CUP: Recent pages: Projects/EnvisioningDevelopment

What Is Ulurp

Amanda Finuccio — Wed, 04 Nov 2020 10:54:20 -0500

Projects/EnvisioningDevelopment/WhatIsULURP

ULURP may sound like a monster (and some people think it is), but it stands for Uniform Land Use Review Procedure and it’s the process by which major land use changes get reviewed and approved in New York City. It’s long, complicated, and involves lots of players, making it difficult for communities to understand how they can have a say in the land-use decisions that impact their neighborhoods.

To help community members understand ULURP — and make sure their concerns are heard during the process — CUP created the workshop-tool What Is ULURP? This toolkit includes a set of activities communities can use to learn about the ULURP process, the different players involved, and the role they play in decision-making.

Inside the toolbox are all the pieces you need to get hands-on with the process, as you take a sandwich through the layers of government and public review required by ULURP. A felt wall chart and player markers make it easy for all participants to see the different approval phases. The included 168-page guidebook uses simple diagrams and case studies to show how ULURP works — and how it sometimes doesn’t work — and provides step-by-step instructions on how to role play the ULURP process.

CUP designed the toolkit in collaboration with designers Lynn Kiang and Katie Lee of Dome, and with the help of dozens of community organizations, advocacy groups, and policy experts who made sure the toolkit meets the specific needs they have for educating their constituents facing neighborhood development issues.

During the development of the toolkit, more than a thousand community members across NYC participated in What Is ULURP? workshops in community meetings, classrooms, labor meetings, staff trainings for organizers, and many other locations.

Certificate Of No Harassment

Sucharitha Yelimeli — Tue, 23 Jun 2020 15:05:37 -0400

Projects/EnvisioningDevelopment/CertificateOfNoHarassment

What can you do if your landlord is harassing you? Many New Yorkers face this problem as landlords throughout the city push out long-term tenants and raise rents to make a bigger profit. A new policy called the Certificate of No Harrassment (CONH) gives tenants a tool to fight back against harassment and displacement. The program requires landlords who want to renovate or tear down their building to get a “Certificate of No Harassment” from the NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) that says they haven’t harassed tenants. While the new program puts the burden of proof on landlords, it’s important for tenants to participate and report harassment and other violations.

CUP collaborated with the Association for Neighborhood & Housing Development (ANHD), Coalition Against Tenant Harassment (CATHnyc), the Community Development Project (CDP), and designer Alayna Citrin to create Is Your Landlord Harassing You or Your Neighbors? The illustrated, fold-out poster explains how the new CONH program works, what constitutes harassment, and how tenants can assert their rights if being harassed.

Is Your Landlord Harassing You or Your Neighbors? is being distributed by CATHnyc to thousands of tenants and tenant right advocates throughout the city.

Click here to see the poster and get your own copy.

A Spanish version of the guide was also launched in 2020. You can get your Spanish version here.

Whats Going On In The Neighborhood

siyona ravi — Thu, 10 Jan 2019 12:22:19 -0500

Projects/EnvisioningDevelopment/WhatsGoingOnInTheNeighborhood

New York City’s zoning laws control what can and can’t be built in different neighborhoods. Sometimes they’re used as a tool for preservation, and other times for rapid physical and economic development. When zoning laws are changed, it’s called a rezoning. In recent years, many parts of the city have experienced neighborhood-wide rezonings, as part of Mayor DeBlasio’s efforts to increase the production of affordable housing.

But how do rezonings work? And how will they impact your community? To help communities answer these questions, we created What’s going on in the neighborhood? with with our community partners throughout the city and design studio Partner & Partners.

What’s going on in the neighborhood? is being distributed by advocacy groups across the city who are organizing community members in neighborhoods going through a rezoning. It was created through CUP’s Know Rezoning initiative to support historically marginalized communities in New York City experiencing rezonings.

Click here to see the poster and get your own copy.

What Is Mandatory Inclusionary Housing

siyona ravi — Thu, 10 Jan 2019 12:21:59 -0500

Projects/EnvisioningDevelopment/WhatIsMandatoryInclusionaryHousing

New York City’s zoning laws control what can and can’t be built in different neighborhoods. When the city changes (or rezones) a neighborhood to allow for bigger residential buildings, a policy called Mandatory Inclusionary Housing (MIH) requires developers to set aside parts of their buildings as “affordable housing.” But how does it work? And who can actually afford to live there?

To help communities experiencing rezonings understand MIH, we created What is Mandatory Inclusionary Housing? with our community partners throughout the city and design studio L+L. The foldout explains all you need to know about how MIH works and how you can get involved in the process.

What Is Mandatory Inclusionary Housing? is being distributed by advocacy groups across the city who are organizing community members in neighborhoods going through a rezoning. It was created through CUP’s Know Rezoning initiative to support historically marginalized communities in New York City experiencing rezonings.

Click here to see the poster and get your own copy.

What Is Affordable Housing

aska mukuti — Wed, 24 Oct 2018 11:02:19 -0400

Projects/EnvisioningDevelopment/WhatIsAffordableHousing

The phrase “affordable housing” seems plain enough, but it doesn’t always mean what people think it does. It actually has a technical definition, which can determine what gets built and who gets to live there. The Affordable Housing Toolkit helps communities answer the all-important question, “Affordable to whom?”

