Topic
Buildings
√ NY Agencies
Department of Buildings (DOB)
The Department of Buildings (DOB) is the government agency responsible for the administration and enforcement of building codes, construction codes, zoning regulations, and other related laws and regulations. The DOB issues permits for new construction, alterations, and demolitions, and inspects buildings and construction sites to ensure compliance with safety standards. The DOB also handles complaints related to unsafe or illegal construction practices, and investigates reports of illegal conversions or occupancy of buildings. Mayor’s Management Report
Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD
The Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD), which enforces housing codes and regulations and oversees the preservation and development of affordable housing in the city. Mayor’s Management Report
Fire Department of New York (FDNY)
The Fire Department of New York (FDNY), which enforces fire safety codes and conducts inspections of buildings for fire hazards. Mayor’s Management Report
Department of Finance (DOF)
The Department of Finance (DOF), which assesses property values and collects property taxes. Mayor’s Management Report
Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC)
The Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC), which designates and regulates historic landmarks and districts in the city. Mayor’s Management Report
Department of City Planning (DCP)
The Department of City Planning (DCP), which prepares and implements the city’s land use plans and zoning regulations. Mayor’s Management Report
Department of Transportation (DOT)
The Department of Transportation (DOT), which oversees street and sidewalk construction and maintenance and issues permits for construction-related street closures and sidewalk obstructions. Mayor’s Management Report
Department of Environmental Protection (DEP)
The Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), which oversees the city’s water supply and sewer systems and ensures compliance with environmental regulations related to building construction and operation. Mayor’s Management Report
√ Reports
NYC Construction Dashboard
"Building Resilience"
The New York City Panel on Climate Change’s “Building Resilience”: This report examines the impact of climate change on New York City’s buildings and infrastructure and provides recommendations for how the city can adapt to rising sea levels, extreme weather events, and other climate-related risks.
Cap the Credits
Strong Implementation of Local Law 97, NYC’s Green New Deal for Buildings. The Office of the New York City Comptroller Brad Lander provided a report stating that only 30% of buildings would be noncompliant with emissions standards in the initial 2024-2029 compliance period, but this number is expected to rise to over 70% in 2030 as standards increase.
DOB: "Construction Safety Report"
The New York City Department of Buildings’ “Construction Safety Report”: This annual report provides data on construction-related injuries and fatalities in New York City and outlines the department’s efforts to improve safety on construction sites.
HPD: "Housing New York"
The New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development’s “Housing New York”: This report outlines the city’s plan to build and preserve affordable housing, including strategies to support sustainable and energy-efficient building practices.
Greening City Buildings: More Progress Is Needed to Meet NYC’s Municipal Emissions Reduction Goals
NYC Construction Dashboard
"Building Resilience"
The New York City Panel on Climate Change’s “Building Resilience”: This report examines the impact of climate change on New York City’s buildings and infrastructure and provides recommendations for how the city can adapt to rising sea levels, extreme weather events, and other climate-related risks.
Cap the Credits
Strong Implementation of Local Law 97, NYC’s Green New Deal for Buildings. The Office of the New York City Comptroller Brad Lander provided a report stating that only 30% of buildings would be noncompliant with emissions standards in the initial 2024-2029 compliance period, but this number is expected to rise to over 70% in 2030 as standards increase.
DOB: "Construction Safety Report"
The New York City Department of Buildings’ “Construction Safety Report”: This annual report provides data on construction-related injuries and fatalities in New York City and outlines the department’s efforts to improve safety on construction sites.
HPD: "Housing New York"
The New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development’s “Housing New York”: This report outlines the city’s plan to build and preserve affordable housing, including strategies to support sustainable and energy-efficient building practices.
Greening City Buildings: More Progress Is Needed to Meet NYC’s Municipal Emissions Reduction Goals
√ Data sets
PLUTO (Primary Land Use Tax Lot Output)
PLUTO is a data set created by the New York City Department of City Planning that includes detailed information about every tax lot in the city, including zoning, land use, building age and size, and ownership.
Building INformation
Using tools like the Building Information System (BIS) and the DOB NOW Public Portal, you can review the history of any building in New York City. You can find violations, permits and complaints that were reported. The building history also shows the current status of the information as active or resolved
LL84 Benchmarking Data
Local Law 84 requires owners of buildings over 50,000 square feet to report annual energy and water use data through the city’s benchmarking program. The data set includes information on energy and water use intensity, greenhouse gas emissions, and other building performance metrics.
