5 articles curated by the Wagner Planner staff:
New Federal Data Shows the Home Appraisal Gap Is Getting Worse (Bloomberg) – “Since 2020, the value of homes in predominantly white neighborhoods increased on average by $136,000, while comparable homes in non-white communities only appreciated on average by $60,000.”
Here’s How the US Can Stop Wasting Billions of Dollars on Each Transit Project (VICE) – “The final report highlights six areas for improvement with the kind of headings that one does not exactly put in a headline meant to drive clicks—”civil service and internal capacity” and “procurement and risk allocation” being two examples—but all come back to a central theme, what the report calls “institutions and decision-making.””
DOT eyes Brooklyn’s Grand Army Plaza as NYC’s next car-free space (Gothamist) – “The area has been dangerous for pedestrians and cyclists in recent years. Last year, a woman and her 1-year-old child were hit by a car at an intersection on the west side of the plaza’s roundabout, and a bicyclist was critically injured after being struck by a driver at the intersection.”
Nature Has Its Way: Sand and Money Halt the Coney Island Ferry (Hell Gate) – “In the saga of the abortive drive for a Coney Island ferry, the central mystery remains why the EDC was so determined to site the ferry in Coney Island Creek, disregarding its own best data to put it there.”
Rats, Roaches, Leaks: Rent-Stabilized Building Owners Whose Bets Went Sour Delay Repairs (THE CITY) – “When some landlords hear about maintenance problems, they’re inclined to say “We told you so.” Building owners had predicted the 2019 law could lead rent-stabilized housing to “gradually fall into disrepair” by discouraging landlords from investing in their buildings. Tenant advocates say it shouldn’t fall to tenants to pay for landlords’ bad bets, and that it’s illegal to refuse to make necessary repairs.”
You can reach the authors of this newsletter, Manal Bawazir and Edwin Jeng, at: mb7086@nyu.edu & ej737@nyu.edu
You can reach the editor of this piece, Patrick Spauster, at: ps4375@nyu.edu