It never hurts to have a mayor that is from and cut his political teeth in your borough.
That after Mayor Bill de Blasio and City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito announced this week that the city will invest more than half of $442 million 10-year capital allocation laid out to keep the city’s growing industrial and manufacturing base humming.
Under the Industrial Action Plan (IAP), Brooklyn will get a $292 million investment in three City-owned industrial and manufacturing properties; the Brooklyn Army Terminal will receive $115 million to develop 500,000 square feet of space. The Brooklyn Navy yard will receive $140 million to develop 1 million square feet of space, and the Sunset Park waterfront will receive a $37 million infrastructure investment towards new and existing jobs.
Currently, New York City’s industrial and manufacturing sector employs 530,000 people, or 15.4 percent of the city’s private sector workforce. In this sector, 63 percent of jobs are available to those without a college degree.
“Manufacturing isn’t just part of New York City’s past – it is a thriving part of our 21st century economy. We are positioning our industrial businesses to take advantage of new technology and new demand. These investments are going to generate tens of thousands of good jobs for New York City families,” said de Blasio.
The IAP will also limit the development of as-of-right hotels and mini-storage spaces to keep rent prices down for existing businesses that may be tempted to sell out to developers – a move that Midwood City Councilman David Greenfield, chair of the Land-Use Committee, supports.
“Manufacturing jobs are the cornerstone of our city’s economy, providing tremendous opportunity for people from all walks of life to earn a living wage, support their families and achieve the American dream. These new zoning protections will restrict incompatible land uses and enable industrial businesses to flourish in neighborhoods across New York City,” said Greenfield.
Earlier this year, the city’s Economic Development Corporation launched Connect IBZ, a $5.3 million program that provides access to high-speed Internet in IBZs, creating commercial broadband networks in South Brooklyn, North Brooklyn, Greenpoint-Williamsburg, and Long Island City.
Additionally, the city is developing a framework bringing together industrial, commercial, and limited residential development. Incentives and zoning requirements would promote mixed use districts. Currently, there is a study being conducted in the North Brooklyn Industrial Business Zone.
“The East New York IBZ alone is responsible for 4,000 jobs in my community, and through the policies outlined in the Mayor and Council’s 10 point plan, I believe we can double or triple that number in the years to come by strengthening our land use policy, making strategic investments, and improving our financial incentives to help industrial companies grow,” said Bushwick/East New York City Council Member Rafael L. Espinal, Jr.
