The group on the Manhattan Neighborhood Board 2 Land Use Committee assembly on Jan. 10, 2024 relating to 388 Hudson St. in Greenwich Village.
Courtesy NYC Division of Housing Preservation and Improvement
The method of appointing board members to NYC neighborhood boards will change if a brand new invoice proposed by the Metropolis Council turns into legislation.
Metropolis Council Member Frank Morano (R-Staten Island) desires NYC Council members to have the authority to nominate as much as half of every neighborhood board’s 50 volunteer members, per his new invoice, Intro. 0322-2026.
At the moment, solely town’s 5 borough presidents can appoint members to the boards, with some enter from the council.
Morano mentioned his invoice, which might require revising the Metropolis Constitution, can be fairer to New Yorkers, since neighborhood boards are civic teams designed to symbolize the individuals who reside or work in native neighborhoods.
“Council members are the ones closest to the neighborhoods. We’re the ones people call when there’s a problem,” the South Shore council rep mentioned. “It makes sense that we should have a direct role in who represents the communities.”
Borough presidents would nonetheless get to resolve who sits on the remaining half of neighborhood boards of their respective boroughs.
“It’s about fairness, and it’s about balance,” Morano mentioned. “No one is taking away power from the borough presidents. We’re simply saying that power should be shared, and not concentrated in one place. I think if community boards are going to speak for the public, then more than one elected official should have a say in who sits on them.”
Implementing the legislation would require amending the Metropolis Constitution. If Intro. 0322-2026 is handed within the Metropolis Council this 12 months, New Yorkers would vote on the invoice through poll referendum within the November common election.
The concept is gaining traction within the Metropolis Council, receiving bipartisan assist from council members throughout town. Among the many co-sponsors of the invoice are Chris Marte and Elsie Encarnacion (D-Manhattan), Nantasha Williams (D-Queens) and Vickie Paladino (R-Queens), Susan Zhuang and Chris Banks (D-Brooklyn) and Justin Sanchez (D-Bronx).
In the meantime, Morano reiterated that having appointments from only one official
“It’s basic fairness. It’s a matter that is more democratic and adds a little bit of accountability,” he mentioned. “When appointments come from one place, you can wind up with outcomes that don’t necessarily reflect the full community. This helps fix that.”
Intro. 0322-2026 is presently within the council’s committee on governmental operations, state and federal laws. It should go by means of the legislative course of earlier than it turns into legislation.
