led to 900 units of affordable housing on seven public sites with 100% affordable developments, financed by the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD), being included in the plan.
• The Council secured commitments for increased services in Central Brooklyn, including critical resources for tenant and homeowner protections, investments in streets and public realm improvements to improve street safety, traffic and quality of life, full renovations of six neighborhood parks and playgrounds, improvements to local MTA subway stations, modernized infrastructure, and economic development opportunities.

Bronx Metro-North Rezoning (August 2024)

• 7,000 new housing units, including up to 500 units of new homeownership opportunities secured by the Council
• The Council secured nearly $500 million in local infrastructure improvements, including for local parks and playgrounds, schools, streets and sewers to address flooding, and sidewalk and streetscape upgrades.

"New Yorkers deserve to know what is at stake with Mayor Adams' misleading Ballot Proposals 2, 3, and 4 in the coming general election," said Deputy Speaker Diana Ayala. "Our communities' power to get more affordable housing, good jobs, and essential investments would be taken away, leaving our neighborhoods less affordable and more vulnerable to gentrification. We want more affordable housing, and our pro-housing City Council has approved 93 percent of all housing development applications that have come to us, but the answer should not be to give away our voice and power to developers and unelected appointees. I join my Council colleagues, labor unions, and advocates in educating voters about the impacts of Mayor Adams' ballot proposals and their impacts."

"We have to be clear about what these proposals are: a blatant power grab that would strip communities of their power and voice in decisions about development of their neighborhoods," said Majority Leader Amanda Farias. "Our current land use process was created in response to Robert Moses' era of exclusionary planning that promoted segregation, displacement, gentrification, and environmental injustice, disproportionately of Black and Latino communities. Decades later, we are still suffering from the economic, environmental, and health impacts of this racism. Now that our communities have the power to demand more affordable housing and investments in their neighborhoods, these ballot proposals threaten to take us back."

"New Yorkers deserve honesty, not misleading ballot proposals that strip away their community's voice," said Majority Whip Selvena N. Brooks-Powers. "The Council has used the land use process to deliver real wins for communities: from affordable housing to long-term homeownership opportunities. In Southeast Queens, we've secured new affordable homeownership units through the existing land use review process, ensuring working families can build generational wealth and stay in the neighborhoods they love. We cannot afford to lose our power to demand community benefits."

"Let's be real: this Administration is using our very real affordable housing crisis as a pretext for a very real power grab that will outlive this moment by altering our system of checks and balances," said Council Member Justin Brannan. "We all want more affordable housing and we want to get it done faster. But that doesn't mean ceding community power to developers and unelected appointees chosen by the mayor. More power for the mayor and less power for the City Council means less power for our communities, less affordability, less good paying union jobs, and more gentrification. New Yorkers deserve to know the truth about what is at stake with these ballot proposals before they vote in November."

"Proposals 2, 3, and 4 on November's ballot are trying to mislead voters with inaccurate language claiming they are a solution when, in reality, they actually eliminate our communities' power to negotiate neighborhood investments with developers via the City Council's approval process," said Council Member Sandra Ung. "We all want more affordable housing, good jobs, and better parks, schools and transit, but our communities' ability to secure these investments as part of new development would actually be greatly diminished by these misleading ballot proposals that aim to exploit New Yorkers' real concerns."

"The work of building equitable, thriving communities starts with partnership between residents and their elected leaders," said Council Member Kevin C. Riley, Chair of the Council's Subcommittee on Zoning and Franchises. "From affordable housing to good union jobs, every win comes from community input that reflects the values of our neighborhoods. The Mayor's ballot proposals 2, 3, and 4 threaten to silence that voice and put all authority in the Administration, sidelining our communities. We must protect transparency, accountability, and the right of every neighborhood to shape its future, because lasting progress happens when communities are empowered and government listens."

"If Council Members and community boards are removed the ULURP process to the Mayor on Ballot Questions 2, 3, and 4," said Council Member Chris Banks, "we lose the power to negotiate Community Benefits Agreements, the authority to shape what's built in our neighborhoods, and our voice, both as elected officials and as representatives of our communities."

"These ballot proposals are serious decisions that would change how our neighborhoods shape development," said Council Member Jennifer Gutiérrez. "Communities have secured affordable housing, schools, and parks because they had a voice in the process - and that voice is what's at stake."

"These so-called 'housing' proposals would take away the only real power New Yorkers have to shape what happens in their neighborhoods," said Council Member Crystal Hudson. "We've seen what's possible when communities have a voice - real affordability, tenant protections, and investments that strengthen neighborhoods. This November's ballot proposals aren't about housing, they're about power. And that power belongs with the people of New York City, not with developers."

"Recent improvements in our city's parks and green spaces, public transit, schools, and housing have been secured through the City Council's ability to negotiate on behalf of our communities with City Hall and private developers," said Council Member Shekar Krishnan. "The Mayor's misleading ballot proposals make it harder for our communities to have their voices heard, and will lead to a less affordable city. As a former housing attorney and now Chair of the Parks Committee, I know firsthand how important housing and public spaces are for creating a city where everyone can thrive, and the vital role public power plays in protecting these spaces. Unfortunately, the Mayor's ballot proposals 2,3, and 4 endanger public power."

