An Alternative Future for the North East Mission Industrial Zone

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An Alternative Future for the NEMIZ Mission Coalition for Economic Justice & Jobs III.26 IPZ Literature Review & Case Studies Aerial view of industrial area in New York or prohibit residential, commercial, or other non-industrial activities, and include a variety of industrial development programs. Areas that have tried to use mixed-use zoning to balance manufacturing with other uses have not always been successful in encouraging manufacturing to grow or stay in these zones. Some benefits of retaining manufacturing are explored, including improvement of economic diversity, which helps the resiliency of cities during economic downturns. As many of these businesses rent space, they are also not eligible for the majority of financial assistance programs offered by the City, which are geared toward property owners. The report recommends extending these programs to benefit business owners that are tenants (R:110). Overall Study Recommendations The report makes a series of recommendations based on the successful policies of other areas and the specific needs of the City. It recommends an integrated system that includes “financial, technical assistance, environmental, and land use and zoning policies” (R: 115), and establishing designated manufacturing zones in areas of concentrated, pre-existing manufacturing uses where residential uses should be prohibited altogether. In this effort, it is important to choose areas with a significant amount of remaining manufacturing uses that are not experiencing major new commercial or residential development. M-zones with a significant amount of conversion should be converted to residential or commercial zones, as protecting manufacturing in these areas is very difficult. Defining use types and new zoning districts is an important part of this process. Manufacturing uses that now meet higher environmental performance standards due to industry changes and new technologies should be allowed to locate in mixed-use areas. These busi-
ness types include printing, apparel, food processing, and selected artisan work (R:122). New types of manufacturing activities such as telecommunications, media production, and biotechnology should also be periodically defined and added to the NYC Zoning Resolution, as some of these uses can afford office-level rents, but are competing with manufacturing uses for space. Two new district types are recommended to buffer the potential problems in integrating manufacturing and other uses, Transitional Mixeduse and Non-transitional Mixed-use districts. The Non-transitional district would help integrate manufacturing districts with Mixed-use districts by providing a buffer of use-types determined through performance standard compatibility. Transitional districts should be established in areas where residential and commercial uses have increased significantly, and there are few manufacturing uses left. Every effort should be made to protect the grandfathered businesses in these areas, which should also be given incentives to increase environmental and compatibility standards (R:124). A way to ensure compatibility among uses and increase the chances for the success of new mixed-use areas is through performance standards. Performance-based zoning has advantages over listing allowable uses through its reliance on an “ongoing assessment of measurable impacts associated with how those firms actually perform. In order to assist them with meeting environmental compliance, firms would be provided with technical assistance in conducting periodic environmental self-audits” (R:137). Another advantage is that performance standards allow adaptation to new technologies and manufacturing processes while protecting environmental quality and reducing pressure on scarce manufacturing land resources. Increasing performance standards for certain industries can allow them to leave manufacturing areas for Mixed-use areas. It can also help businesses in M-zones protect against community opposition to manufacturing based on health and safety concerns (R:139). The report recommends establishing an index of compatible uses that reference environmental performance standards as well as conducting a census of manufacturers to establish better data regarding manufacturing in the City. Financial incentives help small businesses fight displacement or relocate, while Tax Increment Financing Districts direct new tax revenues from rezoned industrial parcels to a fund dedicated to maintaining industrial areas. Higher environmental standards can allow businesses to reduce toxic outputs and locate in mixed-use areas, reducing the pressure on industrial land. An environmental standard can also be used to reclassify certain industrial business types to commercial, based on technological improvements (such as in the printing industry) that lead to a reductions in pollution, noise, or other noxious factors. Efforts should be made to protect existing manufacturers, and the increased tax revenues from rezoning should be recaptured and channeled to other areas of manufacturing retention, including the establishment of a Tax Increment Financing (TIF) system for “funding financial incentives to encourage the replacement and retention of traditional manufacturing Mission Coalition for Economic Justice & Jobs IPZ Literature Review & Case Studies III.27 An Alternative Future for the NEMIZ
Page 1: AN ALTERNATIVE FUTURE FOR THE Prepa
Page 5 and 6: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page 7 and 8: The history of this neighborhood is
Page 9 and 10: The City is addressing areas which
Page 11 and 12: For non-Core PDR users, such as fur
Page 13 and 14: Any IPZ Program Needs to Be Flexibl
Page 15: EXISTING CONDITIONS ASSESSMENT This
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Page 53 and 54: PLANNING & POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS I
Page 55 and 56: C. Evaluate Each Industrial Neighbo
Page 57 and 58: NEMIZ Recommendations The following
Page 59 and 60: PDR Sub-Category Core PDR Medium PD
Page 61 and 62: D. Create a Small IPZ Focused on Ke
Page 63 and 64: Policy & Planning Recommendations
Page 65: APPENDIX
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An Alternative Future for the North East Mission Industrial Zone

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