Bill de Blasio Seems to Favor Development When It Comes With Affordable Housing

Could mayoral candidate Bill de Blasio be more pro-development and real estate industry-friendly than his campaign speeches would suggest? That’s how it looks, according to a story in The Real Deal that came out in print earlier this month and was just published on its website.

When de Blasio was on the City Council, he supported the Toll Brothers’ development plan for Gowanus (which they dropped and is now the controversial Lightstone project). He also supported Atlantic Yards. In both cases, his main interest seemed to be building more affordable housing.

The story also points out that, as of September, de Blasio had accepted about $460,000 from real estate interests. Donors included Brookfield Office Properties’ John Zuccotti, prominent real estate lawyer Edward Mermelstein and Midtown Equities’ Jack Cayre. Fund raising “bundlers” or “intermediaries,” according to TRD, included Silverstein Properties’ Janno Lieber, Forest City Ratner’s Robert Sanna, Related Companies’ Jay Kriegel, and Toll Brothers’ David Von Spreckelsen.

Other proposals from the candidate include:

*Improving efficiency at the Department of Buildings.
*Easing restrictions on air rights transfers.
*Shortening the pre-certification process for ULURP.

He also came out more in favor of rezonings than competitor Lhota, saying they are an “economic and environmental imperative.”

Are you in favor of more development if it also means building more affordable housing?

De Blasio: More Pro-Development Than You Think? [TRD]