Description
The Department of City Planning (DCP) is New York City’s primary land use agency and is instrumental in designing the City’s physical and socioeconomic framework. DCP’s ambition is to make all of New York a better place to live, to maintain what works and improve what doesn’t.
City planning lies at the nexus of many disciplines. It blends theoretical insights from the social sciences and natural sciences with urban, planning, and design concepts. Through this merger of ideas, it engages communities to bring about healthier, more inclusive, more vibrant places. To fulfill its mission, DCP draws on a variety of geographic, functional and technical talent to:
- Work with neighborhoods and government agencies to develop sound ground-up frameworks for growth that align strategic planning priorities with individual community needs.
- Capitalize on the City’s competitive advantages, including its built environment, natural setting, diversity and standing as a robust center of commerce and culture, and advance regulatory changes when appropriate.
- Encourage high-quality, sustainable development that respects and enhances its context.
- Promote neighborhood economic development.
- Maintain the Zoning Resolution text and maps that provide the policy and regulatory basis for land use and development, as mandated by the State and local laws.
- Advise government agencies and the public by providing policy analysis, technical assistance and data on housing, zoning, urban design, community facilities, transportation, demography, waterfront/public/open space data to inform strategic and capital planning decisions.
- Maintain an online Community Portal so that the public has easy access at all times to land use, housing and population data, as well as other planning resources.
- Serve as technical support to the City Planning Commission in its annual review of approximately 450 land use applications and ensure that processes, reviews and approvals are efficient, consistent, and user-friendly.
The agency is headquartered in Manhattan, on the 31st floor of 120 Broadway, with borough planning offices in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island and Manhattan.
