STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 6303 2019-2020 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY March 5, 2019 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. PHEFFER AMATO -- read once and referred to the Committee on Social Services AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to requiring the preparation of a neighborhood impact statement prior to the construction of a homeless shelter in cities with a population of one million or more The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Article 2-A of the social services law is amended by adding 2 a new title 5 to read as follows: 3 TITLE 5 4 NEIGHBORHOOD IMPACT STATEMENT 5 Section 54. Neighborhood impact statement. 6 § 54. Neighborhood impact statement. 1. For purposes of this section, 7 the term: 8 (a) "city" means any city with a population of one million or more; 9 (b) "project" shall mean a project: 10 (i) (A) directly undertaken by the mayor of a city, regardless of 11 whether or not such project is being undertaken pursuant to a declara- 12 tion of emergency; or 13 (B) supported in whole or part through contracts, grants, subsidies, 14 loans, or other forms of funding assistance from the city or from one or 15 more agencies; or 16 (C) involving the issuance by the city of a lease, permit, license, 17 certificate or other entitlement; and 18 (ii) designed in whole or in part to provide shelter to the homeless; 19 (c) "neighborhood" means an area within a city identified by recog- 20 nized or established boundaries. 21 2. A city shall use all practicable means, to the maximum extent prac- 22 ticable, to minimize or avoid adverse neighborhood effects, including 23 effects revealed in the neighborhood impact statement process. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD10142-01-9A. 6303 2 1 3. Any city, by and through its city council, shall prepare, or cause 2 to be prepared by contract or otherwise a draft and final neighborhood 3 impact statement on any project which may have a significant effect on 4 the neighborhood where such project shall be located. Such a statement 5 shall include a detailed statement setting forth the following: 6 (a) a description of the proposed project and its neighborhood 7 setting; 8 (b) the neighborhood impact of the proposed project including short- 9 term and long-term effects; 10 (c) any adverse neighborhood effects which cannot be avoided should 11 the project be implemented; 12 (d) alternatives to the proposed project; 13 (e) the number of schools in the neighborhood, the location of each 14 school and the distance of each school from the location of the project; 15 (f) the number of day care centers in the neighborhood, the location 16 of each day care center and the distance of each day care center from 17 the location of the project; 18 (g) the number of parks in the neighborhood, the location of each park 19 and the distance of each park from the location of the project; 20 (h) the number of playgrounds in the neighborhood, the location of 21 each playground and the distance of each playground from the location of 22 the project; 23 (i) the impact of the project on the existing infrastructure of the 24 neighborhood; 25 (j) the impact of the project on the local economy of the neighbor- 26 hood; 27 (k) mitigation measures proposed to minimize the impact of the project 28 on the neighborhood; and 29 (j) such other information as the city council deems relevant. 30 4. Such final neighborhood impact statement shall also include copies 31 or a summary of the substantive comments made pursuant to subdivision 32 five of this section, and the city response to such comments. The 33 purpose of a neighborhood impact statement is to provide detailed infor- 34 mation about the effect which a proposed project is likely to have on a 35 neighborhood, to list ways in which any adverse effects of such a 36 project might be minimized, and to suggest alternatives to such a 37 project so as to form the basis for a decision whether or not to under- 38 take or approve such project. Such statement should be clearly written 39 in a concise manner capable of being read and understood by the public, 40 should deal with the specific significant neighborhood impacts which can 41 be reasonably anticipated and should not contain more detail than is 42 appropriate considering the nature and magnitude of the proposed project 43 and the significance of its potential impacts. 44 5. After the completion of the draft neighborhood impact statement the 45 city shall conduct a public hearing for public comment on the neighbor- 46 hood impact of the project. Such hearing shall be held within sixty days 47 of the completion of the neighborhood impact statement. 48 6. The final neighborhood impact statement, together with the comments 49 of members of the public, shall be filed with the city, made available 50 to the public, and posted on the Internet website of the city prior to 51 the city taking any action on the proposal. 52 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.