The kit is an interactive workshop tool with activities that break down affordable housing policy into easy-to-understand visuals. A felt chart lets communities look at income demographics, rents, and proposed developments in their neighborhoods. A guidebook explains New York’s affordable housing programs and who is eligible to use them, and provides step-by-step instructions on how to run a workshop. The online map lets you instantly chart the income demographics of any NYC neighborhood and print it out to share with elected officials or other audiences.

CUP designed the toolkit in collaboration with designer Glen Cummings of MTWTF and an advisory group of dozens of community organizations, advocacy groups, and policy experts to meet the specific needs they faced in educating their constituents on neighborhood development issues.

Over 45 organizations throughout New York City have purchased toolkits and conducted workshops for thousands of participants already. Workshops regularly take place at community meetings, classrooms, staff trainings for organizers, and many other locations.

Order your toolkit today, or contact CUP to request a workshop for your organization.

A Spanish version of the guidebook was launched in 2009. You can get your Spanish copy here.

We launched the Chicago edition of the guidebook in 2015. You can order it here.

To learn more about the toolkit and get an introduction to affordable housing, watch this fun animation!

What Is Zoning

aska mukuti — Wed, 24 Oct 2018 10:53:54 -0400

Projects/EnvisioningDevelopment/WhatIsZoning

Zoning law regulates land use across the city, and shapes buildings, blocks, and whole neighborhoods. It can be a tool for preservation or for rapid physical and economic development.

But how does it work? And why is it so controversial? The Center for Urban Pedagogy (CUP) created What Is Zoning? to help communities answer these questions. The toolkit includes a set of activities that break down density, bulk, land use, and how proposed rezonings could affect neighborhoods.

Inside the toolbox are infrastructure tiles, a two-sided gameboard, and hundreds of colorful plastic blocks that stack up to break down the basics of zoning. Lay out a brand new city, or max out your lot while you build up to topics like inclusionary and contextual zoning (and the dreaded Floor Area Ratio). A guidebook uses simple diagrams to explain how zoning works, and provides step-by-step instructions on how to lead your own workshops.

CUP designed the toolkit in collaboration with designers Jeff Lai and Andrew Sloat and an advisory group of dozens of community organizations, advocacy groups, and policy experts to meet the specific needs they faced in educating their constituents on neighborhood development issues.

During the development of the toolkit, hundreds of community members across NYC participated in What Is Zoning? workshops in community meetings, classrooms, staff trainings for organizers, and many other locations.

Buy a toolkit for your community organization, or purchase a guidebook separately to read all about zoning!

You can also purchase a refill pad of the worksheet. To purchase a replacement gameboard, please email: info@welcometocup.org

A Spanish version of the guidebook was launched in 2015. You can get your Spanish copy here.

What Is Affordable Housing Online Map

aska mukuti — Wed, 24 Oct 2018 10:48:39 -0400

Projects/EnvisioningDevelopment/WhatIsAffordableHousingOnlineMap

The phrase “affordable housing” seems plain enough, but it doesn’t always mean what people think it does. It actually has a technical definition, which can determine what gets built and who gets to live there. CUP created the Affordable Housing Toolkit to help communities answer the all-important question, “Affordable to whom?”

The Affordable Housing Toolkit comes in an actual toolbox. But CUP also made an online map that lets you explore the income demographics of any NYC neighborhood and print it out to share with elected officials or other audiences. You can also look at different rent prices and see how they impact who can afford to live there. Because populations change every year, you can now access data from different years on the map.

Go here for the current data. Or here for the 2008 version.

What Is Far

Frampton Tolbert — Tue, 27 Feb 2018 17:58:30 -0500

Projects/EnvisioningDevelopment/WhatIsFAR

There’s all sorts of complicated concepts that you have to understand if you want to advocate for changes to zoning. One of the toughest concepts is Floor Area Ratio (FAR) which is the main way that the city limits the size of buildings in the zoning laws.

CUP made an online interactive tool to help community members get a grip on that slippery concept of Floor Area Ratio. What Is FAR? lets you manipulate virtual blocks as it takes you step-by-step through the process of how Floor Area Ratio controls the size of your building. It also shows how the city applies FAR’s other building-size-controlling cousins: lot coverage, setbacks, and height limits.

After you understand how the rules of zoning work, you can use the Neighborhood Tool to see how these rules can shape a whole neighborhood, and how your neighborhood might change if the city changes the zoning rules.

Click here to try the tool!

What Is FAR? is an online compliment to CUP’s What Is Zoning? toolkit. What Is Zoning? is a part of the Envisioning Development Toolkits, a series of teaching tools that foster conversations about land use and urban development.

Envisioning Development

Mark Torrey — Wed, 12 Mar 2014 19:10:31 -0400

Projects/EnvisioningDevelopment

Participatory Budgeting

Christine Gaspar — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 12:18:19 -0400

Projects/EnvisioningDevelopment/ParticipatoryBudgeting

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Admin User — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 01:03:20 -0400

Projects/EnvisioningDevelopment/Sdf