New York Launches Program to Speed Up Approvals

Announced this week by Deputy Mayor Robert Steel, a new program being launched by the Department of City Planning on July 2 will seek to dramatically improve the time it takes a project to traverse the city's land use approval process.

2 minute read

June 22, 2012, 11:00 AM PDT

By Jonathan Nettler @nettsj


Apparently, Los Angeles isn't the only city aiming to streamline its development approvals process. It's unlikely that the timing of these reform efforts is coincidental, as both planning departments respond to developer frustrations with increasing processing times necessitated by complex public processes (and strained planning departments), and pressures from development-friendly mayors to speed up the approval of projects that can bring jobs and increased revenues to city coffers.

Adam Fusfeld provides the details on New York's new Business Process Reform, or BluePRint, program, which promises to expedite by 50% the time it takes to go through the pre-certification process prior to entering the formal public review stage, known as Uniform Land Use Review Process (ULURP).

"During the pre-application process, City Planning works with developers to formulate land use proposals and conduct an environmental analysis ahead of ULURP. Steel said streamlining that process would save developers some $100 million annually, and help the agency work through the 500 applications it receives annually at a faster pace," writes Fusfeld.

"By the time all the planned upgrades are fully implemented in 2015, City Planning promises there will be a system for electronic applications that will allow developers, and the public, to track the certification."

"Revamping the pre-certification process for land use review took $2 million and 18 months to develop. It follows a separate program launched in April that aimed to help speed the approval process for new Department of Building applications through three-dimensional, electronic submissions."

Thursday, June 21, 2012 in The Real Deal

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Use Code 25for25 at checkout for 25% off an annual plan!

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

May 7, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

People biking along beach path with moored ship in San Diego, California.

San Diego Adopts First Mobility Master Plan

The plan provides a comprehensive framework for making San Diego’s transportation network more multimodal, accessible, and sustainable.

May 2, 2025 - SD News

Front of Walmart store with sign.

Walmart Announces Nationwide EV Charging Network

The company plans to install electric car chargers at most of its stores by 2030.

May 7, 2025 - Inc.

Pump station with blue pipes coming out of concrete wall in Seattle, Washington.

Seattle Builds Subway-Sized Tunnel — for Stormwater

The $700 million ‘stormwater subway’ is designed to handle overflows during storms, which contain toxic runoff from roadways and vehicles.

May 13 - City Observatory

Sign for Deschutes National Forest in Oregon.

Feds Clear Homeless Encampment in Oregon Forest

The action displaced over 100 people living on national forest land near Bend, Oregon.

May 13 - The New York Times

Seeing the Better City

Is This Urbanism?

Chuck Wolfe ponders a recommended subscription list of Substack urbanists and wonders — as have others — about the utility of the "urbanist" moniker.

May 13 - Resurgence: A Journey via Substack

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.