4 ms·

I've heard stories about SF's housing problems, but not about Manhattan. I know Manhattan is expensive, but it's also full of some of the tallest buildings in t

I've heard stories about SF's housing problems, but not about Manhattan. I know Manhattan is expensive, but it's also full of some of the tallest buildings in the world, and more are built every day. Are there actually policies restricting housing in Manhattan?

snrplfth 10y ago
Hugely. It's possible to build extremely tall buildings in certain specific areas of Manhattan (and New York in general, like in Downtown Brooklyn), but most of the city is "maxed out" to its zoning - that is, the tallest building that can be legally built is already there. Indeed, in many places, the existing buildings are taller than the zoning code allows - so if you demolished an old building, you'd have to build a shorter one in its place!
TheCoelacanth 10y ago
Actually, yes. If you look at an aerial view[1], you can see that there are only skyscrapers in two fairly small parts of the island. Much of the rest has zoning rules that don't allow taller buildings. Even when the taller buildings are allowed, there are things like setback requirements that lower the amount of floor space that the building can contain. Frequently, the buildings that you can see aren't even representative of what the current restrictions allow. Many building in Manhattan were built long ago when zoning was less strict. Forty percent of the buildings in Manhattan could not be built today because they don't meet zoning requirements[2]. [1] https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/9e/13/54/9e13549111a1585842d6ac562f4e1ddc.jpg https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/9e/13/54/9e13... [2] http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/05/19/upshot/forty-percent-of-manhattans-buildings-could-not-be-built-today.html?_r=0 http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/05/19/upshot/forty-p...

4 ms·

I've heard stories about SF's housing problems, but not about Manhattan. I know Manhattan is expensive, but it's also full of some of the tallest buildings in t

by freehunter 10y ago

snrplfth 10y ago
Hugely. It's possible to build extremely tall buildings in certain specific areas of Manhattan (and New York in general, like in Downtown Brooklyn), but most of the city is "maxed out" to its zoning - that is, the tallest building that can be legally built is already there. Indeed, in many places, the existing buildings are taller than the zoning code allows - so if you demolished an old building, you'd have to build a shorter one in its place!
TheCoelacanth 10y ago
Actually, yes. If you look at an aerial view[1], you can see that there are only skyscrapers in two fairly small parts of the island. Much of the rest has zoning rules that don't allow taller buildings. Even when the taller buildings are allowed, there are things like setback requirements that lower the amount of floor space that the building can contain. Frequently, the buildings that you can see aren't even representative of what the current restrictions allow. Many building in Manhattan were built long ago when zoning was less strict. Forty percent of the buildings in Manhattan could not be built today because they don't meet zoning requirements[2]. [1] https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/9e/13/54/9e13549111a1585842d6ac562f4e1ddc.jpg https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/9e/13/54/9e13... [2] http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/05/19/upshot/forty-percent-of-manhattans-buildings-could-not-be-built-today.html?_r=0 http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/05/19/upshot/forty-p...