HPD Building Data
The New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) provides a data set with information on the physical and financial condition of all regulated buildings in the city. This data set includes information on building code violations, complaints, and work orders.
DOF (Department of Finance) Property Data
The DOF Property Data provides property tax and assessment information for all buildings in New York City. The data set includes information on property value, property class, tax rates, and exemptions.
Open Data
This portal offers a variety of datasets categorized by agency, including those related to buildings: Affordable Housing Production by Building, DOB NOW: Build – Approved Permits, WiredNYC – All Buildings Data, Energy Usage From DOE Buildings and Art in DOE buildings
among others.
Housing Data Coalition Projects
The Housing Data Coalition (HDC) is a group of individuals and organizations who collaborate on their use of public data to further housing justice in New York City. The site has a gallery of tools and resources related to housing in NYC.
√ Data visualizations
Property Information Portal
Mapping Inequality
Redlining in New Deal America: This project, created by a team of scholars, uses historical maps and data to explore the legacy of redlining in New York City and other cities across the United States. The project includes maps of New York City that show the areas that were designated as “hazardous” or “definitely declining” by the Home Owners’ Loan Corporation in the 1930s.
NYC Building Energy Efficiency Grades
This interactive map, created by the New York City Mayor’s Office of Sustainability, shows the energy efficiency grades for buildings across the city. The map allows users to see which buildings have received an A, B, or C grade, based on their energy performance.
Building Footprints
This data set from NYC Open Data provides the shapefile outlines of buildings in New York City. It includes detailed documentation that can be found on their GitHub repository
NYC 3D Model Download
The NYC Department of Information Technology & Telecommunications (DOITT) provides a 3D model of every building in New York City as of 2014. The model includes roof structure details and is based on aerial surveys, offering a high level of detail for iconic buildings
Discover new york City landmarks
The map displays individual, interior and scenic landmarks as well as historical districts in all boroughs. The provides detailed building by building information for all buildings within individual landmarks and historic districts.
√ STATISTICS
Housing units in millions
2022
Height of One World Trade Center
feet
Construction worker injuries
2022
Building Permits
Since 2018, there has been a general decline in new building permits. However, in 2021, new building permits increased by 11% from the previous year, and demolition permits increased by 10% from 2020
Worker Injuries
In 2022, worker injuries on building construction sites were up for a second straight year, increasing by 9.7% compared to 2021, with 554 injuries reported. This was still lower than the peak of 759 worker injuries in 2018
Location of New Building Permits
In 2019, Brooklyn had the most new building permits issued (2,682 total, 34% citywide), while the Community District with the greatest number of new building permits was CD503 in Staten Island (594 total, 8% citywide).
High-rise Buildings
New York City is home to over 7,000 completed high-rise buildings of at least 115 feet, with at least 102 buildings taller than 650 feet. The tallest building in New York is One World Trade Center, which rises 1,776 feet.
Housing Units
As of 2021, New York City had a total of approximately 7.8 million housing units, with about 1.5 million units sized between 1,000 and 1,499 square feet.
Building ownership
As of 2017, New York City had 3,469,240 total housing units. Of these units, 1,038,200 are owner-occupied and 2,183,064 are renter-occupied.
Housing units in millions
2022
Height of One World Trade Center
feet
Construction worker injuries
2022
Building Permits
Since 2018, there has been a general decline in new building permits. However, in 2021, new building permits increased by 11% from the previous year, and demolition permits increased by 10% from 2020
Worker Injuries
In 2022, worker injuries on building construction sites were up for a second straight year, increasing by 9.7% compared to 2021, with 554 injuries reported. This was still lower than the peak of 759 worker injuries in 2018
Location of New Building Permits
In 2019, Brooklyn had the most new building permits issued (2,682 total, 34% citywide), while the Community District with the greatest number of new building permits was CD503 in Staten Island (594 total, 8% citywide).
High-rise Buildings
New York City is home to over 7,000 completed high-rise buildings of at least 115 feet, with at least 102 buildings taller than 650 feet. The tallest building in New York is One World Trade Center, which rises 1,776 feet.
Housing Units
As of 2021, New York City had a total of approximately 7.8 million housing units, with about 1.5 million units sized between 1,000 and 1,499 square feet.
Building ownership
As of 2017, New York City had 3,469,240 total housing units. Of these units, 1,038,200 are owner-occupied and 2,183,064 are renter-occupied.
