Mayor Eric Adams’ administration announced two new development projects on city-owned sites, highlighting a recent trend in activating vacant and underutilized public land for housing.

Adams administration officials at 390 Kent Ave., a city-owned property in Brooklyn where City Hall plans to build 900 apartments. (Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office)

New York has a housing crisis, but it’s also short on space. One potential solution? Build on land that the city owns but isn’t using.

That was the idea behind Mayor Adams’ executive order last year that required city agencies to find land that could be used for housing.

That effort has resulted in plans to build 11 projects and nearly 1,000 homes, Adams said in a press conference Thursday morning. “Where past administrations saw vacant lots and old office buildings, our administration saw housing,” he said.

He highlighted two new proposals on the Williamsburg waterfront and along the East River In East Harlem, where officials hope to build 900 and 800 homes, respectively. One-quarter of those homes would be set aside as affordable housing, Adams said.

The nine other projects include three library renovations with housing on top, the redevelopment of the old Flushing airfield, and the replacement of the Department of Housing, Preservation and Development’s office on 100 Gold St.

Deputy Mayor for Housing, Economic Development, and Workforce Adolfo Carrión said that a city task force, convened in response to Adams’ executive order last year, identified 13,000 potential development sites in total.

Two of the projects have begun public engagement. The rest are still requesting proposals from developers. Some may require review through the city’s Uniform Land Use Review Process.

Seeing housing in the ground may take time, even when experts say there is a dire shortage.

“We have been clear that the only way out of our housing crisis is to build more housing, and that is exactly what we are doing,” said Adams.

Here’s what else happened in housing this week—

ICYMI, from City Limits:

Speaking of city-owned land: the City Council approved a plan to build supportive housing on the campus of Jacobi Hospital, where apartments would be set aside for people with health issues who are coming out of jail. Last week, Mayor Eric Adams abruptly pulled his support for the project—which was first proposed in 2022—but lawmakers voted it through anyway, also over the objections of the councilmember whose district it lands in.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) under President Trump introduced an English-only policy last month, phasing out all of its materials in other languages. While local agencies that administer HUD programs will continue to offer translation services, tenants in buildings directly subsidized by HUD, such as project-based Section 8, may face hurdles, experts said.

Also feeling the rental squeeze? The city’s arts organizations. Learn more about BronxArtSpace, a gallery and exhibition space that’s found an affordable home in Hunts Point.

We need to turn the lights off in New York City’s buildings at night to protect birds from collisions, writes Assemblymember Harvey Epstein and Kathy Nizzari, founder of the Lights Out Coalition.

ICYMI, from other local newsrooms:

After many delays and community protests, a task force approved a plan to redevelop the Brooklyn Marine Terminal along Red Hook’s waterfront with thousands of new apartments, according to The City.

A record number of people moved out of shelter using CityFHEPS vouchers last year, Gothamist reported.

The city may pony up $2 billion to build a platform over a Manhattan rail yard so mega-developer Related Companies can build out the rest of Hudson Yards with “mostly luxury housing,” according to the New York Times.

Thousands of rent-stabilized apartments across Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan and the Bronx will be auctioned off after falling into bankruptcy, Bloomberg reported.  

Learn more about the housing-related ballot measures up for a vote this fall, via NY1.

To reach the reporter behind this story, contact Patrick@citylimits.org. To reach the editor, contact Jeanmarie@citylimits.org

The post More Housing On City-Owned Land, and What Else Happened This Week in Housing appeared first on City Limits.

BALTIMORE (AP) — Sinclair Broadcast Group is bringing Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show back to its ABC affiliate stations on Friday night, ending a dayslong TV blackout for dozens of cities across the U.S. over remarks the comedian made in the wake of conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s killing.

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“Our objective throughout this process has been to ensure that programming remains accurate and engaging for the widest possible audience,” Sinclair said in a statement Friday afternoon. “We take seriously our responsibility as local broadcasters to provide programming that serves the interests of our communities, while also honoring our obligations to air national network programming.”

