Speaker Adrienne Adams Delivers Opening Remarks at the Council’s Public Hearing on the Jamaica Neighborhood Plan

City Hall, NY - Today, Speaker Adrienne Adams delivered opening remarks at the Council's Subcommittee on Zoning and Franchises' public hearing on the Department of City Planning's Jamaica Neighborhood Plan proposal. In her remarks, Speaker Adams emphasized the importance of community planning and the Council's role in the land use process to negotiate and secure affordable housing and neighborhood investments.

Below are the Speaker's full remarks as prepared for delivery.

Good morning. Thank you, Chair Riley, for leading today's public hearing on the Jamaica Neighborhood Plan, a neighborhood rezoning in Southeast Queens. And thank you to Council Member Williams for her leadership on this plan and everyone who has joined us today.

As a longtime resident of Jamaica and a former Co-Chair of the Jamaica NOW Leadership Council, this neighborhood rezoning proposal is deeply important to me and my community. Our Jamaica is a thriving and vibrant community, whose success is pivotal to the prosperity of Southeast Queens and to our entire city. Its growth and transformation to a bustling residential, commercial, and transportation hub-with opportunities to advance careers, build homes, and raise families-has always been a top priority.

I'm hopeful the Jamaica Neighborhood Plan can build on the progress we have achieved over the last decade.

Throughout my term as the Speaker of the New York City Council, I have encouraged my colleagues, land use applicants, city agencies, our communities, and all stakeholders in the process to engage in proactive community planning. That means working together to understand our communities' needs, identify shared goals and principles, and deliver better outcomes for the city, the neighborhoods we represent, and our constituents.

With community planning, we can ensure our city is confronting the housing crisis by creating new homes, while also securing investments in economic opportunity, infrastructure, and other community benefits that align with our community's needs and goals.

It's not always an easy process, but when it's done with thought, care, and consideration of the feedback from community members, we can advance housing solutions and investments for all New Yorkers.

I'm proud to support Council Member Williams in bringing this model of community planning to Downtown Jamaica and the surrounding areas through the Jamaica Neighborhood Plan.

Through sustained community engagement with the Department of City Planning, other agencies, and the Steering Committee comprised of community leaders and stakeholders, we have begun to shape a proposal that can update the zoning in this community to deliver more affordable housing by creating the largest Mandatory Inclusionary Housing zone in the city, new economic development opportunities, and investments to improve local parks, schools, and infrastructure.

This proposal can also support homeownership, improve public transportation, and increase opportunities for our faith-based organizations to expand their work and develop much-needed affordable and senior housing.

There is still much more work to be done to finalize and strengthen the Jamaica Neighborhood Plan. Most urgently, Southeast Queens residents deserve updated water and sewer infrastructure to address longstanding and chronic issues with flooding. While we are already making important capital investments - including additional funds we secured through the Council's "City for All" housing plan - we must ensure these improvements come to fruition.

The Jamaica Neighborhood Plan must also ensure funding to address school capacity and other goals identified through our community planning process, like increasing and preserving affordable homeownership, improving our parks and open spaces, and investing in our public health.

It's important to note that none of these investments and community benefits would be possible without the City Council's direct role within the land use process to negotiate and secure commitments that fulfill community needs. New Yorkers, through their democratically elected representatives, deserve the ability to fight for more affordable housing and neighborhood investments.

As we consider the future of Downtown Jamaica and our city, this is what is at stake. Our communities deserve to be included and heard with real influence when new development is being planned in their neighborhoods.

Over the coming weeks, we will continue to examine this neighborhood rezoning and work towards crafting a final plan that meets the needs of Jamaica and its residents.

I look forward to hearing from the Administration and members of the public during today's hearing and throughout this process.

Thank you, and now I will turn it back to Chair Riley.

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