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Staff explains new SEQRA amendments and when housing projects may be exempt from review
Summary
City staff summarized May 26 state amendments to SEQRA (referred to in the hearing as SECRA) that carve out certain housing projects outside New York City as Type 2 actions when five criteria are met; the board voted to find the 108 Liberty application met those criteria before considering the variance.
A staff member summarized recent state changes to environmental review rules, explaining that amendments adopted May 26 establish categories of housing construction outside New York City that can be treated as Type 2 actions (no further environmental review) if they meet five criteria: connection to existing community water and sewer, a previously disturbed site, limited nonresidential uses, unit‑count limits, and not involving single‑family construction on parcels of one acre or larger. "The changes included qualified actions now that are exempt from SECRA review, new definitions and deadlines for agency determinations and specific documents," staff said, noting the changes took immediate effect and apply to pending applications.
Staff advised the board that each agency must make its own determination under the revised rules; the board then voted to find the 108 Liberty application met the stated criteria so the variance review could proceed. Staff also cautioned that being exempt or Type 2 does not preclude the planning board or other bodies from examining environmental or site‑adjacent considerations during their separate reviews.
