Friday Newsletter: Labor Trouble, Landlords, Landmarking
Restaurant week and more.
Artists are Fleeing NYC
Since 2019, the city has lost 4.4% of its artists, the first sustained decline in decades, according to a report by the Center for an Urban Future.
The most dramatic change has been in neighborhoods historically popular with artists. Over the last decade, the artist population has dropped by 32% on the Upper West Side, 18% in Chelsea and Hell’s Kitchen, and 17% in Harlem, according to the Center. Lower East Side and in Chinatown have lost nearly 56% of their artist population since 2013. Even Bushwick has not been spared.
Artists are leaving for cheaper neighborhoods further out — East Flatbush, Highbridge/Concourse, and Ocean Hill/Brownsville. Hudson Valley’s artist population is up 7.2 percent since 2019, Philadelphia has grown 8 percent.
Would dedicated affordable housing help keep them?
Local Politics
Mamdani is facing a budget gap of about 12-13 billion but says “we reject austerity politics,” and expects corporations and the wealthy to step up. One reason for the shortfall - keeping up with the fast-accelerating demand for housing vouchers.
The Public Advocate released the Worst Landlords list, leading to more tenant organizing.
Last year mayoral candidate Mamdani protested with tenant activists outside the annual gala of the Real Estate Board of New York. This year, while the governor was present, the mayor skipped the event. (Politico)
The childcare plan unveiled this month by Hochul and Mamdani tackled some of their biggest electoral challenges in 2026. (Politico)
Governor Hochul backed the extension of mayoral control over schools, and kept tax increases out of her budget.
Labor Trouble
The city is losing jobs in every major part of the workforce except health care. New York City added just 27,100 jobs last year, according to the state Labor Department, compared to the average of 187,000 jobs during the last four years. (THE CITY)
15,000 nurses are still on strike.
Preservation Has Costs, Housing Is One of Them
Landmarking neighborhoods is the city’s most powerful zoning tool to limit growth. Without a doubt, landmarking protects areas that preserve our history, but the city hall should also consider the long term tradeoffs, I argued in a piece this week.
Since landmarking permanently limits growth in generally prime development areas, it should be treated similarly to a neighborhood rezoning. Currently, that is not the case in NYC.
Hochul’s Proposal Could Ease New York’s Housing Crisis
New York Governor Kathy Hochul has proposed exempting buildings with up to 500 units in medium- and high-density districts and buildings with up to 250 units elsewhere from the state’s environmental-review process. Outside of the city, buildings with up to 100 units would qualify.
“If passed, these changes would mean communities that want new housing would be able to get it faster, and with less administrative expense,” MI’s Eric Kober explains. “The only question is whether the state legislature will play along.”
New York to Boca Raton?
“Boca Raton started trying to lure New Yorkers south even before Mamdani triumphed in the Big Apple in November. Almost as soon as the primary ballots were counted, Mayor Scott Singer—now term-limited out of the mayoralty and running for Congress—began touting the advantages of his city by the sea,” write Paul du Quenoy and Judith Miller.
Shortly after New York City’s primary, Boca Raton spent $70,000 on a billboard in Times Square to show off the city.
MI Event: Thursday, January 29, 2026 | 6:00 - 8:00 PM
Navigating School Choice in NYC: Options, Access, and the New Mayoral Administration
Join us during National School Choice Week for a panel discussion bringing together education experts and parents to understand how the system currently operates, what families should know when navigating their options, and what policy and governance changes may be on the horizon under the Mamdani administration.
Extra! Extra!
11 books about New York have been announced as finalists for the Gotham Book Prize
NYC Restaurant Week is Jan 20–Feb 12. Explore neighborhood favorites with 2-course lunches and 3-course dinners at $30, $45 and $60.
