NYC council pushes back at Mayor Eric Adams City of Yes zoning overhaul amid ongoing federal probe

It’s looking more like the City of Maybe.Mayor Eric Adams’ ambitious “City of Yes” citywide rezoning initiative is getting serious pushback from city lawmakers, who are looking to stall the plan while a federal corruption probe of City Hall plays out.The mayor’s pitch for the massive zoning overhaul, a major part of his political agenda, cleared another hurdle Wednesday with approval from the city Planning Commission but still needs for the City Council to sign off — and that may be too much to ask.In a statement, Councilman Robert Holden called on the city to “step back, delay this proposal and put it up for a vote as either a ballot proposal or an election topic for next year’s municipal elections.”“The City of Yes for Housing Opportunity is a slap in the face to New Yorkers, especially in the outer boroughs,” Holden said.

“With no infrastructure upgrade plans—such as aging electric grids, deteriorating roads, overwhelmed sewer systems, and under-resourced schools—and recent storms killing people in basement apartments, the last thing we should be doing is pushing forward a rushed plan that most community boards and countless civic associations oppose,” he said.Hidden in the rhetoric is growing concern among many city pols that an ongoing federal corruption probe enveloping the Adams administration may spell the end of the mayor’s term at City Hall — one way or another.The federal investigation has already rattled the administration, with schools Chancellor David Banks announcing he will step down this week, following resignations by other top Adams staffers, among them Chief Counsel Lisa Zomberg and NYPD Commissioner Edward Caban.

Caban’s replacement, interim police Commissioner Thomas Donlon, a former high-ranking FBI again, acknowledged that the feds raided his home last week as well.While the probe has made some in the city uneasy about moving ahead on City of Yes, city planning officials contend the overhaul is long overd...