√ Census & American Community Survey
Housing units by structure type
Housing units by age
Housing units by occupancy status
Housing units by income
Housing units by race and ethnicity
Housing units by household size
Housing units by structure type
The Census and ACS provide data on the number and percentage of housing units in the city by structure type, such as single-family homes, multi-unit buildings, and mobile homes.
Housing units by age
Housing units by occupancy status
Housing units by income
Housing units by race and ethnicity
Housing units by household size
√ Non-Profits
New York Building Foundation
This organization issues grants to non-profits involved with the design, construction, and real estate industry in New York City. Their mission is to promote the long-term growth and well-being of the building industry and the wider community. They support educational programs, training organizations, and research on issues impacting the building industry and the city’s economic future.
Preservation League of New York State
The Preservation League of New York State is a non-profit organization that advocates for the preservation of New York’s historic buildings and places. The League provides education and advocacy resources to individuals and organizations working to preserve New York’s architectural heritage.
New York Landmarks Conservancy
The New York Landmarks Conservancy is a non-profit organization that works to preserve New York’s historic buildings and places. The Conservancy operates a number of programs to support preservation, including a grant program, a real estate development arm, and a variety of educational and public outreach programs.
New York City Housing Development Corporation (HDC)
HDC is a non-profit corporation that finances and develops affordable housing in New York City. HDC has financed or developed over 200,000 units of affordable housing since its inception in 1973.
Lower Manhattan Development Corporation (LMDC)
LMDC is a non-profit corporation that was created to lead the redevelopment of Lower Manhattan after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. LMDC has overseen the development of over 5 million square feet of commercial space, over 10,000 units of housing, and over 11 acres of public space in Lower Manhattan.
√ Experts
Vishaan Chakrabarti
Vishaan Chakrabarti is an architect and urban planner who is the founder of the design and planning firm Practice for Architecture and Urbanism. He has written extensively on the subject of urbanism and is a professor of architecture at Columbia University.
Amanda M. Burden
Amanda M. Burden is an urban planner and former director of the New York City Department of City Planning. She is known for her work on the revitalization of the city’s waterfront and for her efforts to promote sustainable development and affordable housing.
Dr. Constantine E. Kontokosta
Dr. Constantine E. Kontokosta is a professor of urban science and planning at the New York University Tandon School of Engineering. He is an expert in the use of data and technology to improve the design and operation of buildings and infrastructure.
Laurie Kerr
Laurie Kerr is an energy policy expert who has worked for the New York City Mayor’s Office of Sustainability and the New York City Department of Buildings. She has been instrumental in developing policies and programs aimed at improving the energy efficiency of buildings in the city.
√ Journal Articles
"Deconstructing New York’s Building Costs"
This article examines the high cost of construction in New York City and the factors that contribute to it. The article argues that the city’s construction industry is plagued by inefficiencies and corruption, which drives up costs for taxpayers and developers.
"Why Can’t New York Control Its Infrastructure Costs?"
This article examines the city’s challenges in controlling the cost of infrastructure projects. The article argues that the city’s procurement process is cumbersome and inefficient, and that the city often pays more for projects than other cities of comparable size.
"NYC Second Ave. Subway Project Advances With $3.4B in US Funding"
This article reports on the progress of the Second Avenue Subway project, one of the largest and most complex infrastructure projects in the United States. The article also discusses the challenges of constructing a subway line in a densely populated city like New York.
√ Key Issues
Building safety
Energy efficiency
Affordable housing
Historic preservation
New York City is home to many historic buildings and neighborhoods that contribute to the city’s cultural and architectural heritage. Ensuring that these structures are preserved and protected is an ongoing issue that requires careful planning and collaboration between government agencies, non-profit organizations, and property owners.
Climate resilience
√ Social Media Accounts
nylcstaff
The New York Landmarks Conservancy is a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving and protecting historic buildings and neighborhoods in New York City. Their Instagram account features photos and information about landmarked buildings, architectural styles, and preservation efforts.
curbed
Curbed is a real estate and architecture blog that covers the latest news and trends in New York City’s building and design scene. Their Instagram account features photos and articles about new developments, design trends, and neighborhood profiles.
archdigest
Architectural Digest is a magazine that covers the latest trends in architecture, interior design, and home decor. Their Instagram account features stunning photos and videos of buildings and interiors from around the world, including many notable buildings in New York City.
NYC_Buildings
Twitter account for the Department of Buildings (DOB).