Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP) is a process mandated by the 1975 revision of the
New York City Charter
The New York City Charter is the municipal charter of New York City. As part of the 1898 consolidation of New York City, the New York State Legislature enacted a charter for the consolidated city (Laws of 1897, chapter 378, effective January 1, ...
that is invoked when a proposed development will affect certain legal protections afforded to the existing area and/or its inhabitants. The standardization of the ULURP creates a democratizing aspect of greater public involvement and thus a degree of transparency into future effects of proposed developments that result in consequences as defined in section 197-c
of the Charter. The process allows the affected the opportunity to stop a development, or find common-ground and come to a compromise with the developer, wherein the negative effects are acknowledged but allowed upon some
quid-pro-quo
''Quid pro quo'' (Latin: "something for something") is a Latin phrase used in English to mean an exchange of goods or services, in which one transfer is contingent upon the other; "a favor for a favor". Phrases with similar meanings include: "g ...
concessional proposal change that allows the affected to accept the negative impacts in light of the positive concessions.
Background
Prior to the creation of the Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP), the development and infrastructure decision making process was concentrated in the hands of bureaucrats such as
Robert Moses
Robert Moses (December 18, 1888 – July 29, 1981) was an American urban planner and public official who worked in the New York metropolitan area during the early to mid-20th century. Moses is regarded as one of the most powerful and influentia ...
, who made decisions with limited or no local input. ULURP specifies six phases in the procedure - each of which brings an additional local stakeholder into the development and infrastructure decision making process.
Developments that fall within current zoning rules are referred to as "As of right" developments, and do not go through the ULURP process. ULURP is only initiated when a
change in zoning is required for the development.
Phases of the ULURP process
The Uniform Land Use Review Procedure is made up of six phases, which can take up to 205 days to complete. The phases are:
NYC Department of City Planning certification
Application must be submitted and certified by the
New York City Department of City Planning
The Department of City Planning (DCP) is the department of the government of New York City responsible for setting the framework of city's physical and socioeconomic planning. The department is responsible for land use and environmental review, p ...
. Part of the submission includes a draft
environmental impact statement
An environmental impact statement (EIS), under United States environmental law, is a document required by the 1969 National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) for certain actions "significantly affecting the quality of the human environment". An E ...
.
Local Community board advisory review
The application is then submitted to the
local community board, which must provide a non-binding review of the application within a 60 day period. Approval by the community board is not necessary for the application to proceed.
Borough president advisory review
The application is then brought to the local
Borough president for advisory review within a 30 day period. Approval by the borough president is not necessary for the application to proceed.
New York City Planning Commission review
The application is then brought to the
New York City Planning Commission
The Department of City Planning (DCP) is the department of the government of New York City responsible for setting the framework of city's physical and socioeconomic planning. The department is responsible for land use and environmental review, ...
(CPC) for review within a 60 day period. If the commission disapproves the application, then the process is effectively over, unless the city council decides to review the disapproved application.
New York City Council review
The application is then brought to the
New York City Council
The New York City Council is the lawmaking body of New York City in the United States. It has 51 members from 51 council districts throughout the five boroughs.
The council serves as a check against the mayor in a mayor-council government mod ...
for review within a 50 day period.
The usual custom of the Council is to defer to members who represent the area, i.e. member deference.
Criticisms of member deference is that it allows
veto
A veto is a legal power to unilaterally stop an official action. In the most typical case, a president (government title), president or monarch vetoes a bill (law), bill to stop it from becoming statutory law, law. In many countries, veto powe ...
s that increase uncertainty, incentivizes focus on short-term impacts, and prioritizes local concerns over citywide interests.
New York City Mayoral veto and review
The application is then brought to the
New York City Mayor
The mayor of New York City, officially mayor of the City of New York, is head of the executive branch of the government of New York City and the chief executive of New York City. The mayor's office administers all city services, public property, ...
for review within a 5 day period. The mayor's approval is not necessary for the application to go forward, but a mayoral veto ends the process unless the city council decides to override the veto with a two-thirds vote.
See also
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City Environmental Quality Review
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Community benefits agreement
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Land use
Land use is an umbrella term to describe what happens on a parcel of land. It concerns the benefits derived from using the land, and also the land management actions that humans carry out there. The following categories are used for land use: fo ...
*
PlaNYC
PlaNYC was a strategic plan released by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg in 2007 to prepare the city for one million more residents, strengthen the economy, combat climate change, and enhance the quality of life for all New Yorkers. The plan ...
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Urban planning
Urban planning (also called city planning in some contexts) is the process of developing and designing land use and the built environment, including air, water, and the infrastructure passing into and out of urban areas, such as transportatio ...
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Urban renewal
Urban renewal (sometimes called urban regeneration in the United Kingdom and urban redevelopment in the United States) is a program of land redevelopment often used to address real or perceived urban decay. Urban renewal involves the clearing ...
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Variance (land use)
In probability theory and statistics, variance is the expected value of the squared deviations from the mean, squared deviation from the mean of a random variable. The standard deviation (SD) is obtained as the square root of the variance. Vari ...
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Zoning in the United States
Zoning is a law that divides a jurisdiction's land into districts, or zones, and limits how land in each district can be used. In the United States, zoning includes various land use laws enforced through the police power rights of state governme ...
References
1975 in New York City
New York City law
Community development
Environmental justice in New York City
Urban planning in New York City
Zoning in the United States
Housing and rent legislation in New York City
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