"Community members deserve a meaningful voice in shaping the future of their neighborhoods - including investments in schools, park space, and housing," said Council Member Linda Lee. "Ballot Proposals 2, 3, and 4 carry significant implications for the city's future land-use decisions by removing the community's influence in these critical decisions and ceding that power to developers. Altering the ULURP process would silence community voices, and I stand with my Council colleagues to ensure that residents maintain their say in decisions that shape their neighborhoods."

"This Council has already approved over 130,000 units of housing across our districts, yet Mayor Adams continues to shift blame instead of getting them built," said Council Member Sandy Nurse. "His ballot proposals will only make it harder for us to fight for the deeply affordable, family-sized housing our communities need."

"In Harlem, we've seen what happens when development moves forward without community input," said Council Member Yusef Salaam. "The community is receiving benefits from the 145th Street rezoning because their voices were heard. There was a struggle for truly affordable units at the Victoria Theater site. Mayor Adams' ballot proposals would silence the very residents who have fought for fairness, affordability, and accountability. The Council's role ensures Harlem's voice is heard - and I'll keep fighting to protect that democratic power."

"Our neighborhoods are strongest when the people who live in them have a real voice in shaping their future," said Council Member Lynn Schulman. "These ballot proposals would take that voice away from communities and weaken the public's ability to help guide how new housing and development fit into their neighborhoods. The land use process isn't just bureaucracy - it's how everyday New Yorkers have secured affordable housing, parks, schools, and other vital resources. We should be empowering communities, not cutting them out of the conversation."

"Across New York City, our communities have fought for every bit of affordable housing, parks, schools, and youth programs that make our neighborhoods thrive," said Council Member Althea Stevens. "These ballot proposals threaten to take that power away, handing it to developers and unelected appointees. We all want more affordable housing, but not at the cost of losing our voice in shaping our neighborhoods. This November, I urge every New Yorker to look past the misleading language to understand these proposals are about our community's power, our homes, and our future."

"When we talk about democracy in this city, it can't just live on paper. It must show up in how we govern, through transparency, accountability, and a real commitment to public trust," said Council Member Dr. Nantasha Williams. "These ballot proposals move us in the opposite direction. They take decision-making further from the people and weaken the accountability that keeps our government honest. I understand the urgency around housing, but we can't solve a crisis by cutting communities out of the process. New Yorkers deserve a government that listens, that collaborates, and that doesn't ask them to trade away their voice for promises made behind closed doors."

"We all know we're in a housing crisis, and we support building more homes for New Yorkers - but these ballot proposals get it wrong. These proposals would move decision-making power away from those closest to the community," said Manny Pastreich, President of 32BJ SEIU. "At a time when our federal government is doing untold damage to our democratic institutions, we must stand strong in support of our local democratic body - the New York City Council - and local participation in decision-making. Both are levers of democratic power New Yorkers can use to ensure that when housing is built, it is affordable, provides good jobs and addresses community concerns. Those benefits, often won above and beyond minimum requirements, add to our communities and help bring commitments for good jobs."

"When it comes to development in their communities, New Yorkers rely on the City Council to fight for better affordability, better jobs, and better community benefits," said Rich Maroko, President, Hotel & Gaming Trades Council. "The development-related proposals on this year's ballot would take away the Council's power to do just that. We thank Speaker Adrienne Adams for her leadership in fighting for more housing while also defending the voice of City Council Members and the New Yorkers who elect them."

"This power grab by Mayor Eric Adams would let developers set the rules of the road on major projects. That means Council Members would no longer be able to fight for stronger labor protections, more affordable housing, or the school seats and infrastructure improvements needed to handle increased density," said Paul Capurso, Executive Secretary Treasurer of New York City District Council of Carpenters. "It must be stopped, which is why we stand with our allies in the City Council and urge New Yorkers to vote on on these ballot proposals."

"Two things can be true at once. New York urgently needs more affordable housing, and we must also protect the voice of working people in shaping that future," said Brendan Griffith, President of the NYC Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO. "These ballot proposals pit progress against democracy and give too much power to those least accountable to our communities. We can build faster and fairer, but only when the people who make this city run have a real say. True affordability means accountability, local voices, and good union jobs at every step, from blueprints to keys in a tenant's hand."

Despite misleading claims about the Council to justify the ballot proposals, the current City Council has approved 93% of housing applications that have come before it over the past nearly four years, producing over 130,000 units of housing. The Council secured over $8 billion in additional housing-related investments as part of these efforts. These include the City of Yes for Housing Opportunity citywide zoning reforms with the Council's City for All housing plan, as well as the Midtown South Mixed-Use Plan, Atlantic Avenue Mixed Use Plan and Bronx Metro North rezonings.

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