Disney-owned ABC suspended Kimmel on Sept. 17, following threats of potential repercussions from the Trump-appointed head of the Federal Communications Commission. Nexstar, another affiliates group had announced it would preempt “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” before ABC’s decision, and Sinclair also condemned the host. And even after Disney brought Kimmel back to its national airways on Tuesday, both Sinclair and Nexstar continued to preempt the show.

NEW YORK (AP) — A federal immigration officer who shoved an Ecuadorian woman to the floor at a Manhattan court is “being relieved of current duties” following the “unacceptable” behavior, the Department of Homeland Security said Friday in a rare rebuke of one of its officers.

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In videos of the altercation, the woman can be seen pleading with the officer after her husband was arrested. The officer is captured in images that spread quickly on social media pushing her through a group of photographers into a wall and then onto the floor in a crowded hallway.

“The officer’s conduct in this video is unacceptable and beneath the men and women of ICE,” said Tricia McLaughlin, assistant secretary at DHS, which oversees immigration enforcement.

“Our ICE law enforcement are held to the highest professional standards and this officer is being relieved of current duties as we conduct a full investigation,” she added.

It is extremely rare for the Trump administration’s DHS to discipline its immigration officers for aggressive tactics.

The altercation occurred Thursday at 26 Federal Plaza in Manhattan, a government building that has become a local hotbed of the federal government’s immigration crackdown.

Eagan featured a youth-filled roster when McKenna Melville took over as head coach for her mom, Hall of Fame coach Kathy Gillen, in 2023.

Eagan senior libero Madi Kraft poses for a photo at a Breakdown Sports Media shoot in Apple Valley on Saturday, March 1, 2025. (Jason Wachter / Breakdown Sports Media)

Melville needed someone she could lean upon to uphold a sound defensive structure.

Luckily, she had Madi Kraft.

The now 17-year-old Kraft stands 5 feet, 5 inches tall, and has played for Eagan’s varsity team since eighth grade. Melville said Kraft – a two-year starter at that point – was a focal point when she arrived and helped craft the style of play her team would adopt.

“She helped form the foundation of, okay, well, we can have a solid defense because we have Madi Kraft on the court,” Melville said.

As a libero, Kraft’s main duties fall on the defensive side, but that doesn’t prevent her from affecting the Wildcats’ offense.

Attend an Eagan volleyball match and there is one sound guaranteed to ring through the gymnasium: Kraft calling out to her hitters, identifying the opposing team’s weak spot for them to target with swings.

Melville said the coaching staff is working with Kraft on being more than just a passer on the court.

“She can see the game at a level that most of our athletes can’t see the game,” Melville said. “So we wanted her to vocalize, hey, tell the girls what you see. Because it’s most likely right.”

The mental aspect of Kraft’s game is something she has had to work on throughout her time playing for the Wildcats.

Gillen remains on Eagan’s coaching staff as an assistant coach, and Kraft said the seven-time state champion coach provides pointers that help her with the cerebral side of the game.

“Gillen has helped me get mentally tough; she’s pushed me through a lot,” Kraft said.

Kraft said her playstyle is gritty, confident and resilient. As a senior leader for Eagan (13-4), confidence is key. Melville noticed the growth in Kraft’s leadership over the last two years.

At the Eagle Invitational recently played in Apple Valley, Kraft had 43 digs over two games, which pushed her north of 2,400 digs for her high school career.

With the wealth of experience Kraft has gained, having started on varsity for the last five seasons, Melville said Kraft is thriving with the increased responsibilities.

“She puts the team on her back,” Melville said. “The first thing she says is, ‘What more can I do?’ and as a little sophomore, she wasn’t asking that question.”

Melville also admires Kraft’s approach to each match.

“She’s the kind of person where you’re like, ‘I need you to run through a brick wall right now,’ and she would go and then ask the question after,” Melville said. “That’s exactly what we need, that bought-in factor.”

That’s a quality Melville understands is important at the next level. The coach played five seasons of college volleyball at Central Florida, and led the nation in kills her senior season with 617. Kraft, too, will experience the Division-I level. She committed to Minnesota a year ago, noting Gophers coach Keegan Cook played a big role in her decision.

“How much (he) cares for his athletes stuck out to me,” she said, “and … how smart he is about the game.”