Building Trades among 7 groups backing campaign to sway de Blasio’s zoning proposal
The Building Blocks NYC, a campaign launched last week in an effort to alter the de Blasio administration’s zoning plan, has added seven groups to its roster, including the Building and Construction Trades Council of Greater New York.
Others who have just signed onto the Building Blocks NYC campaign, which is spearheaded by Greater New York Laborers-Employers Cooperation and Education Trust, include: District Council 9 New York IUPAT, Heat and Frost Insulators Local 12, New York Communities for Change, Faith in New York, Community Action For Safe Apartments and the Real Affordability for All Coalition.
The campaign is calling on New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio to include a Floor Area Affordability Bonus program in his rezoning plan. The mayor's plan would allow larger residential buildings, provided that at least a quarter of the new homes created are permanently designated as affordable housing. Under the campaign’s proposed Floor Area Affordability Bonus program, the most sizable buildings could only be built when developers agree to ensure half the homes created are affordable to current neighborhood residents, 30 percent of construction jobs are reserved for city residents and a state-approved apprenticeship training program is offered.
Greater New York LECET Executive Director Pat Purcell said the training programs come with stronger safety standards and oversight. He has claimed that these training programs have been used by both union and nonunion groups, so the provision would not give organized labor an advantage in securing contracts. Greater New York LECET is a labor management fund advocating for union members and contractors.
Building and Construction Trades Council President Gary LaBarbera said he believes the Building Blocks NYC plan would help curb construction injuries and deaths.
“Sixteen construction workers tragically died in 2015, yet the De Blasio administration has failed to account for worker safety in its robust housing plan,” LaBarbera said in a statement. “New York City is in the midst of a building boom and according to studies conducted by NYCOSH [New York Committee for Occupational Safety & Health], injuries and fatalities will continue to increase if we don’t act to require worker safety and training policies now. That is why the Building and Construction Trades Council of Greater New York fully stands with Building Blocks NYC in demanding a housing program that mandates provisions for worker safety and training. We also stand behind the need to address deeper affordability so working families can afford to live in the housing they build.”
The de Blasio administration has said its zoning proposals - and the larger affordable housing agenda behind them - could be defeated in court if the city ties job standards to the zoning code. The administration said such a move is not legally permissible, but Building Blocks NYC has disputed the claim.
The mayor’s office has previously outlined steps taken to improve construction safety, such as quadrupling penalties for construction-safety lapses, plans to conduct a wave of enforcement sweeps and requiring construction superintendents at projects under 10 stories.